If you’re planning to buy property in France, you’ll meet a notaire (or two) along the way. But what is a notaire? Notaires are qualified lawyers and public officers appointed by the Minister of Justice, similar to English solicitors, who authenticate deeds, ensure legal compliance, and handle transactions. How much does their service cost and who’s responsible for hiring a notaire? We’ll go over everything you need to know about working with a notaire when buying property in France.
Overall, a notaire is a French public officer, and if you live in France, you’ll work with one for most of life’s big moments, from buying a house to getting married to working out inheritance legalities. When a legal contract is drawn up by a notaire, complete with a signature and seal, the document’s authenticity and legality are guaranteed, giving it the legal status of a final judgment.
A French notaire handles all sorts of legal procedures and documents, including drafting the contract and deed for the sale of a property, which is also referred to as conveyancing. Another legal responsibility of the notaire is to give you all of the information available on the nature of the real estate agreement you’ll be signing. The notaire should make sure that you understand what you’re signing.
However, the notaire’s job is not to guide you through the entire process, and they do not hold private consultations to discuss your specific property buying situation. That said, you can request a meeting with the notaire to go over general questions or just to familiarise yourself with them, as you’ll be in contact with them a lot when buying a French property.
Additionally, notaires have a lot of knowledge of the French property market, and as they’re involved in sales for a variety of local properties, they can offer in-depth advice to both buyers and sellers. If you’re looking for a French property, it can be a good idea to get in touch with a notaire to ask about the local real estate market, the pros and cons of the area, the history of a property you’re interested in, etc.
Also know that if the notaire does not speak your language, they can provide you with an interpreter, or you can of course find one yourself.
How Much Are French Notaire Fees?
Notaires work for a fixed fee; they don’t charge by the hour. However, the fixed fee is based on the property’s purchase price and location. The notaire’s fee is approximately 7% of the property price, this changes fractionally depending on area, price range, whether you have a mortgage and several other factors. There’s a calculator on the notaires.fr website that will help you figure out the notaire’s fee, along with other purchase costs. Please note – the notaire’s fee is predominantly made up of taxes (equivalent of stamp duty etc), they take close to 1% themselves.
Whether you opt to use one notaire or two during the buying process, the fee will remain the same. If two notaires are used, they’ll split the standard notaire fee.
Choosing Your Own Notaire to Handle Your Property Purchase
It’s most common for both the property buyer and seller to use the same notaire, but it’s also acceptable for each party to use their own notaire. Using a local notaire can provide significant benefits, such as better understanding of local laws and potential translation services. Some buyers feel more secure getting information from a notaire who’s appointed just to them and not also working on behalf of the seller. You can search for a notaire on the www.notaires.fr website. Alternatively, you can hire a legal adviser instead of a second notaire, but the cost may be higher.
If you opt to bring on a second notaire, know that it could make the buying process longer than if there is just one notaire, and it’s possible that each notaire will have their own way of doing things, which could cause complications. The option of using a single notaire or multiple notaires involves considering the potential complexities, legal obligations, and fees.
Also know that notaires are self-employed. Instead of going to, say, a government building to hire a notaire, you’ll find one who has set up their own business and office. This makes it possible for the notaire to run a public service that doesn’t cost the government much (if anything). The state, however, fixes the rate of the service, as explained above.
Buying property in France is a huge undertaking, and before you can live in your dream home, there are a lot of legalities to work through, many of which involve a French notaire. First, though, HOMEHUNTS property agents are able to select beautiful, luxury French properties based on your specific search criteria. Search our site and browse our selection of luxury homes, check out our essential advice guides on buying property in France or speak directly to one of our property consultants by calling +33 (0)970 44 66 43.
A notaire is a government-appointed lawyer whose role is essential for all real estate transactions: if property is bought, sold, donated or inherited, a notaire will draft the act, record it, levy the appropriate taxes (such as inheritance taxes), and deliver the deeds of property.
While notaries and lawyers both deal with legal matters, notaries do not represent clients in court and do not get involved in litigation. Their work is restricted to non-contentious matters in which all parties involved have already reached an agreement.
The Notaire is the public official responsible for receiving all the "actes" and contracts to which the parties wish to confer the seal of authenticity, to assure their date, to hold them in trust and to deliver authentic copies of them.
Notaires work for a fixed fee; they don't charge by the hour. However, the fixed fee is based on the property's purchase price and location. The notaire's fee is approximately 7% of the property price, this changes fractionally depending on area, price range, whether you have a mortgage and several other factors.
To this end, a notaire must remain impartial, allowing them to work simultaneously in the interests of both parties to the act. On the other hand, an avocat can position themselves as only defending the interests of their client, while ensuring the fairness of agreements made between the parties.
The Notary is not solely concerned with property conveyancing. A Notaire is a person you would go to in France to register marriage contracts, as well as to draw up and administer wills, to advise on inheritance issues, as well as to document gift and asset sharing between spouses, children and other beneficiaries.
A notaire is a government-appointed lawyer whose role is essential for all real estate transactions: if property is bought, sold, donated or inherited, a notaire will draft the act, record it, levy the appropriate taxes (such as inheritance taxes), and deliver the deeds of property.
Notaires in France are essential people when buying or selling property in France. Their predominant role is to handle legal matters but differ from an English solicitor in many ways. A typical role for a Notaire is to draw up contracts between parties. They can be needed for either domestic or commercial purposes.
The only body of the profession authorized to speak on behalf of all notaries in France, the Superior Council of Notaries is a public utility establishment. It leans on defined principles and mechanics by the Ordinance dated 2nd November 1945 and the decree dated 19 December 1945.
You will potentially have to add, for example, estate agent's fees (if the sale is concluded through an agent), Notary fees, land registration fees, possibly exchange rate surcharges, loan fees, and lawyer's fees. Be careful not to pay cash to the seller in order that the seller pays lower taxes.
Many people ask why notary fees are so high in France. To be fair to the notaries, the majority of this sum is designated for government taxes and fees, and obtaining the necessary paperwork to be sure that the property you are buying is legally sound.
The holder of a Bachelor's degree (general, technological or vocational) or Baccalaureate level (file selection) will be formed by way of school two years of preparation at the Institut national des formations notariales (INFN) or in a public or private high school in contract, including an unpaid internship of 3 ...
A formal written offer, an offre d'achat, is then made. You can make this offer alone or with the help of a real estate agent, in front of a Notary or expert lawyer. You will then need the services of a Notary (Notaire) a deposit is paid which forms part of the purchase price.
They're specialists in getting people to agree. Notaries sometimes act as mediators to help solve problems so people don't end up in court, for example, during a divorce or when neighbours can't agree about a fence. They also prepare notarial documents including wills, mortgages and marriage contracts.
In Britain, solicitors (first used in the 16th century) originally worked only in a particular branch of the legal system, the courts of equity; today they are lawyers who advise clients and arrange settlements “behind the scenes” but don't argue cases in court.
French lawyers are called “Avocats”. The legal profession in France is not "split", as in the UK, so the French Avocat is the equivalent of a UK Barrister and Solicitor combined.
Introduction: My name is Edwin Metz, I am a fair, energetic, helpful, brave, outstanding, nice, helpful person who loves writing and wants to share my knowledge and understanding with you.
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