How to buy a home in Paris, step by step.
The French process is safe and tightly codified, but unfamiliar if you live abroad. Here is how it works, who does what, and where an independent adviser on your side makes the difference.
Seven steps, from brief to keys.
Timings depend on the property, the financing and the notaries’ work. We give you a realistic timetable at the start and keep it updated.
Brief and financing
Areas, type of building, size, budget and timetable. If you borrow, an agreement in principle from a bank that lends to non-residents, before you make offers.
Search
Listed properties and, where possible, properties not yet on the market. Each one compared with recorded sale prices in the area.
Visits and assessment
We visit first and send you a filmed visit and a written opinion. We look at the building as closely as the apartment.
Offer and negotiation
A written offer based on the evidence: condition, works ahead, building charges, comparable sales. We prepare the negotiation strategy with you.
Preliminary contract
Compromis or promesse de vente, signed with the notary or agent. As a private buyer you then have a ten-day cooling-off period. Conditions such as the loan are written in.
Notary checks
The notaries verify title, planning, easements and the city’s pre-emption right, and gather the building’s documents. We follow up and flag anything unusual to you.
Completion and after
The deed of sale (acte authentique) is signed before the notary, in person or under power of attorney. Keys, meters, insurance, and if you wish, stewardship from day one.
Everyone has a role. Only one is on your side alone.
The notary
A public officer. Checks the legal situation, drafts the deed, collects transfer taxes, registers your ownership. You may appoint your own notary at no extra cost to you in principle; the fees are shared between notaries.
The seller’s agent
Holds the seller’s mandate and is paid to obtain the best terms for the seller.
Your bank or broker
Finances the purchase under its own criteria and conditions for non-residents.
Belmaye
A licensed buyer’s agent (professional card for real-estate transactions), under a written mandate. Represents you only: search, assessment, negotiation, coordination of the notary, architect, surveyor and tax adviser, and a clear written view at each step.
In Paris, you also buy a share of the building.
Most Paris apartments sit in a co-ownership (copropriété). Its health, its debts and its planned works matter as much as the apartment itself.
- Minutes of the last co-owners’ meetings: disputes, works voted or under discussion
- Building charges, the reserve fund and any unpaid charges
- Planned works: façade, roof, lift, pipes, and who pays
- Mandatory technical reports (diagnostics): energy rating, asbestos, lead, electricity, gas, termites where relevant
- Floor area measured under the Carrez law and how it matches the plans
- Condition of the apartment: windows, heating, plumbing, wiring, signs of damp
- Rules of the co-ownership: use, letting, works you may want to do
- Neighbourhood: light, noise, transport, schools, what is planned nearby
The price is not the whole budget.
Ask for written estimates before you sign anything. We help you build a complete budget from the start.
Notary fees and taxes
Mostly transfer taxes collected for the State and local authorities, plus the notary’s regulated fees. The notary gives you an estimate.
Agency fee
Paid by the buyer or the seller depending on the seller’s mandate. Check whether the advertised price includes it.
Financing
Bank fees, guarantee, insurance, currency exchange if your funds are abroad.
Works and running costs
Renovation, building charges, property tax, insurance and, if you wish, stewardship.
Our own fee for acquisition advisory is agreed in writing before we start, under a buyer’s mandate.
What foreign buyers ask us.
General information, not legal or tax advice. Your notary and tax adviser confirm what applies to you.
Can a foreigner buy property in Paris?
Yes. French law places no restriction on nationality or residence for buying residential property. You sign the same documents as a French buyer, before a French notary.
Do I need to be in Paris to sign?
Not necessarily. Viewings can be filmed for you, and the deeds can be signed under a power of attorney prepared with the notary. The practical arrangements are confirmed with your notary for your situation.
Can I change my mind after signing the preliminary contract?
As a private buyer of a home, the law gives you a ten-day cooling-off period from the notification of the signed preliminary contract (Article L271-1 of the French Construction and Housing Code). After that, you are committed subject to the conditions written into the contract.
Can I get a mortgage as a non-resident?
Some French and international banks lend to non-residents, under their own criteria. If you need financing, the loan condition should be written into the preliminary contract. We can introduce you to brokers or banks; the lending decision is theirs.
What does the notary do?
The notary is a public officer who checks the legal situation of the property, drafts and authenticates the deed of sale, collects the taxes due on the transfer and registers your ownership. The notary acts for the transaction, not as your personal adviser.
What will it cost on top of the price?
Mainly the notary’s fees and transfer taxes, calculated by the notary; possibly an agency fee, depending on who pays under the seller’s mandate; financing costs if you borrow; and our own fee, quoted in writing before we start. Ask the notary for a written estimate before you sign.
Should I buy in my own name or through a company?
It depends on your country of tax residence, your family situation and how you intend to use the property. This is a question for a notary and a tax adviser in both countries, before you sign the preliminary contract.
Who do you represent when I buy?
You only. When we act for you as a buyer, we are not paid by the seller, and our recommendations are made in your interest.
Tell us about your home in Paris.
An introductory call with Laurent, at no cost. You leave with a clear view of what your property needs, what it would cost and whether Belmaye is the right fit.