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| GLOSSARY | |||||||||||
|  | A - B - C - D - E - F - G - H - I - J - L - M A acompte : sum paid in advance (a certain percentage of the purchase price) acte authentique : legal paper drawn up (with all due formalities), by a public officer empowered by law (e.g. a notaire) in the place where he officiates acte de vente : a conveyance or transfer of land, sometimes referred to as the acte d'achat acte sous seing privé : private agreement in writing with no witnesses (the pre-sale agreement) agence immobilière : estate agent arrhes : sum paid in advance by the purchaser, forfeited if purchaser withdraws or double the amount refunded if the vendor withdraws attestation d'acquisition : a notarial certificate that the property purchase has been completed < back to top B bail : lease to tenant banque de consignation : the bank where the notaire places the deposits, with no interest accruing to either party or the notaire bon pour achat : phrase written accompanying signature of contract (good for acquisition) < back to top C cadastre : local town planning register recording details of land-holdings carte de séjour : government permit to reside in France (also called permis de sejour) carte professionnelle : granted by the Préfecture to estate agents to carry out business certificat d'urbanisme : zoning certificate (equivalent to a local authority search) charges : maintenance charges on a property (e.g. water, electricity) clause pénale : penalty clause governing performance of an agreement compensable : the clearing of a cheque compromis de vente : contract for sale and purchase of land compte à terme : deposit account compte courant : current account condition suspensive : conditional terms stated in the pre-sale agreement (e.g. the acquiring of a loan, the gaining of a positive zoning certificate) conservation des hypothèques : mortgage/land registry constructible : land which is designated for building under local planning scheme contract de réservation : the purchase contract used for purchase 'on plan' (sometimes called contract préliminaire) contract de réservation : type of contract for the purchase of property état de achèvement futur copropriété : co-ownership < back to top D déclaration de sincérité : compulsory formula providing that the purchase price has not been increased by a counter-deed droit de préemption : pre-emptive right to acquire the property instead of purchaser droit de succession/donation : inheritance/gift tax droits d'enregistrement : registration of the title of ownership (following of which are the payment of transfer duties) < back to top E EDF/GDF : The state utilities: Electricité de France, Gaz de France emoulements : the scale of charges of the notaire enregistrement (droits d') : registration of the title of ownership (following of which are the payment of transfer duties) etats des lieux : schedule of condition or schedule of delapidations depending on whether it applies to the beginning or end of a lease expédition : the certified copy of a notarial document showing the date of its registration and the registration duty paid expert comptable : chartered accountant expert foncier : professional to check on the state and value of the property (usually an architect) expertiser : to value a property < back to top F FNAIM : Federation Nationale des Agents Immobilier - national association of estate agents, providing a compensation fund for defaulting agents fonds de roulement : capital supplied by all flat-owners, in an appartment block, on top of service charges to meet unexpected liabilities frais de notaire : total sum of money to be paid to the notaire on top of the sale price (includes, notaire fee, registration duty, land registration duty and other charges) < back to top G géomètre : surveyor appointed by the notaire to certify the dimensions of the property according to the cadastre < back to top H hors taxe (HT) : not including sales tax hussier : has many official duties, including baliff and process server; is used to record evidence (for example on the state of property) where legal proceedings are considered hypothèque : mortgage - where the property is used as security for the loan < back to top I immobilière : real estate agent indivision : joint-ownership < back to top J jouissance : right of possesion which must occur simultaneously with the transfer of ownership < back to top L location : renting (tenancy) loi scrivener : the law protecting borrowers from French lenders and sellers on French property purchases in all cases other than a purchase on plan lots : land registry plots applied in appartment blocks lu et approuvé : phrase written accompanying signature of contract (read and approved) < back to top M mairie : town hall mandat de recherche : private agreement giving power to estate agent to look for property marchand de biens : real estate dealer monuments historiques : listed buildings < back to top N nue-propriété : reversionary interest where the purchaser has no occupational rights over the property until the death or prior surrender of the life tenant < back to top O occupation : occupant of the premises (either tenant or occupant without good title) offre d'achat/de vente : an offer to buy or sell property which is not itself a binding contract < back to top P paiment comptant : cash payment parties communes : common parts of buildings parties privatives : parts of the building restricted to the private use of the owner permis de construire : planning permission plan de financement : financing scheme plus-value : capital gain realised on the sale of the property prélèvement : direct debit < back to top R rejeter : to bounce a cheque réservation : the deposit paid in a contract de réservation résiliation : cancellation of a contract < back to top S SAFER : local government organisation supposed to ensure the proper use of agricultural land, sometimes they will hold pre-emptive rights to buy land securité social : French national health system société : legally registered company < back to top T tantiéme : proportion of of the common parts of a copropriété owned jointly with other appartment owners taxe d'habitation : rate levied on the occupation of property taxe fonciére : local tax on the ownership of property testament : a will timbres fiscal : some official documents (e.g. applications for the carte de sejour) carry a revenue stamp tontine : joint ownership troisiéme age : senior citizens (old age pensioners) TTC : (toutes taxes comprise) including sales tax TVA : (taxe sur la valeur ajoutée) value added tax < back to top | |||||||||
| SARL with a share capital of € 5.000 - Registered at the RCS of Thonon N° 508 578 556 Carte Professionnelle N° T 1557/74 provided by the Préfecture of the Haute Savoie Financial Guarantee of € 30.000 : LLOYDS France, 4 rue des Petits Pères 75002 PARIS ©2010 Alpine Property - all rights reserved | |||||||||||
