My name is Caroline Phillipson. I am an English estate agent and after living and working in the UK for most of my life in the legal profession, my family and I decided to move to France for a better life a few years ago. I have two children, the youngest at the local primary school and the other at the lycée (college). They are both fluent in French and have totally integrated into the French way of life. My husband is a builder and he has a good client base of both English and French. Let me help you find your perfect house and guide you through the buying process.
Once you have made an offer on a property and it has been accepted, all parties to the sale must then sign the initial contract, known
as the 'compromis de vente'. This is a binding contract and you have a period of 7 days after signing to change your mind without
penalty – this actually translates to about 2 weeks as the 7 days won’t start until you receive a letter from me informing you of
this cooling-off period, and it has to be sent recorded delivery.
Ideally, the 'compromis' is signed by all parties at the same time
so that I can send the paperwork to the notary, known as the 'notaire', as quickly as possible but for various reasons, this isn’t
always possible. Obviously, the compromis is in French but I have an English version also so that you know what you are signing! Before
sending any paperwork through, I will also need a copy of your passport, birth certificate and marriage certificate, if you are married
(even if you are buying in your name only).
A 'notaire' is an independent public official who carries out all transactions relating
to property, inheritance, divorce, etc. He performs the functions normally taken care of by a solicitor in the UK. As an independent
person, it is quite acceptable for the same 'notaire' to represent both buyer and seller
The deposit then needs to be paid
into the notaire’s account as soon as your 7 day cooling-off period is over. If after this you pull out for no good reason, then the
deposit is forfeit. If a property carries particular concerns, for example if it requires the installation of a septic tank for which
permission is needed, then it is possible to include in the compromis a 'clause suspensif' relating to this. This then means that
the contract becomes conditional upon this clause and you can pull out without penalty should the condition not be met.
Once the compromis
is signed and the 7 days are up, the notaire proceeds to prepare the final contract or ‘acte de vente’. He carries out all the usual
searches and investigations into title, etc. If anything is amiss, he will inform you and if it is fundamental to your enjoyment and
use of the property, you can withdraw with no penalty. It usually takes 2-3 months after the compromis to prepare the acte de vente.
A week or so before the day of signing, you will need to transfer the balance of the purchase price plus the agency and notaire's
fees to the notaire’s account (the notaire's fees work out at around 7-9% of the price of the house and they include all duties, taxes,
etc.). You may also need to reimburse the seller for part of the year's property taxes but ‘taxe foncière’ is not expensive in this
region.
The ideal is for all parties to attend the notaire's office for the signing of the 'acte'. However, another option is for you
to grant the notaire a power of attorney for this purpose, and he can sign on your behalf.
Once this is done, you officially own the
property and you can take your keys (if there are any!) and move in.
As you will have to wait about 4 months or so for the deeds, the
notaire will provide you with an 'attestation' which proves that you are the rightful owner(s) of the property. When you do eventually
receive a copy of the deeds, the notaire will include a breakdown of exactly how the fees were distributed (duties, taxes, registration
fees, etc.). The fees are usually over-estimated so you may even get a small cheque back.
