The French buying process is highly regulated and runs through a notaire. Here is each stage, the legal deadlines that protect you as a buyer, and what international buyers should watch out for.
Work out the full cost (price plus about 7–9% of buying costs for an existing home, plus the lender’s costs) and how much a bank might lend you. As a non-resident, start early: lenders ask for more paperwork and usually a larger deposit. Use our non-resident mortgage calculator and notary fees calculator to size your budget.
Offers are made in writing, through the estate agent or directly to the seller, and can be below the asking price. Once the seller accepts, the notaire or agent prepares the preliminary contract.
The compromis de vente commits both buyer and seller to the sale at an agreed price. (A variant, the promesse unilatérale de vente, reserves the property for you for a set period.) The seller must provide the mandatory property surveys — energy rating (DPE), asbestos, lead, termites, electrics, gas, natural and technological risks — plus the co-ownership documents for an apartment. You usually pay a deposit of 5–10% of the price, held in escrow by the notaire.
As a private buyer of a home, you have 10 calendar days to withdraw without giving a reason. The period starts the day after the signed contract is handed to you or first presented by registered post. To withdraw, send a registered letter with acknowledgement of receipt; your deposit must be refunded within 21 days. The seller has no equivalent right.
The compromis normally includes a loan condition (condition suspensive d’obtention de prêt) stating the amount, term and maximum rate you need. By law it lasts at least one month; non-residents should negotiate longer, as their files take more time. If your loan is refused despite genuine applications, the sale falls through and your deposit is returned.
The bank sends a formal loan offer. You must wait 10 full days after receiving it before you can accept — the earliest acceptance is on the 11th day — and the bank must keep its offer open for at least 30 days.
You sign the deed at the notaire’s office, or remotely through a power of attorney (signed abroad, it usually needs certifying, for example with an apostille). Beforehand, you transfer your deposit balance and the buying costs to the notaire’s escrow account by bank transfer; your lender releases the loan the same way. You get the keys on the day of signing. The notaire then registers the sale with the land registry.
Both buyer and seller can appoint their own notaire. This normally adds no notaire’s fee, because the two notaires share the regulated fee. Look for one used to international clients, who can explain each document in English and arrange remote signing.
Yes, within the 10-day cooling-off period, without giving a reason, by registered letter. After that you can only withdraw if a suspensive condition is not met — for example if your mortgage is refused. Otherwise you may lose your deposit.
If the compromis contains a loan condition and you applied in good faith on the terms it describes, the sale is cancelled and your deposit is refunded.
On completion. You transfer the buying costs, together with the rest of your contribution, to the notaire’s escrow account shortly before signing the final deed.
Yes, but each party may also appoint their own notaire; the regulated fee is then normally shared between them rather than charged twice.
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