purelyfrance

Time to roll the sleeves up!

After your recent French property purchase, hopefully you have had a champagne celebration (when in Rome……..)   The next step means putting aside momentarily the romance of your adventure and focus on any renovations your property may require.  They normally do!!

 

For each of our three purchases, we have always taken the approach of buying a property that was currently being lived in.  This lowers the risk of unpleasant surprises; usually means water, sewerage, electricity are at least in working order; and unless you plan major changes any structural reconstruction is of a ‘minor’ nature.

If you can live ‘on site’ when the renovations are being carried out, so much the better. The sub-contractors then know if they are scheduled for work ‘chez vous’ you are going to be there expecting them. It also means you can react immediately to any questions that arise (there will be many!) and be involved if some minor changes come along during the work. This also usually happens.

Even seemingly small tasks such as the placement of a power point can be managed straight away, having them placed exactly where you want them.  Consider this conversation Anne had with Franck, our electrician:

F. Where in the kitchen do you want your spots?

A. I don’t want spots.  (Anne thinks spot lights have a place in a home, but not in her kitchen)

F. How many spots do you want?

A. I don’t want spots.

F. Do you want two spots or three spots?

A. (emphatically) I-do-not-want-spots - merci.

F. It is summer now and it is light, in the winter you wont be able to see to cook.

A. (resignedly) Three spots s’il vous plait, right here above the window, right in the centre.

For renovations involving plumbing, electricity, knocking out walls etc we recommend you employ an architect.  Yes it will add to your costs, around 10%, but there are many advantages, particularly as he/she acts as a Project Manager.

1. They will select the sub-contractors. We would not have had a clue as to who was good bad or indifferent.  An architect has a professional reputation to protect so he will select subbies who are going to do quality work. They will lay out the work spec and request the devis. (quotes)

2. They will co-ordinate the sequence of the subbies work and therefore save you time. There is nothing more frustrating than waiting two weeks just for a plumber to come to disconnect a pipe before other work can proceed.

 

3. Often they will make suggestions which will save you money. And they can be quite inventive. Our lady architect in Provence completely transformed our kitchen in a layout we would never have thought of.  Here in Burgundy, our architect located an exterior drain by using a ‘diviner’ stick. I kid you not!!

4. The work completed under their jurisdiction is guaranteed, so you have some degree of security that the work will be completed to your satisfaction. And actually completed!!

As you receive each ‘devi’ read through them carefully, with a French dictionary beside you if neccessary.  We made a point of always asking questions - not that we expected to have the price reduced but we thought it was good practice to make everyone aware we were keeping an eye on the ‘devis’.

We found that  the costs were generally within or confined to the prices quoted. The biggest challenge is ‘time’ and this becomes very important if you are creating a Bed and Breakfast or self-catering holiday accommodation.

Your season for guests starts around Easter each year. So you want all your work done by then. However, the prime selling/booking season starts straight after Christmas, so ideally you want all your renovation work completed by the end of November. You need at least a months lead time as you need to take photos, activate your website and/or  arrange to be listed in some of the internet based directories. So if you estimate you have 3 months of renovation work in front of you, allow 6 months and you will be close. Don’t forget, as we did (twice - slow learners!!) that no work will be carried out in August, so you need to plan for that being a ‘lost’ month.

After that, all you need is the 3 P’s mantra - patience, persistence and perserverance.

Bon Courage!!

A Bientot, Bruce.

The Legal Process

Once you have an agreed price for the property you are going to buy, a meeting is arranged at a Notaire to sign the Compromis (draft sale) document.  Apart from yourselves, in attendence will be the sellers and also the Real Estate agent.

We think the Notaire system is very good and provides you with a great deal of confidence.  Their prime responsibility is to ensure that the transaction is completed in accordance with existing French law, and that the correct amount of taxes are applied. (and collected!) So essentially they are independant, not acting for you or the seller, but for the French government.  If you are a non-French speaker the Notaire must arrange for a translator to be present.

You are quite entitled to appoint your own Avocat to represent you but we have never felt a need to do so.  The only exception was when we bought our first property and we we couldn’t be in France when the final documents were signed. We provided a Power of Attorney to an Avocate who signed for us. To this day we have never met her - she was away on holiday when we called by her office to collect the keys!!

I should mention here that this article is a very broad brush of our experiences and a guide only. You should of course seek expert professional advice for any property transaction you undertake. Particularly as the laws appear to be modified quite frequently. You can find excellent information at www.notaires.fr including an english version!

The Compromis is wordy (naturally!) but many of the subject headings are the same as what you would see in your own country. One very important set of clauses are the Conditions Suspensive. Here you must insert any ’subject to’ conditions you wish to apply, such as raising a loan, or selling an existing property. Once you have signed the Compromis, and if all the Conditions Suspensive have been fulfilled then the sale must proceed. Otherwise you forfeit your deposit. (usually 10%)

Once the Compromis has been signed there is usually a two or three month gap until you sign the final sale document, the Acte de Vente. During this time the Notaire undertakes the neccessary searches and checks. The seller must also present a report detailing the whereabouts of any lead, termites and asbestos on the property. They are not compelled to remove these, merely make you aware of where they exist. The Notaire also advises the local Mairie of the transaction as usually the town/village/commune has the right to purchase the property at the agreed price!!

A few days prior to signing the Acte de Vente you will need to have paid the balance of the purchase price into the Notaire”s bank account. After you have completed signing the Acte de Vente (this can take two or three hours) the Notaire will present you with the keys to your new home and you become the proud new owners from that time.

We were intrigued with the imprecise possession date applied to our existing property. We took ownership of the keys on the 20th of December, two months later in February the previous owners were still removing various items from the property!!  They are a lovely family so we didn’t at all mind, were just amused by it.

A Bientôt, Bruce.

 Cutting the ‘deal’.

We had found our ‘dream’ home, here in Chaudenay, Burgundy. Now the fun started, making the offer and clinching a deal. It is always the most difficult decision, what price to offer. When it comes to property buying, there is a little bit of  a ‘trader’ in most of us and of course one always wishes to avoid ‘over paying’ for a property. 

Our own experience in France is that the difference between the ’settlement’ price and the ‘asking’ price is somewhat narrower than what is often the case in our home countries of New Zealand and Australia.  Yes, we have been told of transactions where the property was bought at 50% of the asking price (I told them I was in town for 24 hours, I can write them a cheque sort of thing) but within a band of 5% to 15% seems to be more common.

When we sold our village house in St Remy de Provence we received our asking price, and in Nice when we sold our apartment we also received our asking price. In both cases some negotiation occurred over fittings.

As you would anywhere, we sought out any negotiating ‘angles’. Why were the owners selling? (ill health) How long has the property been on the market? (two weeks, so that didn’t help us!) How many owners are there? (6 families - quelle horreur)

We sought guidance from the Immobiliere. We reminded ourselves that real estate agents are the same the world over - their goal is to complete a sale. He counselled us not to make a ’silly’ offer, which seemed to be valid advice.

Pushing against all this was our strong desire to purchase the property. It met our spec, was in good condition, had an excellent location and stood up to a key consideration, resale value.

The offer and acceptance process is reasonably straight forward.  The Immobiliere may ask you to complete a simple ‘offer’ document or in our case we forwarded a fax making our offer.  After some minor negotiation, a price was agreed and the deal was done. This photo may give you a better idea of what our half a million+ euros bought!

Attention!!  Fittings/furniture are nearly always negotiable.  It is most important to undestand that ‘fittings’ have quite a different definition in France. The seller is quite entitled to take with them all curtains, floor coverings, light fittings, ovens etc and even cupboards. We learnt this the hard way with our first purchase in St Remy, the house had been stripped bare, naked wires hanging from the walls, a lone free standing kitchen sink was all that remained in the whole house!

So be careful to specify each ‘fitting’ that you wish to retain. There is also another advantage, fittings and or furniture are able to be set aside from the property as a seperate agreed cost and this can create some minor tax savings for you.

So, once you have your agreed price you march off to the Notaire’s office. I will cover this in the next Post of this series.

A Bientot,

Bruce.

Property search - cutting through the morass

I use the word ‘morass’ as a polite term for ‘les conneries’ which in itself is a polite word for ‘merde’. (I think!)

How to find and select your dream French property, without being driven to drink? (that can come later)  By now you will have chosen which area of France appeals to you most, and if you have been diligent you will have nutted out a property spec. (see previous Post)

Our next step was to undertake some research via the internet. There are obvious advantages in this; it is relatively quick; uncostly; gives you an independant ‘feel’ for what is on the market within your budget; you can do it wearing your slippers; and you can find property sites in english if you have a need for that.  We ended up with a list of 24 properties that we thought would be worth inspecting. Location ranged from Chablis in the far north of Burgundy to the area around Cluny in the south.

The major downside of being guided by the property descriptions are the descriptions themselves.  As most people are aware, a special University exists from where real estate agents worldwide graduate with a P.h.d. in the ’science’ of writing property descriptions. These descriptions of course bear no relation whatsoever to reality.  ‘Charming’ usually means the property needs total renovation; ‘panoramic views’ equals the house has no endearing features; ‘good development opportunity’ will normally require huge amounts of capital and 3 years of your life. I am sure you are all adept at interpreting such descriptions.

So, armed with our internet list we set out to view the properties in person.  I must say we generally found all the ‘immobiliers’ to be helpful, patient and reasonably efficient.  Like anywhere in the world they were keen to ‘make a sale’.  A number of them continued to feed us information on further properties after we had returned home.

Of the properties themselves, as you could expect they were a real mixed bag. Some we crossed off the list as soon as we walked through the front gate, others were discarded when we could see how much renovation was required. We saw one pristine property with a number of outstanding features and at an excellent price but its isolated location made us nervous. It stayed on our list but was eliminated later on.

In spite of all this analysis and research, ironically we literally tripped over the property we bought.  We were rushing to a rendezvous with an immobilier in Beaune. As we passed another immobilière, (haven’t quite worked out what there are most of in France, boulangeries, coiffures or immobilieres) Anne caught sight of some photos in their front window. A visit was hastily arranged for the next day and voila, it was one of those scenarios where we knew immediately this was the property for us.

Our search was relatively painless, it only involved three weekends. So our homework, analysis and research all played an important part in narrowing down our search. However, as you read in the final outcome, nothing beats being on the spot, wearing out your shoe leather and keeping your eyes and ears open.

Creating a Property Specification - it pays dividends 

This Post talks about drawing up a Property Specification.  We recommend you do it. At the very least it could save your marriage or friendship!!  A Property spec also provides a number of benefits.  It acts as a good discipline and a base document to refer to; it is helpful when you need to provide information to Immobiliers (real estate agencies); and importantly it ensures that there is total agreement between spouses/partners as to your expectations!!

 

Here is the spec we created when we were searching for our Burgundy B n B property, which we originally bought in partnership with another couple. In italics, I have indicated how we actually fared against our initial desires!!

1. Location - within 40 kms of Beaune, or  within 20 kms of Cluny, or within 20 kms of Chablis/Auxerre

As we were going to create a B n B, our starting point was to be located somewhere close to a Tourist attraction. People don’t come to an area just because you have a B n B!!  We saw one beautiful property, a Chateau, which would have been ideal and was at a very good price, but its location was far too remote so rightly we resisted the temptation.  We ended up 15kms from Beaune.

2. Situated - in a village or very close to a village

We are on the fringes of a village. We would have liked the village to have more services/facilities, so we compromised on this one.

3. Property - with character or memorable appeal, a grande maison, moulin, small château, etc

Our property consists of an elegant Maison de Maitre, extensive outbuildings and ‘extra’ features such as a 16th c wine press and an ancient Swiss oven room.

4. Possibly an existing chambres d’hôte or small hotel or has potential to be operated as one

It was a private home when we bought it but it clearly had potential as B n B/Gite accommodation.

5. 10 - 12 bedrooms

It had 5 bedrooms in the ‘Maison’ (just as importantly, 3 existing bathrooms) and potential to create 3 further Gites.

6. Property Condition - little or no significant restoration works required

We always recommend buying a property that is currently being lived in. Unless you have lots of money and three years of your life to spare!! Not always of course, but it does lower the risk of any ‘nasty’ surprises. Our property required a lot of renovation, some installation of second walls to minimise noise, and a rework of bathrooms. It had however been built with quality materials and was in good condition. It still took a year to complete!!

  

Nice old house to renovate said the Advertisement - I don’t think so!

7. Owners Accommodation - required for two couples, can be apartments contained within the main building or separate outbuilding (dépendance)

We managed this with two apartments located in the outbuildings.

8. Terrain - preferably 2 - 4 hectares

In retrospect the size of land was a bit ambitious, we ended up with 1 hectare (2.5 acres) which is more than ample and that takes enough time to keep maintained!!

One of the major advantages of having a written spec is that it enables you to very quickly eliminate a lot of properties, even without sighting them, therefore saving you a lot of time and frustration. We definitely recommend you create your own, it worked really well for us!

A Bientot,

Bruce.

Selecting an Area of France

WARNING! A bit like that one on the side of cigarettes!!  Living in France is very different to holidaying in France.  It is important to choose the area of France best suited to you.  Otherwise it can be dangerous to your health, your mental health at least!!

More positively, let’s look at how best to select where in France you wish to live. Our own motivations have been varied. In Provence it was purely instinctive.  Knee jerk some would say!  We visited Saint Remy  loved the town and the surrounding area and ‘tripped over’ a suitable property. For Nice  we were pulled there for business reasons. The weather appealed as well. Here in Burgundy it was a life style coupled with business choice. Being close to vineyards was probably also a factor!  Along the way we compiled a checklist to determine if we and the area were a compatible match. Here are some key factors for you to consider to choose your ‘dream’ region of France.

 1. Access.  We think this is more important than weather considerations. For a variety of reasons you need good air, road and/or rail access. This assumes you want family and friends to find you. Sometimes that is debatable! If you are going to offer holiday accommodation you want your potential clients to reach you as easily as possible. It is a good tip to study the route maps of the major European airlines such as BA, Air France, Lufthansa and KLM. But as importantly, run a check on these low cost carriers, Easyjet  and Ryanair.

Both of these carriers have in recent years extended their networks substantially, opening up a number of ’secondary’ airports and regions within France. Bravo to them! Toulon, Montpellier, St Etienne, Carcassone, and Toulouse are some good examples. They both rely almost exclusively on holiday or VFR (visiting friends or relatives) passengers so if they have 2 or 3 flights per day into a particular airport it will give you some confidence there are reasonable levels of holidaymakers visiting that region.

 For road access you are probably aware France has an excellent network of autoroutes.(motorways) They are well maintained and except for weekends in August, or in the case of major accidents they are rarely seriously congested. Yes, you pay a toll but for getting from point A to point B they are hard to beat. However, note most autoroutes run in a north/south direction. Therefore generally speaking driving east/west will usually involve longer drive times. To check distances and driving times we find Mappy to be very good.

A similiar situation exists with the train system. The TGV fast train whizzes from Paris to the Med but again primarily north/south. There are good train services in the north east extending onto Belgium, the Netherlands and Germany.  Conversely, there is no TGV track along the south coast so a trip from Marseille to Nice for example can take more than 3 hours. To check train services use this site clic on International Guest for English version.  It is the German railway site but includes all services within France and we find it more user friendly than the French site.  Wash your mouth out Bruce.2. Climate v. Cost.  It will be no surprise to you that the further south you go the more expensive are the properties. If sun and warmth are paramount to you, then you will be drawn to the southern strip from Languedoc-Roussillon in the west right across through Provence and the Cote d’Azur region. We have to say the climate on the French Riviera is superb, very mild winters and a long summer. While the temperatures can get up in the summer, they are often cooled by breezes off the Med.  Failing that, there is always easy beach access where there is always a lot going on to amuse yourself with!

Property prices in the south have been fuelled by international buyers and through airline activity mentioned above. When we were searching in Nice we were constantly being told by the real estate agents to ‘make a decision, there will be some Italians along soon to buy this property’. We took that to be ’sales talk’ but when we came to sell in Nice it was exactly the case, as one lot of Italians were coming to view our apartment another lot were leaving!  Bear in mind that while properties in the south are ‘expensive’ compared to other regions, they do tend to hold their value for resale and short lead time sales are not uncommon.

If however cost is a consideraton for you then you may wish to investigate some of the regions near the centre of France such as Burgundy or the Loire. Other attractive areas are down the western seaboard, or in the north such as Normandy. These areas tend to have lower (colder!) temperatues but for us there is pleasure in experiencing the four seasons, observing the countryside change colour, stoking up cosy fires and occasionally watching the snow fall gently in our courtyard! Occasionally!! For climate information try this weather site.

3. Environment.  What do you want around you?  Facilities and services of a town?  A more sedate pace of a village?  Space, fields and green-ness of a rural cum countryside setting as your neighbours?  Most people seek out a French ‘countryside’ location but that is often driven by price or what is on offer in a particular area. We had a small town location in St Remy, right in the centre, where we ran a very successful B n B. Our guests loved being able to walk 40 paces to shops, cafes and restaurants. But for that, you need to be comfortable having les voisins (neighbours) all around you.           

Another factor is noise. St Remy is small with narrow single lane streets so traffic noise was not a problem. (we did have two guests who objected to 14 July celebrations!) However in Nice, although we lived in a ‘quiet’ area (real estate speak) there was sufficient traffic for the noise to be an irritation at times. Here in Burgundy we are on the outskirts of a small commune (pop. 900) and we often receive coments from guests as to how quiet and peaceful it is. Do you want a particular outlook, a view to mountains, or across water, or rolling vineyards? Some of these factors are exactly what you would identify if shifting house in your home country.

4. Income/Financial/Business. Wherever you put down your ‘roots’ it is  necessary of course to be able to put bread on the table.  Naturellement, there is plenty of bread in France, of great quality too, but it still has to be paid for. If you intend to live in France and are finacially independent, then good for you!  You must have worked very hard for many years or else you have inherited well!  But for us other 95%, who still require an income to some level, how you achieve that income will have a big bearing on where you live. If you are very smart, the ideal is an internet based business that can be operated from almost anywhere.  Such a business also has the benefit of very little overhead.

Our move to Burgundy was a compromise. (like most property purchases!) We wanted ‘decent’ climate so didn’t want to shift too far north. For her business, Anne needed ready access to Paris, Switzerland, Germany, Holland and Belgium. So good rail serves were important. For our holiday accommodation it needed a tourist attraction, Beaune fulfils that need magnificently. We liked the gentle, welcoming Burgundy countryside (and its wines!) so we stitched together all those needs and here we are!

If you plan to operate a B n B or Gite accommodation one important location consideration is the length of the tourist season. In most areas the ’season’ lasts from around Easter to mid-October. Yes, that means up to 5 months of the year without income. And the bills keep coming I can assure you!  The further south you go the better chance you have to extend your season. But even in Provence we were surprised how much of the tourist activity closes down over winter. Future Posts will delve into this more deeply.

5. Your Interests.  An obvious consideration perhaps, but one that can sometimes be given only cursory attention. If say tennis or golf is important to you, you will want to avoid spending an hour in the car in each direction. If skiing is your thing, you are likely to look eastwards towards the Alps. Those of you with green fingers will probably steer clear of Provence.  If you interest is is walking or tramping you may want to locate near to one of France’s many National Parks.   If cycling is your fancy, choose anywhere. You will never lack for company!!

An associated consideration is what services and facilities do you need?  If for example your business requires professional help, legal, accountant, IT etc then you will want to be an easy drive away from a biggish town. For most of these services we take a 15 min trip into Beaune, it has a population of 20,000.  It has become more and more common to deal with many of these types of issues remotely, but at times it can be important to get face to face with your advisors. This is certainly helpful if you are not fluent in French.

If you are concerned about medical services, then stop worrying. We have found the French health service to be impressively efficient. Access to your GP is straight forward; appointments with specialists are available at short notice; scans and MRI’s are routine; and costs are generally reasonable. (yes, you do pay for it all in taxes!!)

Area selection conclusion. While it should be helpful to ponder all of the above, we also suggest that you let your instincts run loose.  Sit in the local café and looking out onto the village square does it give you a ‘warm’ feeling?  How do the waiters/waitresses seem? Walk through your closest supermarket, do the local residents look ‘interesting’ to you? Visit the Mairie, are they helpful and enthusiastic?

And one last tip. If you are naturally cautious by nature then visit the area again outside of spring and summer. That will often be the true test as to how much in ‘love’ you are with the region. Of course if you have already spotted your ‘dream’ property, don’t waste time, just go for it!!  And as the French say, Bon Courage!!

A Bientot,

Bruce.