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our guide to
buying property in and around Pézenas in the south of
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Buying and Contract Procedures
Several books have been written on this subject and the
following reflects the local practice as adopted by this
Agency in conjunction with the local Notaires.
Once an agreement has been reached on price, then a 'Compromis
de Vente' is drafted by Agence Guy to include the following:
1. The names,
dates of birth, professions and address of the sellers/vendors.
2. The names,
dates of birth, professions and address of the purchasers/buyers.
3. Brief
description of all the property and/or land to be purchased,
making sure that all the property and/or land 'Cadastre'
(Land Registry) areas and registered numbers are included,
and that these are accurate. The areas and numbers can
be found on the 'Cadastre Plan' of the locality. There
is no need to include room sizes of the property.
4. The Price.
5. Special
Contract Conditions. These are called Conditions Suspensive.
This means that these conditions must be fulfilled for
the contract to proceed to completion. Any proposed bank
loan must be included in this clause. It is normal for
the loan amount and the date by which any offer or refusal
of a loan is to be obtained, to be written in. The waiting
period for such an offer is a month.
6.
Further Contract Conditions, or Conditions Particulières.
This is where we include a date for the occupation of
the property, should this differ from the completion date.
That is to say we write in the date up till when the vendors
are allowed to stay in the property.
7. The Deposit
to be paid to the Notaire. This deposit is normally ten
per cent and is kept by the Notaire and then taken into
account when the sale is completed.
8. The Completion
Date. This is normally two months or less from the date
of the signing of the Compromis de Vente.
9. The name
of the Notaire acting for the sale and the location of
the Notaire's office. Whereas the buyer does have the
choice of which Notaire to ask to conduct the contract,
it is normal practice to ask one who operates in the locality.
It is important to remember that the Notaire acts for
the contract and does not act as a solicitor for the buyer,
and therefore cannot offer any advice unless it is on
a matter of law relating to the contract.
10. We are
often asked if there are any hidden costs. The simple
answer is no, other than the standard cost of house insurance
referred to elsewhere in this document. Plus, of course,
the transfer charges for electricity and water.
11. You will
have a seven day period for reflexion, during which you
may withdraw from the sale.
This will mean that you must send a registered letter
with recorded delivery to inform us of your decision.
The Notaire's Duties
Perhaps the most important difference between the legal
procedure in the UK and France is that the Notaire acts
for the contract. He does not act as a solicitor advising
either the buyer or seller.
The Notaire is required to obtain three certificates before
he can proceed to complete the contract.
First is The Certificat des Hypotheques. This is in effect
the French Government Mortgage Registry which has to declare
whether or not there are any outstanding loans on the
property.
If any such loan is found to be still registered, he has
to:
a) either repay the amount
out of the proceeds of the sale, before paying the vendor,
b) or, if he believes that
there has been a loan and it has already been repaid,
then he has to sort out the discrepancy before being able
to obtain the clearance certificate. He cannot complete
without this important piece of paper.
The second certificate is The Certificat d'Urbanisme.
This is issued by the Mairie confirming that the property
is what it sets out to be i.e. a dwelling house; that
the planning situation is correct; and that there are
no special rights of way or similar which relate to the
sale.
Third is The Certificat de Pre-emption. In nearly all
cases, each village has the right at law to compulsory
purchase any property which is being offered for sale.
That is only likely to arise if the Mairie considers that
the property would be useful to, for example, extend the
village school, extend a car park, create an open space.
In practice this seldom happens and in any event the village
has to match the price and has to have the money to buy.
As to plans for future development, the Notaire will declare
anything that comes to light in the Certificate d'Urbanisme
referred to above. Any other matters such as road widening,
railway or transport projects or a new housing development,
are left to the buyer to make his or her own enquiries
by inspecting on site, and using their judgement of what
seems possible.
At the time of completion, the Notaire will go through
the contract and address these points for you.
The Notaires Fees
These are set out in a schedule by the state, these include
different stamp duties, registration fees etc.
Allow aound 7% it depends on the price of your house,
we will calculate this for you.
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