Real Estate

No Letter, No Deadline: a SAFER Ruling for Buyers Who Lost the Land

A buyer whose registered letter from the SAFER could not be delivered is never out of time to challenge the pre-emption, the Cour de cassation ruled on 9 July 2026, whatever he knew from other sources. What that means for foreign buyers of French farmland, and how the SAFER's reach grew on 20 August.

A Flat for as Long as You Keep the Job: France’s New Housing Law for Public-Service Workers

Loi 2026-553 ties social housing to the job that justified it, hands public employers half the flats built on land they sell at a discount, and lets town halls override the local plan to build for nurses, police and transport staff. Nothing in it touches a private lease. Here is what it changes for the buildings around you.

Who Pays the Copropriété Charges in the Year You Sell?

French law does not split copropriété charges by days when a flat changes hands. The owner on the due date pays the whole call, the owner on the accounts-approval date takes the whole adjustment, and the works fund is never refunded. What each rule means for a foreign seller or buyer.

The Relance Logement Bill, Article by Article: What the Senate Passed and What the Assemblée Still Has to Decide

The Senate has rewritten the Relance Logement bill and the Assemblée nationale takes it up this autumn. All ten articles explained: the works-contract reprieve for F and G homes, summer comfort in copropriété votes, planning derogation zones, the loosened Jeanbrun, the island second-home surcharge, and what each one means for a foreign owner.

Loi de 1948 Rents in 2026: the 0.78% Decree, the €204 Ceiling, and Why a Cheap Paris Flat Can Be a Bad Deal

Décret 2026-712 lets landlords of loi de 1948 homes raise rents by 0.78 percent from 1 July 2026, up to a ceiling that can be a tenth of the market rent. What the regime is, how the increase differs from an IRL revision, how a landlord gets out, and what a buyer of a flat with a 1948 tenant is really buying.

Lecornu Just Softened the DPE Letting Ban: What British Landlords Need to Know

PM Sébastien Lecornu just unveiled a housing bill that softens the DPE F/G letting ban: landlords can keep letting, provided they sign a renovation contract. Three years for houses, five for flats — here's what British landlords need to know.

The French DPE in 2026: What British Landlords Need to Know Before the Next Rental Ban

France's 2026 DPE rules silently re-score electric-heated homes, pull smaller copropriétés into the collective-DPE net, and move the rental ban closer to F-rated stock. Here's what British landlords need to check before they re-let.

How to maximize your Council Tax refund: the 2026 guide

A 2025-26 walk-through of every legitimate route to a lower UK Council Tax bill or an outright refund — band challenges, single-occupier and SMI disregards, the new 100% second-home premium, CTR, and moving-out refunds.

TEOM and REOM: The French Household-Waste Tax Explained for British Investors (2026)

What the TEOM and REOM actually are, who pays, how they're calculated, whether you can recharge them to tenants, and how to claim a refund when your French property sits empty — a complete 2026 guide for British investors.

IFI: The French Wealth Tax on Real Estate — Complete Guide for British Investors (2026)

France's IFI wealth tax on real estate catches out British investors faster than they expect — a €1.3M threshold, a worldwide-income cap that does not apply to non-residents, and a 21 May 2026 online filing deadline. Here's the complete 2026 guide.

The British Buyer’s Guide to Moving GBP to EUR for a French Property Purchase

A no-nonsense, unaffiliated look at the best ways to move GBP to EUR for a French property purchase — Wise, Revolut, CurrencyFair, specialist brokers and high-street banks, compared on cost, speed and safety.