With a different language, culture and legal system, buying in France can appear to be a daunting prospect. But we at Limousin Homes are here to take away the stress and worry that even a property purchase in your home country can cause.

The Viewing Day

As well as answering any questions on properties prior to your visit we will spend time with you in our office before going to view properties so that we can listen and discuss in depth your requirements. This is a very important part of the day as we do not want to waste your time showing you properties that are not suitable.

Once you have chosen which properties you wish to view you will be asked to sign a "bon pour visite" and "mandat de recherche". These forms confirm, among other things, who introduced you to the property, the amount of agency fee payable and confidentiality clauses. Completion of these forms is standard practise with all French estate agents and you will be provided with a translation of these documents before signing them.

Once on the road we will be on hand to offer advice, translate and anwser any questions you might have throughout the day.

The Offer

After an interesting, exciting and hopefully fun day visiting properties, if we have done our job properly and listened to your requirements, you will have found the property for you. At this point we will liase with the vendor on your behalf to agree a price and then discuss any terms with you that might need to be inserted into the first contract (Compromis de vente) such as plannning permission or mortgages requirements. When the offer is accepted the property is then taken off the market.

The First Contract (Compromis de Vente)

We will require copies of your passport, birth and marriage certificates and when we have these documents we can start to draw up the compromis de vente.

We will go through the compromis de vente with you and will answer all your questions and clarify any points that you are uncertain about. We will also check the boundaries and any rights of ways there might be and will assist with technical legal questions such as ownership and succession and laise with the Notaire to ensure you wishes are met.

Once the compromis de vente has been signed all parties receive copies and you then have a 7 day cooling off period. If for some reason you decide not to proceed with the purchase you must inform us in writing within this period and the letter must be sent by registered post.

Once the 7 days have expired you are then for the deposit which is normally around 10% of the purchase price. The deposit is held by the Notaire and remains there until the sale proceeds or is cancelled.

Completion and the Acte de Vente

The time it takes to complete the sale can vary depending on circumstances but generally it takes approximately 3 months. During this time the Notaire conducts the required searches and draws up the Acte de Vente which is the second and final contract of sale. The Notaire also checks that nothing is going to affect the value of the property as well as whether it has any outstanding mortgages.

About two weeks before completion the balance of funds need to be transferred to the Notaires account. In time for completion insurance arrangements will be need to have been made for your new property. On completion day both parties attend the Notaires office to sign the document (that's unless you have a power of attorney). Once signed congratulations are in order as the property is officially yours.

For more information visit www.limousinhomes.com

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