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Farm House Renovation in France: DIY or using non-registered builders?


Chendy
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Hello,

What parts of a farmhouse house renovation project legally possible to do DIY? Or with English based non France registered builders?

Can you replace roof tiles DIY?
Can you replace roof timbers DIY?
Fitting Windows DIY?

I read you have to get 'experts' for serious structural work.
But wondering where the boundaries lie.

Can you officially do the work, and get a builder to sign off?

Any good resources to to learn about this?

Thanks
 

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I am not saying you shouldn't do it yourself, or use France-based British builders, but if you are ever going to be in a position of selling a second home (even one in France) and having to declare any profit for capital gains tax in the UK, it is useful to have receipts for any work done by registered builders in France as this will reduce your CGT liability.

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We have built a 60 sq m house extension from the ground up, installed electrics, gas central heating and put a roof on and tiled it.  Luckily, electricity was already installed in the main house, we just extended it.  The only thing we had to get certified was the gas boiler.  We had already installed it and the central heating system, the plinth for the gas tank and the under ground connection to the house.  Once that was signed off by the registered gas technician, butagaz filled the tank.  The electrics were diagnosed under the usual system when the house was sold.  Same for a 3 phase extension I put in, and a rewiring of a 3 phase supply to a divided system in a house.

We have fixed a lot of UK "Builders" work after they have left the area. There is virtually no comeback on  a non registered artisan, (the only success story I know of involved the use of  a "friend's"  Armenian heavies !!)  Good luck getting a registered one to come back and fix a problem with out an awful lot of effort.  For the average person without a lot of experience, going in cold is not really an option.  I did all my resettlement course on plumbing, and electrics before we came across  and worked with a UK master builder in France before we did any big work.  If you get a complex DIY job wrong (leaking roofs for example) the cost benefit analysis takes a real hit, imo. 

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 "If you get a complex DIY job wrong (leaking roofs for example) the cost benefit analysis takes a real hit, imo."

I must admit to feeling a bit smug about "leaking roofs".

The long unoccupied breton longere next door to us has been bought at last. The young guy who bought it is renovating it from top to bottom, end to end and is doing a very good job, including a complete new slate roof, trusses, purlins, volige. dormers etc.

He works for a local roofing company. :classic_biggrin:

He already very kindly fixed a small leak for us requiring a couple of new slates, wouldn't take any money for his trouble so we gave him a bottle of wine - a nice old Burgundy.

 

Edited by Harnser
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A new, well done state roof is a work of art.  I like how some roofers shape certain slate tiles to add a bit of character to a roof.  A UK architect who visited one roof we had done commented on the new stainless steel "crochets" glinting in the sunshine.  They are not used in the UK and do add a certain look to a French roof - certainly unforgiving as the lines should be straight in all directions!

Sounds like your bottle of wine will be a good investment.

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2 hours ago, Lehaut said:

A new, well done state roof is a work of art.  I like how some roofers shape certain slate tiles to add a bit of character to a roof.  A UK architect who visited one roof we had done commented on the new stainless steel "crochets" glinting in the sunshine.  They are not used in the UK and do add a certain look to a French roof - certainly unforgiving as the lines should be straight in all directions!

Sounds like your bottle of wine will be a good investment.

I shan't be pestering him all the time , it's just that we had a leak on a part where the slates are  secondhand, that was done by the original french owner, and he was doing some finishing work on his roof. I don't have one of those very thin light roofing ladders to get at the site of these leaks, i'll probably end up making one.  

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  • 2 weeks later...

If you do it yourself or use unregistered builders be prepared to pay a lot of compensation   when you sell if there is a problem. I have been translating the legal documents for an English couple  who  have just lost a case brought against them by a French buyer for 'Vice caché". He claimed 65,000 € but on appeal that  was reduced to 47,000.

By doing it themselves they had to pay for the faults  that would have been covered by the insurance of a professional, and at the same time they lost the defence of being a private individual (who is  not expected to have full knowledge of the condition of the property) as  in renovating themselves they had taken on the status of 'promoteurs' who have a higher degree of responsibility.

 

Edited by NormanH
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The point was that by doing it themselves there was no insurance as there would have been if they  had been professionals, so they had to pay for the repairs. The work they had done was certainly within the last 10 years yes.

Edited by NormanH
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Concerning the Responsibilite Decennale and the builder who has insurance to protect himself against claims.

Question.

A builder who does work on a property has insurance to protect himself against the financial consequences of a claim under the ten-year rule.

But he goes bankrupt in that year that he did the work and did not continue to pay the insurance premium.

Assuming he had paid the insurance premium and was covered in that year when he did the work, does that mean that the insurance then is valid for ten years to the possible benefit of the owner of the property ?

Or is it only valid for ten years if the premium is paid every year?

 

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Well, that answers my question, as long as the insurance provider doesn't default on you.

"If the builder should become bankrupt/ceases activity during the progress of the work, or following completion, the insurance policy remains in operation, an important safeguard"

Thanks - we're not in a position to need this thankfully.

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I find the information given by members valuable and interesting and recognise the vast experience held by members and their good will in explaining how the system works. After 22 years I am still learning.

  However, it is a great shame that the OP has asked a rather deep question and, as is often the case, has disappeared from the forum without acknowledging any of the effort made in answering and developing the topic.

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Hectorsdad said

"However, it is a great shame that the OP has asked a rather deep question and, as is often the case, has disappeared from the forum without acknowledging any of the effort made in answering and developing the topic"

Par for the course for many questions regrettably.

Even after 26 years in France I found this particular topic had stuff in it that directly affected me - of which I was in blissful ignorance!

  It makes my day, however, when the person actually comes back and thanks those who have bothered to reply 🙂

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  • 4 weeks later...
17 hours ago, Wsassg said:

If you can do everything yourself, then why pay money to someone for repairs?


 Besides, builders' services today are very expensive. This summer, my wife and I decided to renovate our barbecue area. My wife wanted to hire a special crew, but I did it myself. I installed concrete columns all around the perimeter, and between them, I installed special panels that I bought from a UK company. Thanks to the panels, the barbecue area looks beautiful.

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1 hour ago, Wsassg said:


 Besides, builders' services today are very expensive. This summer, my wife and I decided to renovate our barbecue area. My wife wanted to hire a special crew, but I did it myself. I installed concrete columns all around the perimeter, and between them, I installed special panels that I bought from a UK company. Thanks to the panels, the barbecue area looks beautiful.

All very nice, but they don't ship to France, and if they did, the delivery charge would be horrendous. 

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  • 4 weeks later...
  • 2 months later...
  • 3 months later...

I know my reply is a bit late, but I wanted to say that reconstructing a house, especially when it involves structural repairs, can be a complex task. While it's true that certain aspects of farmhouse renovation can be tackled DIY-style, in my opinion, it's often better to seek the help of experts. Experts in the field have the knowledge, experience, and specialized skills to handle such projects effectively.

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