Are there grants for doing up old houses?

[Blade]

What grants are available for doing up old houses? Does one need to be a french resident?

[Val_2]

There are no grants as such for an ordinary domestic residence owned by non-french nationals. However, If you have a building of valuable historic interest there are associations who deal with the sympathetic restoration as such and info is available from the mairie. As with most things in France any financial assistance is means tested. You can also get info and help but not financial assistance from special advisory bureaux  who deal with insulation,heating and water issues such as HEOL usually found in your nearest town. Your commune does not have any spare finance available to do up properties except under certain circumstances for long standing residents who must apply through the CCAS and be on practically no income.

[Mpprh]

Hi

In my experience :

In many areas grants (and tax relief) are available : subject to many conditions. The possibilities vary by region, departement and town.

The main condition is that you create additional rental property (conforming to prescribed norms), that must be rented for 9 years.

In my area, the grants went like this (%'s from memory)  :

Grant 25% of artisan invoices : You choose the tenant (who must have low income  at a prescribed rental

Grant 45% of artisan invoices : you choose tenants (who must be receiving RMI) at a prescribed rental 

Grant 75% of artisan invoices : The CAF choose the tenants at a rental around 50% of prescribed rental

The "prescribed" rental is below market value (but not too much here  

If you are doing the renovation work yourself, it doesn't make sense

Some older properties will not conform to the required norms (try putting 2 doors between a kitchen and a WC in a studio)

Most of these grants are taken up by aged people inheriting property, who need to restore it to add to their pension.

However the scheme has been a failure in terms of regeneration of rental property.

You need to discuss it with your Mairie

Peter

 

  

  

[Chateau Toombs<P>Fay<P>]

Hello  

Can anyone give me some advice on grants?

There is a very grand house I fancy which had lead paint and asbestos !!!!

We would love to buy it, but with this problem we could not afford to pay to remove it ourselves.

We are looking to run a luxury bed and breakfast in Charente.

Can anyone give me any advice apart from looking for another property.

Regards

[Ron Avery]

I am not aware of any grants for the removal of lead paint or asbestos in France.

However, unless you are going round licking the paint what is a little lead between friends, if it is good condition leave it alone.  As for asbestos, it depends where it is, what it is used for and its condition.  There are millions of toms of asbestos in the world doing what it is supposed to do, insulation and fire retardancy, It is only a problem if you want to move it, or its condition deteriorates and it gets into the atmosphere.  At least you know you have it, hundreds of people in the UK are dying from the affects of asbestos because they never knew it was there or they failed to take proper precautions when working with it.  Either on the Forum or by PM let me know where exactly this asbestos is and I will try to advise as to the best course of action. 

[Coco]

There are no grants as such for an ordinary domestic residence owned by non-french nationals.

This obviously varies from departement to departement because here in Manche we were eligible for a grant and we fit into exactly this category!  I mentioned this a few months ago and got shouted down for being a foreigner prepared to take away a French person's grant.  However, we went for the meeting in Saint-Lo and because we had completed tax returns for the previous two years (min requirement) and didn't earn above a certain amount (sorry, can't remember what it was) we would have been eligible (nationality not coming into it at all).   

We then had to explain what we wanted it for.  When I said it was for a bigger kitchen to be able to run our chambres d'hotes the man (in typical French style) said that I wouldn't be able to get a grant to improve my property to run a business, so therefore he would just put on the form that we needed a bigger kitchen because ours was too small.  In the end we decided not to proceed because we would have only got the grant for the kitchen bit and it would have slowed down the whole renovation of our barn.  But the offer was for up to 33% of up to 12,000€ worth of work, so certainly worth having if you don't have adequate bathroom or kitchen facilities.

We were given the info about grants and the phone number of the association offering them from our Maire.  So that would be my first port of call if I were you.

[Ron Avery]

Coco How long ago was this?  When I was on holiday in 2000 in 46 and 2001 in 12, there were large signs along the road normally next to old ruined farmhouses advertising grants for renovation work as part of the French Millennium "celebrations".  As at that time I had no idea I would be buying a house here, so I took little notice of what was on offer or what you had to do. Of course when we got here the signs had all gone 

But as you say here is no harm in asking at the Mairie

[Alexis]

There is a department/bureau who give grants out and I can't remember their name.  Total blank.  You see their signs at the entrance to certain villages and residents have say, two years to apply before the scheme moves to another area.  I know this village was under the scheme about ten years ago because I investigated.

I keep wanting to say it is ANPE which it obviously isn't but something like that.

It will come back....

[Coco]

I know what you mean Alexis, the one we went to was 4 initials and I can't for the life of me think what they are now!!!  Anyway Ron, this was in March of this year here in Manche - don't know if it's only for a limited time period, there was no mention of that.  I suppose it could be, as at the moment they're pouring a lot of money into this area, both for residents and to try and improve tourism.

[Punch]

It's ANAH (Agence national pour Amelioration de l' HABITAT),

Paul

[zeb]

As Coca says, ask at your Mairie.

There are grants usually in the form of tax breaks, available here in the Charente, for doing up old properties as the department is keen to save old places. I don't know if they cover lead or asbestos removal though. Probably for insulation/heating/bathrooms/new roofs and windows etc.

[Alexis]

Pact Arim...could be one word.  The other letters were right too but I think it is marked Pact Arim in the phone book.

If I shifted my fat bum downstairs I could look, couldn't I????

[Miki]

[quote]Pact Arim...could be one word. The other letters were right too but I think it is marked Pact Arim in the phone book. If I shifted my fat bum downstairs I could look, couldn't I????[/quote]

Unlikely Alexis, well not until the lycra clad lads pedal past the finish at the weekend

Yes, I believe I did hear you the other day, it sounded like "well, would you look at the lunchbox on him" but I didn't think they took sandwiches with them so.........

[Alexis]

That would have been Thor....

[Chateau Toombs<P>Fay<P>]

:     Thanks all for your help

I have had some great advice and I will look into it next week.

Now here's a question how would I get in touch with the local Marie in Montmorillon

Poitou area ???? PLEASE        

Thanks all again

 

 

 

 

[zeb]

Fay, every town, city commune has a town hall (the Mairie), usually with flags hanging outside. Most (except for the villages) are open daily. Just pop in and ask the secretary about applying for grant. If you are not resident, i.e. a French tax-payer, you may have a problem but it's always worth trying (we didn't as we did most of our renovations ourselves).

Good luck (and hopefully, they won't be shut for the holidays).

[chirpy]

I WOULD ASK TAX OFFICE SINCE THEY GIVE YOU A REBATE OF YOUR TAX.

IN 2001 -2002 IT WAS POSSIBLE TO CLAIM FOR INSULATION AND DOUBLE GLAZING .

I HAD DOUBLE GLAZING INSTALLED AND RECEIVED REDUCTION  IN TAX AS I ELECTED TO BE TAXED IN FRANCE AS I AM RETIRED  AND FOUND IT SLIGHTLY MORE BENEFICIAL TO ME.

I BELIEVE TOILETS/BATHROOMS COULD NOT BE GIVEN A GRANT UNLESS YOU OWNED A BLOCK OF PROPERTIES TO RENT.