Purchasing A French Home? Useful Ideas To Guide You

It's a cliche to say that the French usually do things differently from the British. The French change it around and say that the Brits do things in a different way from everyone else. However like all cliches there's a fundamental truth.

Revealing problems in a property purchase is a case in point. The fundamental principle in British law is "buyer beware" - in other words, it is up to the buyer to check the nature of what he's purchasing. A vendor is not allowed to misrepresent: but if an individual markets "a property" he's not thereby required to tell the buyer everything that is wrong with it. It is up to the buyer to inspect and find out.

Here is the underlying reason for the advisory providers surrounding a British property purchase. A surveyor will provide a professional examination intended to reveal any hidden defects. A solicitor will take a look at the legal factors, carry out local searches, raise a long list of queries and summarise the ramifications. When a customer is content he knows everything concerning the house that there is to know, he'll feel able to move forward.

Vice cache

In France the onus is put on the vendor. The buyer is not expected to undertake any serious analysis. The notary will provide him with evidence of title and details of any registered costs and 3rd party legal rights. But apart from that the vendor must act "in good faith" and also to disclose flaws in the house. A deficiency that's deliberately not disclosed by the seller, and which subsequently materialises, is referred to as a vice cache or hidden defect. The customer can turn upon the vendor after the sale and require either a reduction in price or perhaps a cancellation of the transaction.

What type of things are we talking about? Basically, anything that makes the property insufficient for the expected use, or which makes the use so totally different from what was intended that the customer wouldn't have purchased it, either at the price agreed or at all. This might be something outside the home itself - for example too much noise in the neighbourhood. Or it may be an internal issue, such as a falling wall that the vendor has concealed.

In practice, there's usually a component of deceit involved if a claim is to work. Buyers are required to undertake a degree of inspection, just like any sensible person would. In addition, the many reports which the seller must provide (termites, asbestos, electrical installations etc.) eliminate legal responsibility as regards matters covered in the reports.

Taking things on trust

A foreign buyer, bemused by the functions of the French system, not to mention the language, tends to depend on the ethics of the people he is working with. If he's told that the seller needs to make sure he understands of all defects he might be relaxed. But he would be foolish to rely on it without examination and confirmation. First, he may not understand what he is told. Secondly, once he has paid his money he will have to undertake courtroom proceedings in France to be able to obtain redress. Thirdly, the vendor may have disappeared over the horizon. Fourthly - well, you get the drift.

Unlike what many French believe, purchasers of property in France are not particularly well protected. The notary will aid as well as he can, but he is supervising a deal rather than taking one side in opposition to the other. The system of legal responsibility for concealed defects gives an ex post facto remedy which may be challenging to impose.

Solutions

It's all very well pointing out a problem, but what of the answer? Employing a UK legal adviser experienced in French legislation may assist, but in my experience it has a tendency to complicate the chain of communication and create more uncertainty compared to reverse. I am more in favour of people exercising basic good sense. The notaire will check title, so that should not be a problem. Obtaining a survey from a UK-qualified surveyor resident in France should remove any niggles about the solidity of the construction. As for other matters, you shouldn't be bamboozled by estate agents disregarding worries of yours until they have given a reason that you grasp. And for those who have any serious issue, get the response on paper.

The fundamental rule in this as in other key decisions is to make sure you understand what is at stake and take adequate time to make a sensible decision, without being overinfluenced by emotion or people with other interests at heart.

Sounds easy, doesn't it? Now let me try out your resolve by showing you a dream of a Dordogne chateau that could make your heart overrule your head...