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Help with translation of paragraph in contract please


rowland
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I am having trouble with one paragraph in a contract and would be grateful for any help. I can translate the individual words but not the actual meaning (if that makes sense).

Le vendeur déclare ne pas avoir constaté jusqu'a ce jour l'existence de ties indices et l'Acquereur déclare avoir dispensé tant le Vendeur que le Notaire de faire effectuer une recherché de la présence éventuelle de mérules par un diagnostiqueur spécialisé.

I have read it many times now and each time I decide it means something different.

Any help would be gratefully received and thanks in advance
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I am afraid I cannot find the meaning of "ties indices", but essentially the clause is covering the seller against any comeback if they, or rot, are subsequently found in the property.

It's basically stressing the "buyer beware" aspect of French property purchase. So it is up to the buyer to commission and pay for a rot survey if he wants to.

"The vendor declares that he has never seen any sign of ........., and the buyer declares that he absolves the vendor and the notaire from ordering an official inspection to check for any possible rot."

Angela
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La Mérule is dry rot, so it is saying that the seller hasn't found any indications of that and so you are  are dispensing with an in depth survey to find it.

Looking for this is  new requirement since March added to the other obligatory list of things like asbestos, lead and the state of the electrics etc...

http://www.developpement-durable.gouv.fr/Merules-et-autres-champignons,22397.html

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Thank you so much Loiseau and Norman H. I got myself in such a twist with it - one minute I thought that the buyer had dispensed with the need for a diagnostic and the next minute I had convinced myself that he was insisting on one.

Thanks again for your prompt replies
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Unless this is standard practice, I would be suspicious as to why the test has not been carried out and why the seller is seeking to disclaim responsibility. From personal experience, it could be because they suspect or know full well that the problem exists. If there is any doubt, I would ask for the further examination to be carried out or at least for the disclaimer to be removed.
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We helped a friend sell his house here in Normandy. The Notaire (who my wife works for) insisted that the survey for "La Mérule" be carried out because she saw he kept firewood in the internal garage. I have heard of houses here being demolished as it too expensive to eradicate if it gets a hold on the wood in the house, especially if its all been hidden behind plasterboard. In this case, the Notaire organised a separate visit by the diagnostic man and took the cost out of her expenses. An indication of how worried she was of any comeback (there was nothing found in the survey).
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[quote user="NormanH"]I agree since by agreeing to allow the Notaire not to have a diagnostique done before the signature could weaken your case if you subsequently have a problem.

[/quote]

I think so too.  Do everything possible to find all relevant answers.  All the diagnostics are now more and more rigorous, so much so, that sometimes even the notaires have to consult their "book of rules" to be sure of what is required.

I sold a house recently and there were lots of issues to sort out, one or two of which could have easily put a spanner in the works.  AND I was careful to prepare everything (all documents, answers to all possible questions, etc) and I still had to resolve a problem pdq that ended up as a clause suspensive.

Best to get everything done, pay up and have peace of mind.

PS, our notaire said that the latest information he received regarding new regulations for notaires was a summary that contained in excess of 500 pages!  He rolled his eyes and emphasised that that was only the SYMMARY and that he hadn't had time to read it all yet!

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AFAIK the diagnostic for "merule" and other wood nasties is not obligatory, which means it is not up to the vendor to get it done. So if you want to be sure, you can get the diagnostic done at your own cost - possibly a small price to pay for peace of mind.
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It's a grey area.

As I said above things changed in March, but only in certain areas:

Pour les contrats conclus depuis le 27 mars 2014, ce DDT est

désormais complété par un nouveau document destiné à informer les

acheteurs du risque de présence du mérule, un champignon qui se nourrit de bois, dans le bâtiment.

Sont

concernées par cette nouvelle formalité, les zones délimitées par

arrêté préfectoral pris sur proposition et après consultation des

conseils municipaux. Il s'agit d'une simple information sur la présence

d'un risque de mérule et non d'un diagnostic.

Pour

l'heure, le législateur n'a pas fixé la durée de validité du document

ni envisagé de sanction spécifique si le vendeur s'abstient de le

communiquer, lors de la signature de l'acte authentique de vente.

http://www.leparticulier.fr/jcms/p1_1557953/immobilier-une-information-sur-les-merules-devient-obligatoire

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