Permission needed or not?

[Jackie]

As a matter of interest if you wanted to install another bathroom say in a room that was previously a bedroom or convert part of an extension or veranda into a shower and washing machine room would you need to get permission from someone to do this or could you go ahead as the exterior of the property would not change at all?....................John in 79 

[Dick Smith]

My understanding (as told to me by our maire when asked exactly this question) is no. If there are no exterior changes then no permission is required. However, things may vary from place to place, so it is best to ask.

[Val_2]

Usually what you do inside your property is your own affair and you can do more or less what you like. However if you start to change the exterior or turn something that was previously not inhabitable into living space then yes, you do need permission. If you are really worried,just ask casually at the mairie but for what you describe I would just carry on.

[Will]

We have come across several cases recently (in neighbouring departements as well as our own) where people have been asked to submit full and detailed plans for work (such as installing Velux windows in an attic) which would previously have been covered under the simple declaration des travaux. I think this is to ensure that extra rooms etc get picked up by the tax system. This happens even when the mairie has initially said that full plans would not be required.

[Hoddy]

A couple of years ago we wanted to install a shower room on an upstairs landing. We went and asked at the mairie and they asked us to submit brief plans - drawn by us and not an architect. We are now the proud posessors of a set of plans with an official stamp and a note from the mayor which says we don't need permission to make the alterations !

As others have said the important thing seemed to be that the changes made no difference to the outside of the house.

Hoddy

[Penny29]

Hi,

Agree with Will's comment about velux - we recently applied for Permission not needing permission" to enlarge the existing velux in our grenier and also to add a few more windows - this constituted a "change of use" as the grenier had never been counted as rooms by the Mairie and this change of use would also take us well over the 170 m2 rule - so a simple request to change a  few windows ended up with a costly project involving an official architect and full planning permission. In the end we decided we didn't need an extra 4 bedrooms and abandonned the idea!

However, when it came to changing the existing structure of the ground floor - removing walls, changing the number and dimensions of the rooms they did not want any paperwork completed at all - the Maire basically said that what we do inside is our own business providing we do not add to the overall square meterage of habitable space.

 

[Jackie]

Thanks for all the replies folks, very helpful.............John in 79

[Ianhaycox]

It's possible that adding a bathroom may change your Taxes Foncieres. More rooms often means more tax to pay.

We knocked some rooms together and removed a bathroom after moving in to our house. A visit to the Hotel D'Impot reduced our tax bill.