Sell a property

SELLING A PROPERTY ON THE BASQUE COAST OR INLAND

You own an apartment or a house on the basque coast and you are thinking of selling it ? When you are selling a property in the basque country various steps must be taken into account.

PROPERTY VALUATION ON THE BASQUE COAST

Whether it is a basque farmhouse, a contempory villa, an apartment or a property with breathtaking views of the Atlantic Ocean, in order to enhance its potential the Barnes Biarritz negotiators ( specialists of the area) propose a free estimate of your property ; this is based on different factors influencing the price and their experience of the basque housing market.

SALE OF A PROPERTY

You have made the decision to sell. We propose to conjointly define a sales strategy adapted to each type of property as well as different approaches to obtain a positive outcome as soon as possible. This will depend on the type of property, the correlation between the desired selling price and the estimate and the selling time required. It is then necessary to determine a realistic selling price, with a high-end property taking on average 9 to 12 months to sell. Different steps must be taken during this period to complete a sale.

MARKETING THE PROPERTY FOR SALE

We rely upon the regional, national and international magazine press to communicate and publicize your property. Every week we invest in publications in phase with our high end of the market position : e.g the Figaro magazine, Maisons et Appartements, the Financial Times as well as our in house magazine « Barnes luxury homes », published in 150 000 copies and sent to all subscribers of the Figaro magazine in France.

However today 90% of our purchasers do their property search via internet and therefore we invest greatly on our website, but also in many national and international internet property portals to captivate the maximum number of potential buyers. We do complete details for each of the properties entrusted to us, which we then send on to our clients looking for a particular or similar property in the area. We follow up with a phone call or an email to answer any questions and to check the search criteria and so this enables us to make the right visit.

THE VISIT OF A PROPERTY FOR SALE

Each negotiator in the Barnes basque coast estate agency knows the houses or apartments that they have a sales mandate for in a very informed way so they can correctly accompany any future purchaser with their project. As soon as the visit is organised, we inform the owners well in advance so the property is presented the best way possible. If the owners are not present, we make sure that we open all the shutters beforehand so the houses are presented in the best light possible. We make sure afterwards that the owners are informed of the visit with a report relayed by email or telephone.

THE NEGOTIATION

Our role as a negotiator is very important at this stage of the selling process. It is necessary to have a convergence of interests of both the seller and the buyer. If the price is the most important factor in negotiation, there are Indeed many others which need to be taken into account : the condition of the place, how long it has been on the market, the size of the deposit, cash or a suspensive clause for a mortgage and even whether furniture is included. There are many arguments to find an agreement between both parties.

THE EXCHANGE AND COMPLETION ACT

After a successful negotiation and an accepted formal offer, it is necessary to draft an exchange contact between parties known as a unilateral « promesse de vente » or the synallagmatic « compromis de vente ». In order to achieve this, we bring together the notaries or « notaires » chosen by each party to represent them and therefore guarantee the correct writing of all the necessary elements and conditions of sale .

The contract commits the owner to sell to the buyer (or named beneficiary) of the property at a fixed price . The seller can no longer renounce the property sale and the buyer in compensation pays a 5 or 10% deposit of the agreed price which is included for the completion deed. This preliminary agreement constitutes a real contract and entails important obligations for both parties ; it allows them to specify the conditions of the future sale and ratifies the agreement which must include all the necessary components . There a 10 day option for the purchaser to change his mind after the initial exchange signing.

The formalities which are obligatory prior to the sale are the civil status of both vendor and purchaser, urban planning consent (in particular obtaining the certificat d’urbanisme), land register,to inform the town hall ( possibilty to preempt the sale which is very rare ) , inform the safer if there is more than a hectare of land and also to check possible rights of way. As far as a mortgage is concerned, the purchaser need to indicate the amount,the rate and the length of time he wishes to borrow for. These formalities in general take between 10 to 12 weeks until completion or ( acte authentique) can take place.

DIAGNOSTICS FOR THE SALE OF THE PROPERTY

The sale of a property requires certain obligations by the seller before a sales mandate can be signed and further information to be provided for the sales contract and completion.

REQUIREMENTS FOR THE SALE AND TAKING A MANDATE

The energy performance diagnostic ( DPE). This document is only of informative interest, but is necessary before putting a property on the market. The diagnostic must mention the energy performance ( A to G) for the energy consumption as well the emission for greenhouse gases (GES) . This document is valid for 10 years.

It is necessary to measure the size of an apartment or an apartment block to an exact m² (loi Carrez) but this is not the case for houses. If there is an error greater than 5% , the seller will have to reduce the price by the same amount as well. Theoretically the validity is unlimited in time until the property has been modified, but in practice the notaries ask for a new measurement for each change of owner.

NECESSARY ELEMENTS FOR THE SIGNING OF THE PROMISE OF SALE:

Lead: This certificate of risk of exposure to lead concerns residential real estate built before 1 January 1949. A property having been checked with a report indicating the absence of coatings containing lead or the presence of lead to concentrations lower than the thresholds defined by decree, will not have the obligation to be controlled at each sale, the initial report attached to the technical diagnostic record being valid.

Asbestos: This certificate indicating the presence or absence of asbestos relates to residential buildings whose building permit is prior to July 1, 1997. This report has an unlimited validity in time.

Termites: According to the prefectural decree delimiting the zones concerned, it will be necessary to have a statement relating to the presence or absence of termites. The validity period of this certificate is 6 months.

Natural gas: The apartment or house whose internal installation of natural gas is more than 15 years old must be verified. The validity of such a diagnostic is 3 years.

Natural and technological risks: The state of natural and technological risks meets an information aim for the purchaser vis-à-vis the foreseeable natural risks (as for example a floodable area), technological (like telephone masts) or seismicity which concerns the property sold. This document can be established at the same time as the DPE. It must be less than 6 months old.

Electrical installation: A property whose electrical installation is older than 15 years must be verified. The validity of such a diagnostic is 3 years.

Sanitation system: Homeowners, whether they are connected to the sewage system (connection to the sewer system) or not (septic tank), must produce a document attesting to the performity of the system. This document is valid for 3 years.

Given the duration of validity of these diagnostics (apart from termites), it is advisable to have all these diagnostics made from the beginning to have all the elements and allow the purchaser to be able to be confident, and to make his choice of acquisition serenely.

SANCTIONS IN CASE OF THE ABSENCE OF ANY ONE OF THESE COMPONENTS

The absence of any of these documents which are required to be up to date (concerning lead, asbestos, termites and wood insects, electricity and /or gas and the sewage system) can result in a reduction of price, or quite simply the cancellation of the sale if it can be proved there was defect or negative point hidden on purpose, as for example in the case of termite damage.

1 http: //www.notaires.fr/notaire ... can request a price reduction in proportion to the number of missing square meters. This action must be brought before the court of first instance within one year after the signature of the authentic deed.