|
Purchasing property
and investing in
property can be a risky business. The property market can be
volatile, and while we all claim to know our home market, foreign
markets can be a different matter. It seems the more values and prices
rise the more “edgy” people get.
These
6 simple steps to purchasing
property will help you
eliminate most of the risks:
- Choose
the region carefully. Follow your heart of course – after all you have
to be happy wherever you live whether it be a permanent or secondary
residence. Give some thought to the type of people living there – and
will you fit in?
- Choose the
setting, by all means. But please, pay attention – DO NOT
be swept away by the ‘remote beauty’- unless you really really want to
live like a hermit in the
winter. Check out all possible new roads and rail links. Where is the
local RSPCA? Don't be caught out! Ask where the local hunt dogs are
bred
and kennelled, for example. Feeding time can be extremely noisy in the
peaceful countryside.
- Make
sure the property actually meets your criterion – why bother to have
made that list of important features if not? And if you jettison your
list be sure you know precisely why! If you are spending more than your
budget, be sure you are thinking with your brain as well as your heart.
It has to be a sound investment, so do your homework carefully.
- Have a second,
third, or even fourth visit. Okay, it
may cause some inconvenience to the vendor - but
it's your money you are spending, not his! You may see things
you didn't notice the first time.
- Negotiate
the price carefully. It's a well known procedure, but in the end if
both
parties are happy with the achieved price then the deal will go through
much more smoothly. Whilst negotiating, check
out comparative prices in the area, not what houses were on the market
for but what they sold for – if you can manage to find that out.
- After the compromis
de vente, (exchange document), has been signed, think very,
very carefully during the 7 day "cooling off" period, which is obligatory
for the purchaser in France and has been since
01/06/2001. Redo your calculations, re-visit, take whatever steps you
need to be as certain as possible that
this is the place for you. Once through the 7 day period any change of
heart could be a very expensive and painful
exercise for you.Because, of course under French law the vendor could
still
force you to buy. Note - If
you are buying land
situated in an agricultural zone you will NOT have the benefit of the 7
days
cooling-off period- so be certain before you sign this is the right
acquisition.
A change of heart down the line will certainly cost you 10% of the
agreed price
to the vendor, plus the agency fees, plus notaires to date.
And why should
you bear all this in mind? Because at some point you may decide to sell
and your buyer will be doing all of the above if he has any sense. If
the property was a good buy for you
it will still be a good buy for him – hence improved chance of selling at
a PROFIT.
-
RETURN TO TOP OF PAGE -
Disclaimer
|
