A Piece of Burgundy will accompany you throughout the purchase from your initial visit to the Immobilier right through to the Notaires office.  You do not pay for our service, that is paid for by the vendor.  See below for the charges associated with buying a house in France and also what is included within the price you see on our web site.

Whilst we cannot give you qualified legal advice, the system of purchasing houses in France is very well regulated by the State covering both the Immobiliers and the Notaires, both of whom rely on maintaining their state recognition of business by obeying the rules put in place strictly.

Below you will find a summary of the process of purchasing a house in France.

The Compromis de Vente

This is the first of two contracts used to buy the house.  The purchaser and vendor need to sign this, although not at the same time.  Both will sign it at the Immobiliers office and we will be present to help you.

Due to new laws that came into force on 1st November 2006 you are now not allowed to sign a compromis de vente without having the results of house surveys in place.  This is not always done before your decision to purchase, therefore you will often not sign it on the day of viewing.  As a result many compromis' are now signed by post, a service we have organised with our Immobilier partner.  We offer full support, translation and advice throughout the signing by post service.

The Compromis de Venteis a legally binding document that ties both parties into the purchase whilst the searches are done and other matters are sorted out.  When both parties have signed, the price of the property cannot change and niether party can pull out without financial implications.  There will be a delay of approximately 2 to 3 months while the Notaire works on finalising all matters.  A provisional completion date will usually be set within the compromis and if this date is not met the vendor maybe free to withdraw from the proposed sale and keep your deposit.  It is really important that the purchasing procedure is carefully monitored to make sure the purchase is not lost through poor timing.

To enable the compromis to be compiled you will need to supply various pieces of personal information (such as copies of passports) together with any information on financing the purchase.  A Piece of Burgundy have compiled a fiche d'informations that asks for all the information needed by the Immobilier to produce the compromis.  It can be filled in by hand and or electronically and e-mailed.

The compromis will be in French.  However, A Piece of Burgundy will be present to translate it into English for you and discuss any problem areas, as well as to answer your questions. 

7 Days to change your mind

During the seven days after you and the vendor have signed the compromis you will need to send, or give, a deposit of 10% of the property price to the Immobilier.  If you fail to complete the purchase by latest completion date stated on the compromis, or you cannot complete for any reason, you will forfeit this money.  If you are using a legal adviser in your own country you will need to ensure that he or she keeps to the time table for the purchase otherwise your deposit and the property is at risk.  Be sure to clarify this point when appointing an adviser.

Once both parties have signed the compromis it will usually be sent to your home address by recorded delivery.  Purchasers have a 7 day cooling off period from the date of receipt of the compromis.  This is the time which should be used for obtaining a survey if you wish to.  After this point the contract is binding on both parties.

If you are buying with a loan, mortgage or any other borrowed money there is an additional period of 40 days (starting at the same day as the 7 days period) to allow you to recieve acknowledgment of the loan ammount.  The decision of the loaning company must be forwarded to the immobilier within this 40 day period or, again, your 10% deposit will be at risk if you cannot complete.  During this 40 days you must send the letter of acceptance or refusal from your lender to us.  If you do not the compromis cannot be annulled and you will lose your 10% deposit.

The Acte Authentique

If possible, it really is good to be present in France for the signing of this final contract.  The signing takes place in the notaire's office with the vendors, the French agent, A Piece of Burgundy and you, the purchaser present.  A Piece of Burgundy will be present to represent you and translate all that is needed.  It is often a time of seriousness combined with hilarity.  It certainly feels a very important moment in your life and can also be a really good time to check with the vendor on how all the equipment in the house works and to find out more about the history of the house.

Before attending the final signing you will need to ensure that the balance of the monies for the purchase are received by the Notaire.  This is ussually done via a Foriegn Exchange company, unless you already have the money available in Euros.  It should be done 7 - 10 days before the completion date to ensure that the money clears to the Notaires account before the day of signing.

At the end of the signing process you will be handed an attestation of ownership by the notaire while the deeds are sent away to be registered.  You will need to remember to chase for the return of these about 6 months after signing.

  Fees payable

All the prices quoted for houses on our web site are fully inclusive of all agents fees, the asbestos survey, the lead survey, a catastrophe risk survey and a insulation and heating survey (these are actually paid by the vendor).

The Notaies Fee, however, is payable by the purchaser upon completion of the sale.  It will be added to the purchase price of the house within the compromis de vente so that you know precisely how much this will be.  It is not included in the 10% deposit that you pay as you do not pay it to the Immobilier but to the Notaire direct with your final payment.

It approximates to 8 or 9% for lower priced houses and drops to around 6% for the more expensive properties and is set by french law.  It will not vary from lawyer to lawyer but does vary with the price of the house.  For example for a house of 80,000€ it will be 6,010€ and for a house of 315,000€ it will be 20,520€.

If you would like to know the approximate value of the Notaires fee for any house found on our site please click here to send a request.  Simply quote the reference number of the house you are interested in.  

If you are taking a loan secured on the value of the house in France there is another fee the Notaire will add to those above.  Called the frais d'inscription de privilège de prêteur it equates to around 1% of the purchase price.  Click here to read more about the Loan Fees

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Definitions

French	English	Definition
Immobilier	The Estate Agent	Our partner agent, sells the houses as available, deals with the vendor on your behalf, draws up the compromis de vente.  They have been trading as one of the most respected Immobiliers in the area for 28 years, are fully registered, insured and have an indemnity account of 110,000€
Notaire	The Solicitor	Does all the legal paperwork that takes the agreement between the vendor and the purchasor (the compromis de vente) and changes the deeds for the house accordingly.  He does all the searches as outlined in the compromis and ensures all parties are able to sell/ buy the property.  If any Clause suspensifs have been added to the compromis he will ensure they are satisfied before allowing the conclusion of the sale.
Clause Suspensifs	Break Clauses	You can specify certain parameters that should be met by the vendor/ property.  If any of these are not met to your satisfaction or are impossible to meets to the Notaires satisfaction, then the sale will halt without fault and without recourse to either party losing the 10 deposit.
Compromis de Vente	Promise to Sell	The first of the two documents used to buy a house in France.  It is a promise from the vendor to sell the property to the purchasor at the price stated, under the terms as stated and on the date as stated.  It is signed by the purchasor first and then the vendor, ussually at the Immobiliers office, although it can all be done by post.
Acte Athentique	The Deeds	The finalised document, prepared by the Notaire, that takes the terms of the compromis and forms the new deeds in the name of the purchasor.  When you sign this document you become the legal owner(s) of the property and the keys are yours.  The actual deeds are sent on a paper-trail through the buraucracy of the French civil service for a long time before being returned to you.  To prove your ownership you will be given an attestation of ownership instead on the day of the signing.
Rapport/ Réperage Amiante	Asbestos Survey	A report into the existance and location of any products that contain Asbestos.  This survey is non-invasive, so cannot find materials hidden within the fabric of the building but wil find those products likely to be disturbed after your purchase. See our Asbestos Services for more help with Asbestos.
Diagnostique Plomb	Lead Survey	A comprehensive search for products containing Lead.  Mainly the paint, which was used extensively throughout France until 1984, and the pipes.  All walls, doors, windows and frames will be tested and the results can be quite daunting. We offer a translation service and advice to deal with these results.
Diagnostique de Performance Energetique	Energy Survey	Another survey, this one investigates the house's performance in relation to insulation, heating expense and reliance on non-renewable energies.  It is only required for houses that use a fixed central heating system.  This includes storage heaters, oil and gaz boilers but excludes Wood fires..