Learn the peak practice

FRANCE is the most popular country with British skiers, boarders and mountain walkers and there is enormous demand for self-catering accommodation. Britons who invest close to the ski slopes can earn high returns from letting their chalet or apartment - winter and summer - through good management agents. All the major resorts are an easy day's drive from the Channel ports along French motorways. The most famous Alpine ski resorts - such as Val d'lsre, Courchevel 1850, Mribel, Les Deux Alpes, Chamonix, Megve, Alpe d'Huez, Tignes or Val Thorens - can all be reached from Lyon-Satolas airport by bus (chartered by tour operators or regular coach service), taxi or car very easily.

Buying existing property You cannot buy French property "subject to contract" as you can in England. You must sign a legally binding compromis before any local authority searches and enquiries have been made or the necessary finance obtained. An oral or written expression of serious intent is also legally enforceable, so do not make any offers without taking independent legal advice in a language you understand. Instruct a bilingual legal adviser to deal with all matters by email, fax or telephone. Make sure that your offer-letter requires the following: 1. A plan cadastral that clearly defines the property. The plan is broken up into parcelles (parcels), each carrying a number. These numbers should be expressly referred to in the contract. If the boundaries are not clearly shown it may be worthwhile instructing a gomtre (land surveyor) to mark them out.

2. An inventory signed by the vendor setting out exactly what is included in the purchase price.

3. A copy of your vendor's titre de proprit (registered title deed), which should be checked by your legal adviser for rights of way or other matters that might adversely affect your enjoyment of the property.

4. A draft contract for your approval. In England the main terms of a contract do not vary but in France each contract is individually prepared.

Nothing should be taken for granted.

For example, you may be liable for breach of planning control even if the breach were committed by a previous owner or occupier. Insist on written confirmation that planning permission or other consent was/ was not required for past construction or alteration to the external aspect, or for any change of use. The contract should contain other conditions suspensives. If these are not fulfilled, your 10 per cent deposit is normally refundable.

An apartment or other property situated in a larger development is regulated by a coownership agreement known as the rglement de coproprit. This defines which parts are privately owned by you (for example, heated garages, ski-lockers) and parts owned in common with others (lifts, staircases). The rglement also records your rights and obligations in the coproprit, how it is managed and various annual service charges.

Every purchaser who signs a contract is deemed to have read and understood the rglement, and is legally bound by it. Always check the position with your bilingual legal adviser.

You are strongly advised to organise a survey and valuation before you sign the purchase contract. Is the property prone to flood/ avalanche damage? Many cheaper properties have no mains services. In rocky terrain, installation can cost a small fortune. Your vendor does not usually have to disclose structural defects. If, after signing, you discover defects, you are still obliged to complete the purchase at the agreed price.

The contracts most commonly used in France include the compromis de vente and the promesse de vente. Under a promesse the vendor is bound to sell a property but the buyer is not committed to purchase and can withdraw before completion, subject to losing his deposit. The compromis binds both parties.

A buyer who withdraws from the transaction will forfeit his deposit and, depending on the wording of the contract, may be sued for damages and/or an order compelling him to complete the purchase.

Never book removals based on the completion date in the contract. You may be ready, others may not. The notaire (solicitor) will require the results of his enquiries and local searches, and the authorities in France are notoriously slow.

The typical wait is three months, although the delay can be shorter. The formal transfer of the acte de vente (ownership document) must be signed in France. The actual completion date may not be convenient, in which case you are able to sign a procuration (power of attorney) in favour of one of the notaire's clerks.

After completion, the notaire will keep the deeds but will arrange for transfer of ownership to be registered. You should ask for an attestation d'acquisition (bill of sale) as proof of ownership and the notaire should supply you with a certified copy of your registered acte de vente.

Land suitable for building is hard to find in or near the French Alps. Any contract for the purchase of a lotissement (plot) should include carefully worded conditions suspensives enabling you to withdraw if planning permission is not obtained to build your specified property and connect it to the mains services.

You must usually start building works within one year and complete them within five years of obtaining planning permission.

Buying a property under construction The developer will ask you to sign a legally binding contrat prliminaire or contrat de rservation (not to be confused with an English-law reservation agreement) and pay a reservation deposit that cannot exceed five per cent (only two per cent if completion of building works is scheduled within two years, none if longer). Ownership of the land and whatever has been built on it passes to you at the time the acte de vente is signed, and you acquire ownership of the rest of the property as it is built.

Acquisitions for investment purposes To ensure that rent will be paid on time, a written agreement should be drawn up setting out the tenant's obligations and restrictions.

A model agreement appears in my book Letting French Property Successfully.

Leaseback property Many new developments offer attractive leaseback deals whereby you buy a property at a significantly reduced price in return for surrendering rental rights for, say, 11 years, during which time you can use the property yourself for up to six weeks each year. The terms and conditions of every leaseback scheme should be checked by your legal adviser to ensure, among other things, that the developer will give vacant possession 11 years later without you having to pay him a large indemnity.

Inheritance matters A French will may be all you need. Sometimes more complex structuring is required to avoid problems of French succession law and save on French inheritance tax. Make sure you get clear written advice about these issues - which may also impact on your UK estate - before you sign any French purchase contract.

Stephen Smith is a bilingual French national who heads the specialist French Law Department at Riddell Croft and Co Solicitors (01473 384870, fax 01473 384878, email sjvs@ riddellcroft.com).

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