Refurbishing a property
Hardly an evening of sclerotic television passes by without a programme devoted to buying property abroad. As the producers know, we all enjoy a bit of schadenfreude. And pictures of wretched buyers in remote parts of France who got it all wrong are guaranteed to keep you away from the other T.V. channels...for a while at least.
Did those poor people really think they could turn that old bread oven into a gite? Ho Ho. They should have read the FPS web-site.
But in truth, if you follow a few golden rules about property refurbishment in France, you shouldn't get into a pickle.
Rule No 1. Think planning. Whatever your proposals for your property in France, from a simple extension to a demolition and rebuild, always take your proposals to the mayor's office for a quick chat before you sign the contract. Any mayor worth his sel will have a comprehensive knowledge of his commune and would usually be happy to give an informal view of your plans - thus saving you hours of wasted time and expense. He will know, for example, that you won't get planning permission to build a gite complex next to a working livestock farm. But if you are intent on doing so, he may offer to speak to the farmer and get the porc gasconne moved elsewhere. He might even ask if the barn concerned was for sale. Remember it is in the mayor's interest to upgrade the stock of property in his commune and to encourage wealth-creating activities, such as smart gite complexes.
If the mayor or his office prove unresponsive (usually where the commune or the town is just too big), then find yourself a local architect and ask for a consultation about your proposals. If they think they are in line for the work, then you may get the advice free of charge. If not, it would still be money well spent.
Rule No 2. Think natural risks and hazards. Buying a property in a pine wood may seem like an ideal venue for a holiday centre, but not if the area is classified as at risk from fire. If your purchase is anywhere near a river, then the property may be prone to flooding and may not be restorable without substantial exceptional building work, such as raising the property on stilts. Also, look out for areas classified as at risk of avalanches and land slip. Again, development in such areas will be strictly regulated. Check out the areas at risk in the ‘plan local d'urbanisme' at the ‘mairie'.
Rule No 3. Think space. If you are going to rebuild or convert anything, make sure you have as much space as possible around buildings as big as possible. You should easily get planning permission to convert buildings into dwellings, on a like for like basis, provided they are big enough in the first place. You are unlikely to get permission to turn a bread oven into a dwelling, because they are usually too small. A dwelling (and a gite) in France must be of a minimum size (larger than most bread ovens).
Rule No 4. Think utilities. Your planning permission will come with conditions. If the property does not have mains drainage, one of these conditions will be to install a new septic tank, which must be a minimum distance away from the house and/or gite and from any wells or springs. But if you don't have enough space on your property to do this, then you will have to ask your neighbour. And if the owner decides he doesn't like the cut of your anglo-saxon jib, then you might take a big hit in your cheque book to persuade him otherwise. As with all utilities and access, make sure you have a clear run to a public system without troubling your neighbours.
Rule No 5. Think fashion. If you're thinking of selling everything and moving to France to set up or buy a camp-site or mobile home park, maybe think again. The regulations governing camp sites grow ever stricter and profitable management is proving more difficult. The banks above all are aware of this and lending on new projects is becoming difficult to raise. The fashionable holiday scheme is the timber chalet style development, favoured by the banks and the planners alike and far easier to manage. And you won't spend most of your time unblocking drains filled with unspeakable sanitary items.
Philip Winter-Taylor
Tel: 01233 666968
Email: wintertaylors@aol.com
Site Index links: