Buying and renovating an apartment in Paris as a foreigner

Your apartment is part of a co-ownership

Almost every Paris apartment building is a copropriété (co-ownership). You own your apartment (the private parts) and a share of the common parts: structure, load-bearing walls, façade, roof, staircase, shared pipes and flues.

The building is governed by its règlement de copropriété (co-ownership rules), managed day to day by a professional syndic (building manager), and decisions are taken by the co-owners at the assemblée générale (general meeting), held at least once a year.

Practical consequence: inside your apartment you are free to renovate, but anything that touches the common parts or the building’s appearance needs the co-owners’ approval. The rules can also restrict noisy works to certain hours and set conditions for using the lift and staircase.

What the general meeting must approve

Works affecting the common parts or the exterior must be authorised by the general meeting: opening a load-bearing wall, connecting to or moving a shared pipe, changing windows or shutters, installing an air-conditioning unit outside, reopening a chimney flue.

Most of these authorisations are voted under article 25 of the law of 10 July 1965: a majority of all co-owners’ votes. If that majority is not reached but the proposal gets at least a third of the votes, a second vote can take place immediately under the simple majority of article 24.

The meeting must be called at least 21 days in advance, and your item must be on the agenda. Ask the syndic to add it as early as possible, with a clear technical file. You can vote by postal form, by proxy, or by video if the syndic offers it.

Our free tool tells you which majority applies to your works: co-ownership vote checker (in French).

Planning permission and heritage areas

Interior works usually need no planning permission. Anything visible from outside (windows, shutters, railings, façade, rooflights) generally requires a déclaration préalable (prior declaration) to the City of Paris.

Large parts of central Paris are protected. In the Marais (3rd and 4th) and most of the 7th, a safeguarding plan (PSMV) applies, and near historic monuments the Architecte des Bâtiments de France (ABF) must approve exterior changes. This lengthens the timeline and can impose materials and designs, and in a PSMV some interior features may also be protected.

Turning an office or workshop into a home is a change of use that must be declared. Parts of Paris also lie over former quarries: structural works there may need to be reviewed with the Inspection générale des carrières.

Asbestos, lead and other checks

Before works, an asbestos survey is required in buildings whose building permit predates July 1997, and lead is a risk in buildings built before 1949, which is most of Paris. These surveys protect the workers and determine how certain works are carried out.

Old Paris buildings also mean timber floors (bathrooms and heavy furniture must be checked for load), original electrics to be brought up to the NF C 15-100 standard, and sometimes damp. A pre-purchase visit identifies these points before you make an offer.

Guarantees and insurance

French law gives you three guarantees after handover: one year for any defect (completion guarantee), two years for removable equipment, and ten years for damage affecting the soundness of the building (garantie décennale). Every contractor must hold ten-year liability insurance: ours is with Entoria.

The owner’s building insurance, dommages-ouvrage, is compulsory in principle for works covered by the ten-year liability, such as structural works. Ask us whether your project is concerned.

On top of the law, we commit in writing to a fixed price, no extras without a signed variation order and payment only for verified stages: our commitments.

VAT and budget

Renovation of homes over two years old is usually charged at 10% VAT in France, and 5.5% for certain energy-efficiency works. Prices are often quoted excluding VAT (HT) or including it (TTC): always check which.

On our own projects in older Paris apartments, the median cost is shown on our real costs page, project by project.

Timing your purchase and your works

In France you first sign a preliminary contract (compromis or promesse de vente), then the final deed at the notary, usually a few months later. Works can only start once you own the apartment.

Use that gap: visit, get your quotes, prepare the co-ownership file and the permit application where possible. If you need a general meeting vote, aim for the next scheduled meeting: missing it can delay the works by months.

Documents to ask the seller for

• The règlement de copropriété (co-ownership rules) and its amendments.
• The minutes of the last three general meetings (procès-verbaux): planned works, disputes, refused requests.
• The building’s maintenance log (carnet d’entretien) and any technical survey of the building.
• The diagnostics file (asbestos, lead, electricity, gas, energy performance).
• A floor plan of the apartment, if available.