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LOI ALUR: Changes in Real Estate Agency Fees

A new law, the loi ALUR (Accès au Logement et à un Urbanisme Rénové), introduces new regulations to the property market, some of which are likely to be important to people relocating to France.

Searching for a rental object in Paris and its surroundings can be quite a challenge and most people find their future home through a real estate agency.

Until the 15th of September 2014, the fees charged by estate agents were generally at a level equivalent to a month’s rent and there was no law limiting and regulating those fees.

This has changed by the introduction of a new law: a number of specific fees can be shared between tenant and landlord -fees relating to viewings, the compilation of the dossier, the preparation of the lease agreement and the inventory check. Fees relating to other services remain the sole responsibility of the landlord.

With the new law, the share payable by the tenant cannot exceed the following:

  • 12 €/ m² of the property’s floor space  in the so called “zone très tendue”, which includes Paris and its close surroundings (in other geographic areas it is either 10 €/ m² or 8 €/ m²) plus
  • 3 €/ m² for the inventory check.

Although in most cases, this change results in a reduction of fees for the tenant, this is not necessarily the case for all. In certain specific cases the level of fees payable by the tenant end up at a higher level. However, more importantly, in no case can the tenant be charged more than the landlord!

Another important change relates to the information that can be required by the landlord: the list of documents required by the landlord will be regulated in the future. More information to follow.

About Britta Sedemund

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