P-D de Rouffignac

Dog grooming business I endorse the advice about seeing your local Chamber of Commerce as they are a mine of information, but just a couple of points that might help. There are a limited number of schemes to help the registered unemployed (as Nick says in his reply) and this means being formally registered with ANPE. If your daughter in law has not registered it may be worthwhile to do so and await any 'qualifying' period for grants etc as starting without THEM can be quite onerous in terms of social contributions ('cotisations') rather than tax. There is for example a scheme called ACCRE if you look at my reply regarding this in another post in this section, which requires that you have been registered unemployed for at least 6 months within the last 18. There are also other schemes which the Chamber of Commerce will explain, plus in some area tax concessions if you are in a region in need of economic development. I hope this information helps, Peter-Danton de ROUFFIGNAC

L'Hérault The biggest attraction for this region is the city of Montpellier (pop. 300,000) which is regularly voted as the city the French would most like to live in after Paris. Fast TGV links from Paris, and onward to Barcelona once the bit between Montpellier and Perpignan has been upgraded - from March 2009 the journey between Perpignan and Barcelona will be just 40 minutes. Going east along the coast you could be in Nice and then Italy in a few hours. Montpellier has its share of rougher quarters but aside from that it is a major university town (30,000+ students), research, commercial and cultural centre. Not far from the Mediterranean coast with numerous coastal resorts to choose from and 180 kms of sunny beaches until you reach the Spanish border. Add to this superb food, wines and 300 days of sunshine a year and your dreams of Normandy will start to seem like a nightmare! Get your maps out and start planning, Peter-Danton de ROUFFIGNAC  

Working as a beauty therapist 1. Firstly, note that 'beauty therapist' (institut de beauté) is one of many regulated activities in France, along with numerous personal services such as hairdressing, massage etc, and you need to check that you have qualifications that are acceptable in France. You could check with a European organisation called NARIC which has a representative office in UK as a start. 2. Working from you own house is normally allowed but may be subject to planning permission and special requirements in the case of  premises used for beauty treatments. (In an apartment block or other co-ownership building you need to talk to the syndic as there are normally rules about nuisance; noise, numbers of clients calling etc). 3. You would pay the usual social security charges as a self-employed person (around 3000 euros in the first year) and tax at the usual rates. As decribed elsewhere in this forum there are various micro-business régimes, and the choice of whether to set up as self-employed or a small limited company. 4. Your point of contact/registration will normally be the Chambre des métiers and I think you should contact them without delay particuarly in regard to points 1 and 2 above before you go too much further. I hope this information helps, Peter-Danton de Rouffignac

French house prices I have written extensively about French prices in various forums and UK based French magazines so hope it may be of interest to share my thoughts here. First, I don't think there is rhe remotest connection between what's happening in the USA and France. Basic research shows that some British investors have suffered in places like Florida where, after the initial rush, there is now an over supply of property, with the inevitable drop in prices. It is also starting to happen in Eastern Europe. In France there is a similar over-supply of certain types of property such as older cottages and holiday properties, of the sort preferred by some non-French buyers, but a shortage of new-build family homes favoured by the French. New-build second homes fall somewhere between the two depending on area. Regarding prices, they have indeed shot up since 2002/3 following the introduction of the euro (much the same as happened when decimalisation was introduced into the UK) with the result that the market, especially for second homes, has slowed down. When I talk to vendors asking unrealistic prices, their reply is that they are prepared to wait. I have to point out to them that intending buyers also can wait, as there is little pressure or urgency to move house for reasons such as a job change to another area. As always there are regional variations (sorry!) but as a concrete example in my own area Pyrénées-Orientales, before 2002/3 typical small beachside apartments could be had for the equivalent of 25,000 euros: they now cost 75,000 euros. I am just in the process of selling mine to my neighbours who wish to add two more bedroooms, and I have had to sell at this new inflated price, as to replace my apartment I too have to pay the 'new' price. It's the typical inflationary spiral. Yet despite these high prices and high unemployment, the region is one of the fastest growing in France - and we have a shortage of certain types of property! Hope these thoughts are of interest, Peter-Danton de ROUFFIGNAC

The original post concerned a potential vendor of a property and I tried to explain that (a) an agency's rate of commission is publicly displayed, and (b) it is clearly set out in the mandat de vente signed by the vendor. The mandat also sets out the sale price of the property (the price a buyer will pay) and what will be left to the vendor after deduction of the agency's commission (the prix net vendeur). If the vendor does not like these figures, he/she is free to shop around and find an agency offering to sell the property for a lower commission. None of this concerns a potential buyer at this stage. In the event of an offer (below the asking price) being received by a potential buyer, the agency may try and negotiate a price reduction - and hence receive a lower commission. The agency might even reduce its commission - for example if the sale happened quickly or did not involve paying a shared commission to a foreign partner. But in every case there must be a reason to bargain - if a property is (fairly) priced at 100,000 euros and you can only afford 75,000 euros that is not a reason to reduce the price simply to accommodate your limited budget! I hope this clarifies - based on six years in the French property business and being British (despite my French name), selling primarily to British and Irish buyers. P-D de Rouffignac  

By law French estate agencies must display in their shop window the amount (percentage) of commission they charge for selling your property, and this will be clearly stated in both percentage terms and euros (nett and with 19.6 per cent TVA) in the mandat de vente you will be asked to sign. Generally the lower the sale price the higher the commission (in my area up to 10 per cent for properties under 100,000 euros) and say around 5 - 6 per cent for higher value properties. Many agencies have to share their fees with foreign partners if you are looking for a non-French buyer, depending on what kind of house you are proposing to sell. Agency fees are generally not open to negotiation for the above reasons (and high social and other costs of running a French business) and if you feel you don't need their services you can try selling your property privately. PD de Rouffignac

The words 'value' or 'valuation' appear nine times in this thread, referring - wrongly - to what are offered by estate agents - ie 'estimations'. As I was trying to point out valuations are provided by an expert immobilier for whatever purpose. P-D de R.

There seems to be some confusion about the use of the word 'valuation' in this thread. An estate agent can only provide an estimate (in French estimation) which is no more than a rough idea of what he/she thinks a property may fetch on the market. If you require a formal valuation - for example in cases of probate, dispute along family members - you need the services of a qualified expert immobilier. Peter-Danton de Rouffignac

Having read all the above, I am bewildered as to who is blaming who, and why. I work in the property business and am amazed at the climate of mistrust in which many British buyers seem to approach the business of buying their home, even when one is clearly trying to help. For example, I regularly use a firm of notaires that I know will be attentive to potential problems (they occur in virtually every sale) and yet on this forum and elsewhere advice is given 'Never use a notaire proposed by the agent'! as though there is some sinister plot to disguise problems or at worst receive some kind of backhander from the notaire, a recommended suveyor, architect etc. The whole point about using local experts is that my definition they are both local and expert. Especially in smaller communities, things are frequently sorted out face to face with the relevant official in the mairie, the DDE, Batiments de France etc. Property buying and selling in France is rigorously controlled by law and my only plea to readers of this forum is to learn about and understand the process - and have faith in it. P-D de R 

A planning application will take an average two months, possibly more if other departments (such as historic buildings commission) are involved. When granted, there is a further two months for anyone to lodge objections. Hence the 4 months quoted by your agent. It is not wise to start building or committing to purchase before this period has expired. I know all about assurances from M le Maire! Given such in January, still awaiting planning permission in March.......in my case the holdup is new flood regulations covering height of ground floor living accommodation above sea level. P-D de R.