Sue Buckle

Thank you everyone for your useful links and suggestions. I'm not sure we can opt for a geothermal or heat-pump option. The current owners have installed the radiators and pipework, but no underfloor heating. So we are stuck with a conventional solution, I fear. It would not be practical to take up the flooring. It may be that the best thing to do is to install electric radiators, or have an oil-based system and hope we don't have to use it very much! Luckily the property has two wood-burning stoves as well. Sue

Wow, thanks for calling me 'stupid'. I was just asking a question. The price of boilers in France is much higher than the UK, so it seemed a question worth asking. We have friends who have installed British cookers, fridges, etc. And just because we can afford to buy a property does not mean we can afford to do everything to it that we would like.

Good, salutory story! I think we had better buy in France.

No idea what type of boiler yet, but thank you. I see that it was a bit of a foolish idea!

Good points. Thanks.

After all the useful information about renovation work at a distance, we've decided to buy a house where very little needs doing. We'll leave the renovation project for when we move to France permanently. The house we are buying has radiators in place, plus all the pipework, but the owners have not installed the boiler. They saw no point in investing the money as they are selling. Apparently boilers are much more expensive in France than they are in England, for some reason. Does anyone know if an English boiler can be fitted in France? I know that sounds like a stupid question, but I can't see why we couldn't buy a boiler here and take it to France... As always, thank you in advance for any help. Sue

Thank you, Sally. I appreciate this, as we would be in exactly the same situation. Sue

Yes, I would have thought that a dormer included absolutely everything. That reminds me of the time we purchased an IKEA bed, and the woman at the till asked if we needed 'sommier'. I thought she meant a mattress topper, so said no. When we put the bed together and the mattress fell through onto the floor, I realised that she had meant the supporting struts. Felt very foolish!

Oops, we crossed over. Thanks for the explanation. You must have laughed when you realised what you had left out! Sue

Okay, I now know that a chien assis is a dormer window! Sue

What is a chien assis? Apart from a seated dog? It sounds like a phrase I should know! Sue

Ha ha! Yes, a little put off, but not totally discouraged! I quite understand that things change during a restoration, and that obviously has to be paid for. We are obtaining 2 reasonably detailed quotes, and will take it from there. Thank you so much for all your comments. Really useful, and will help us decide if we are up for it. At the moment we are both resident in the UK, and would have to find a project manager, as co-ordinating from here would be really difficult. So if anyone knows a good PM in the Lot, let me know! Thanks again, Sue

We are trying to cost a renovation project. The house has solid walls and roof, and the current owners have insulated the roof, and then stopped. We would have to finish the internal attic space, and re-organise the downstairs space, moving a staircase, bathroom, adding velux windows, knocking some holes in thick walls, etc. We have been given a rough estimate of the work involved at €70,000. We have never attempted a restoration before, and are worried about the constant refrain of builders always charging more than their estimates. Someone else has quoted €1000-€1250 a square metre as a good rough guide of costs, but this seems very high for internal work, and would put the project out of our reach. Another person has said you have to add 40% on to the quote for materials, and half as much time again as you have been quoted. We have a lump sum and cannot exceed it. I'd love to hear from a few people about whether we really need to add 40-50% onto our budget. Thanks in advance. Sue

We have just come back from a house-hunting visit, and saw a couple of properties through Beaux Villages. So they are alive and kicking, in Montségur anyway! Sue

Our estate agent went ahead and booked someone to do the diagnostics without discussing it with us first. His price was 550 euros. I managed to find someone who did it all for 240 euros. If anyone wants someone reliable in the Var, Provence, I will happily pass on the details. The price differences are a bit crazy. Sue

Finally I found out that in some small communes, it is the local Mairie which issues the certificate of conformity for new septic tanks. That is the case for us, and we have the magic document, which has indeed helped us sell our house. Next stop, the South West. Thanks to everyone who responded. Sue.

Just got through to SIVOM. They only concern themselves with 'ordures', not waste in the form of water. Mme. Panizza suggested I call the sub-prefecture in Brignoles, so that's where I'm heading next. Sue

I am not sure, but I will call that number this afternoon and see if they deal with fosses septiques. Thank you very much. I'll let you know if they are the correct people. Sue

Can anyone help me find a telephone number for the SPANC office in Salernes, Var? They have changed their telephone number, and the new one is an 'azur' number, which I cannot dial from the UK. If anyone can help me find the proper coded number, I'd be very grateful. Many thanks. Sue

Can anyone recommend a septic tank installer near Aups, in Provence? 83630 postcode? We have to install a new septic tank, and much prefer using people who have been recommended, rather than using the Pages Jaunes. Many thanks. Sue

Very good question! One of the 2 estate agents asked at the Mairie, and they told him that there was no permit. When we then started asking questions, the estate agent we purchased the house from said that he thought there was no permit either, but hadn't bothered to tell us, as in 2001 the rules were more relaxed. The previous owner also apparently thought she was living in a house without planning permission, and she didn't tell us either. However, a french property lawyer has just told us that the wording in the 1981 acte de vente covers us, and we are on the cadastral plan in all our extension's glory, so hopefully that is going to be enough. Sue

The mis-spelling was mine! It should read 'achevement', and it was indeed an extract from the acte de vente of 1981. The house was then sold again in 1994, and we purchased it in 2001. All with the same 'etude de notaires', none of whom seems to have kept a copy of the original permis. We have now taken advice from a French lawyer, who believes that the reference I quoted is more than sufficient to show that there was a permit issued at the time, so we are covered. My head is whirling with the amount of information I've been trying to take in, so I think I'm going to leave things as they are for the time being. Thank you everyone. This forum is a fount of ideas and helpful information. Sue

Thank you everyone for so much sound advice. We are also bemused by the fact that this was not picked up when we bought the house 10 years ago. We now know the estate agent we bought the house through, knew about the problem but chose to say nothing. We didn't even think to ask, trusting the French notaire to do all necessary searches, but it looks as if that wasn't done! We have found reference in an old 'acte de vente' of 'le vendeur a sollicité en vue d'un agrandissement, un permis de construire qui lui a été délivré le 5 mars 1971, sous le numéro 025.07/0, qui a fait l'objet d'une déclaration d'achievement des travaux en Mairie, suivie du certificat de conformité d'usage délivré par la Direction départementale de l'Equipement du VAR, a la date du 21 mai 1981.' But there is no trace of this permis, so we do not know what it covers. It could legalise our entire house, it could just have been granted for an outdoor terrace. Two notaires have sold this house in the past, and they cannot find a copy of it either! The DDE don't keep records over 10 years old. We have been in touch with the mayor. We know him quite well, as he is also our neighbour. He owns all the land around our house, and it was his father who sold the house originally in 1981, when HE was mayor. So it is a bit embarrassing, as the current mayor now realises that his father didn't do his job properly all those years ago. There is apparently no trace of the permit at the mayor's office, and he seems to think there is nothing he can do. We are not sure how good a mayor he is, to be honest. Our village is run by a small group of village men who all look out for each other, employ their wives and children, and are quite unhelptul, in a fairly polite sort of way. It has been made very clear to us that we are not 'of the village' and we don't think anyone would make any real effort for 'les anglais'. It is one of the reasons we want to move, as we find other parts of France much more welcoming. One other problem we have is that the house is now in a zone NC. This was imposed in 1985. The original bit of the house is an old stone cabanon which was probably built at least 100 years ago. And the extension was probably done before 1985, but a local architect has told me that it is impossible to grant retrospective planning permission if the house is currently on NC land. I think I will telephone the DDE tomorrow and ask their advice. I much prefer the idea of going to them rather than the mayor. Thanks so much for so many helpful suggestions, Sue

Following on from a posting a few weeks ago, it now looks as if the house we bought 10 years ago did not have full planning permission, which is making it difficult to sell. In fact, one of our estate agents refuses to market it now, as he would have to disclose this fact to any potential buyers. Now that we are aware of the problem, we want to sort it out so that no-one in future has to worry. Does anyone have experience of gaining retrospective planning permission, either from a notaire or a maire. I know that someone added to my previous post and said that some notaires will issue retrospective planning permission, but our notaire seems to be particularly inept, so it would help to have a template letter. If anyone has any ideas, I would be very grateful. We feel very 'stuck' at the moment. Sue

Hi Emma, the house is in the Verdon National Park, in Provence. The nearest big town is Aups. If you would like to see some photos, please email me. Sue