I am not called The Property Geek for nothing, those who
know me know I have an obsession with the rental industry and as a Francophile
I thought I would write about how the UK and France differ when it comes to renting
privately.
Both Countries
rental systems can be complex with a minefield of legislation and governance, France
is very pro-tenants rights and extremely animal friendly, as with everything
research is key, below is a brief outline of what to expect when renting in
France.
Anyone can
become a landlord in the UK whether by accident or a planned business, at
present there is no requirement for a landlord to be registered in anyway.
In France
all professional landlords must be registered with the ‘Chambre de Commerce’
and are referred to as an LMP (loueur en meublé professionnel).
When renting
in France it is important to understand there are two types of rental property,
furnished and unfurnished, you may not think this poses too much of a problem,
however the legal system is very different for each. Furnished has recently
been given a clear legal definition and tenants of unfurnished property have
more rights than those in furnished properties.
As a
landlord furnished and unfurnished properties are assessed differently for tax
purposes so mixed portfolios can prove to be an unwanted stress, also income
from each rented furnished property
must be in excess of €23,000pa.
In 2015 the law was changed in France to implement rent caps
(rent-controlled area (zone tendue)) in many regions across the Country restricting
how much rent can be increased by.
Another important
point to raise is that by law, the landlord cannot prohibit the tenant from having pets of any kind.
Deposit
Deposits in France are required to be equal to 1 months
rent, however they do not need to be protected in anyway.
When a tenant vacates their deposit must be returned to them
within two months of them leaving the property if there are disputes, or one
month if there are no issues. If a landlord doesn’t return the deposit after
this time, the tenant can submit a complaint to the Commission Department of
Conciliation (CDC).
This is in contrast to the UK where a deposit must be
protect with one of the 3 approved schemes and within a set period of time,
also deposits must be returned within 10 days of the tenant vacating, or in
part if there is a dispute
Minimum Rental
period
The minimum rental period for an unfurnished property in
France is 3 years, compared to a furnished property which is 1 year, however
holiday lets and some short term rentals can only be provided by furnished
properties.
As we know in the UK the minimum rental period is 6 months
on a standard Assured shorthold tenancy (AST) regardless of the level of
furnishing.
Pre-tenancy checks
In the UK we rigorously check our tenants history from
previous rental behaviour to credit history to inside leg measurement, not
forgetting the Right to Rent check.
France does not have a credit history system because they do
not use finance in the same way we do, for example we can chose a myriad of
finance options from credit cards, loans and hire purchase, in France those
option are still available but all finance payments go directly through a
persons bank account and is therefore linked direct to the bank account
activity, if a person misses a repayment on an item or their rent, their bank
account is frozen until the issue is resolved, as I’m sure you can imaging,
people rarely miss their payments.
When renting in France applicants need only provide the
following documents
- An identity
document: id
card, passport, driver's licence, visa information, etc.
- A proof of professional
activity:
work contract, employer's reference, a student card; a business statement
( if tenant runs own business)
- A proof of
financial support: last three months’ pay slips, whether the
source of funding is salary, pension or any other benefit; previous tax
returns; proof of having a student scholarship.
- References of
previous renting Only if tenant has rented in France
before otherwise it is not needed:
Safety
Documents
In the UK the landlord has to provide
the following documents to the tenant.
·
Valid Gas cert ( if gas in property)
·
Energy performance cert (EPC)
·
How to rent guide
·
Deposit protection information.
In
France the landlord is still required to provide an EPC, in addition to this he
must also provide a risk or safety report of the property.
Tenant insurance
By law, a landlord can
request a tenant take out home insurance to cover the risks of mainly water
damage, fire, explosion and in some cases, theft of contents.
If required, the tenant must
provide proof of such insurance when first renting the property, and every year
thereafter at the request of the landlord. The lack of insurance can be grounds
for the landlord to cancel the lease (if a lease clause is provided) or buy
insurance for the tenant and demand repayment of the fee. Otherwise, a tenant
is free to choose the insurance company of their choice.
The tenancy agreement
Since 2015 all tenancy agreements
across France have been regulated and must indicate which charges are to be
paid by the landlord and which by the tenant. Typically include city taxes,
utilities and, particularly for apartments, charges for the maintenance of
communal areas.
Subletting
It is legal to sublet in
France, provided the tenant has official written approval from the landlord and
the sublease does not exceed the amount paid by the main tenant.
Tenancy renewal
In the UK if no one ends the fixed term tenancy then it is
automatically renewed to form a statutory periodic which rolls on month by
month.
In France this is the same however the automatic renewal forms
another 1 year fixed contract, not a rolling monthly one.
Giving notice
For tenants
in furnished properties they are required to give 1 months notice.
For tenants
in unfurnished properties they are required to give 3 months notice ( one month
if renting in Paris)
Tenants can
give notice at any time, and the notice period starts from the day the landlord
receives your official letter.
Notice must
be given in writing either by registered letter (recommender), delivered by a
bailiff (hussier), or delivered by hand with acknowledgement of receipt and
annotated. Emails and verbal notices are not valid.
Landlords
must give six months’ notice before the end of the rental period of an
unfurnished property, or three months’ notice for a furnished property.
There is no provision of a no fault notice in France, so no
Section 21, a landlord must have reason for ending the tenancy, such as rent
arrears or breach of tenancy
Property
maintenance & access to the property
Once the keys have been handed over, the landlord does not
have the right to enter the property without the tenant’s consent, and may be
charged with trespass or harassment for doing so. The landlord does not have
the right to check up on the tenant, for example, annual property inspections,
unless this has been agreed in the rental contract. They do have the right to
enter the property to undertake essential works and routine maintenance
(although not improvements to the property), and the tenant must allow this.
In France that tenants have responsibilities to carry out
minor repairs and routine maintenance; these can include garden maintenance,
fixing basic interior damage, attending to minor plumbing, gas and electrical
issues, cleaning chimneys and more. Major repairs, however, are the
responsibility of the owner.
Many aspects of renting in France whether as a tenant or a
landlord seem to be simpler than here in the UK, but wherever you chose to live
or own your property knowledge is key.
