lulupru

Hello,
I am new here and am trying to sell a house in France. Is anyone out there knowledgeable and experienced in selling a property in France? I am keen to find out what type of fees I, the vendor am likely to pay - ie- I presume there is a Notaire fee - is this a percentage of the selling price? What sort of commissions does a estate agency take do you know? Are there any other fees I should be aware of. I have trawled the internet and can't seem to get a full picture.
Many thanks if you can help.

Ka Ora!

Welcome to the forum, The buyer pays most the fees as the seller you have to pay for the initial Dpe "eco classification" which in our case was 120 euros then the Expertise "lead asbestos electrics test"which is around the 300 euros price and is carried out just before signing the Compromis de Vente although the Notiaire paid it at the time of signing the Acte de Vente for us. You may have tax to pay this will depend on wether the house is a primary residence or not and if you have made any profit.

Once again welcome if you get any issues don't hesitate to ask

lulupru

Hello Ka Ora, thank you for your reply.

Do you know how much a NOTAIRE charges? Is it a percentage of the SALE price? And is it just one charge or are they many notaire charges?

jonkemp

It isn't a straight forward percentage as such. It is som much for the first few grand, then so much for the next few grand etc. This link should help

http://www.french-property.com/guide...gal/fees/#12.1.

lulupru

Thankyou

cjm

As Ka Ora says most of the costs will be borne by the buyer, certainly Notaire fees and Estate Agency fees. If you accept an offer inclusive of fees they will be deducted from your agreed selling price.
It is vital that you choose how to sell your house. I am not impressed with French agents, too many rely on people walking in their door. Research hard on this to get an agent who is proactive. Be careful about an exclusive contract in case the agent turns out to be one of the less active ones. Websites may work for you, so will your house attract a UK buyer? Lastly, be realistic about your price. Houses are selling, but depending where you are, not all houses are finding buyers, you may wait for many months or longer. If you are in a popular area, by the sea, overlooking a lake, views to die for, this may well help. As an added thought check out via the web on houses in the area you are selling, what is on the market, what price; are they better/worse deals than yours. Bonne chance.

jonkemp

Out of interest, what department are you in?

alby

We have just put ours on the market and we are using 5 agents of which two are French and three are English.The reason is to get some exposure via internet and agent marketing.Also depends on the culture you deal with when selling, as we have found with certain nationalities.Be prepared for a long wait.

smithyandlisa

When we arrived in France almost 4 years ago we called 7 French agents, told them we had the cash in our pocket, were living here in rented accomodation, and were ready to move at the drop of a hat. We're still waiting for a call back from any of them!! The one English agent we used found us our home.

We are now selling, and the house is on with one French agent who calls every two weeks to ask if the house is still for sale! Just about sums them up really. Not in the slightest bit proactive. IMHO at least!

Ka Ora!

Proactive translated into French is "Off to lunch"

wetwang

We are thinking of selling our B&B. The local agents told us that the established business turnover, Goodwill, etc has little value and we should offer the property at the standard price per square metre locally.
English Agents tell us exactly the opposite.
The difference in opinion is worth about 100k

jonkemp

Put it on at the higher quote. You can always reduce the price, but you can never put it up.

dennerlymum

Are you also trying to sell on leboncoin etc; we sold ours very quickly privately for a the maximum that the agents anywhere thought we would get!

cjm

Sadly, I'm coming round to the view is smithyandlisa. I think there is a story here if the English language papers in France have the b*lls, or perhaps the Mail might like to knock France once again.

Chti Anglais

Just about sold ours, the only fee payable is for the technical dossier, no flood plain/not about to fall down/no asbestos/no woodworm etc, cost 490 euros. I can give agent details if you PM me, I sold through the people I bought from 8 years ago but no real profit to speak of so no tax.