Notaires and the Sale of French Property
29th May 2023
Notaires are permitted to engage in the sale of French property, but only on a restricted basis.
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Although not widely appreciated by international buyers, many notaires throughout France sell French property in the much same way as estate agents. A fee is of course payable, which is freely negotiable, but generally it is in line with those charged by estate agents.
The right to engage in sales transactions dates from a 1972 regulation, which stipulates that the sale of property by a notaire is not considered unfair competition with estate agents, provided it is only an ancillary activity to their main legal responsibilities.
Nevertheless, in order to prevent direct competition with agents there are constraints on how they may advertise properties for sale. They are also restricted from soliciting new commissions.
As a result, the properties they sell generally arise from a succession, bankruptcy proceedings or a personal request from a seller.
That does sometimes mean there are bargains to be had, as sellers may be prepared to leave disposal of the property to the notaire, which may not otherwise be advertised privately or through an estate agent. However, do not assume that 'exclusivity' is a euphemism for a low price, as the notaire owes a duty of care to the seller, who may also have stipulated their price expectations.
The rules for the sale of properties by notaires are set out by the regulatory body of notaires, the Conseil Superieur du Notariat (CSN), although in a somewhat ambiguous form.
Article 31 of the CSN regulations state that "the negotiation of property for sale or rent is one of the traditional activities of a notary."
However, it also states that “Notaries are prohibited from making general advertisements of property for sale..... All acts of publicity may be carried out by notaries only if they are instructed to do so by the clients and only for the matters they deal with: each publication must have as its object one or more special and specific cases. To this end, they may use any advertising medium in accordance with the uses defined by the bodies on which they depend."
In short, notaires can advertise property for sale, but only through 'official' channels.
One of those channels is the website Immobilier Notaires, where there are nearly 30,000 properties for sale. There are also hundreds of properties for letting.
Other channels are a notaires own website, as well as the departmental/regional website of their professional body, the Chambre des notaires.
In a case in the town of Nîmes (Gard), a notaire advertised properties for sale in the window of their offices - their étude.
As a result, FNAIM, the national association of estate agents brought a legal action against the notaires.
Although in the local tribunal FNAIM lost the case, they successfully appealed the ruling.
The Court of Appeal decided that the notaires should remove all the adverts placed in the windows on the ground floor of the property and pay (fairly nominal) damages to FNAIM.
After the hearing, Sarah Galibert, president of Fnaim Gard-Lozère stated that "There is no question of waging war on notaries. We are working together, and this synergy is essential. On the other hand, when there is unfair competition, we defend the interests of our profession."
As well as the general sale of properties, notaires also preside over auction sales, on which they have a monopoly, other than for judicial auctions. You can read more at Guide to Buying Property at Auction in France.
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