Buying a home in France

First: your budget and borrowing capacity

Before you visit, have a bank or broker check your borrowing capacity. In principle, all your loan instalments plus insurance must not exceed 35% of your net income (the Haut Conseil de stabilité financière rule, with limited bank derogations), and the loan term generally must not exceed 25 years.

Budget for the price, plus all acquisition costs (see “How much does the purchase cost?” below), plus a reserve for moving and works. No minimum deposit is imposed by law, but in practice banks expect the buyer to cover the acquisition costs and part of the price.

The main aid: the zero-rate loan (PTZ)

The PTZ is an interest-free loan — the State pays the interest — granted only by banks that have signed a convention with the State. It can never finance a purchase on its own: it must top up at least one other loan (classic mortgage, PAS, prêt conventionné or prêt épargne logement).

To qualify, you must be a primo-accédant: you must not have owned your main residence during the 2 years before the PTZ (exceptions exist, notably for disability or a home made uninhabitable by a disaster). One PTZ per transaction. The home must become your main residence at most 1 year after purchase or after the end of works, and you must live in it at least 8 months per year.

Since 1 April 2025, new housing qualifies everywhere in France — collective flats and individual houses — for loan offers issued until 31 December 2027 (Decree No. 2025-299 of 29 March 2025). Old housing qualifies only in zones B2 and C, and only with improvement or energy-saving works representing at least 25% of the total cost of the operation.

• Share of the operation cost financed by the PTZ, by income tranche: tranche 1: 50%, tranche 2: 40%, tranche 3: 40%, tranche 4: 20%.
• For a new individual house (outside collective housing), the shares are lower: tranche 1: 30%, tranche 2: 20%, tranche 3: 20%, tranche 4: 10%.
• The income taken into account is the revenu fiscal de référence (RFR) for year N-2 for all future occupants, or the total cost of the operation divided by 9 — whichever is higher. Income ceilings depend on household size and the commune's zone (A / A bis, B1, B2, C): use the official “Calculer le montant du PTZ” simulator on service-public.fr for your exact case.
• Maximum repayment term: 25 years, with a deferred period of at least 2 years possible. The bank is not obliged to grant the PTZ: it assesses your solvency and guarantees freely, even if you meet the State ceilings.

The other subsidised loans

The Action Logement loan (formerly 1% Logement) is for employees of private non-agricultural firms with 10 or more staff, subject to income ceilings: up to €30,000, within 40% of the total cost of the operation, at a fixed nominal rate of 1%, over a term of up to 25 years (Action Logement). It can top up a bank loan and a PTZ.

The prêt d'accession sociale (PAS) is a capped-rate mortgage for modest incomes buying or building a main residence (or doing major works), subject to income ceilings by household size and zone. No specific rate or amount is published here: the capped rate is set by regulation and must be checked with the bank or on service-public.fr.

Other routes exist — prêt conventionné, prêt épargne logement, prêt social location-accession (PSLA), bail réel solidaire (BRS), local aid from the region, department or commune — but they are not standard open-market purchases: ask your mairie, your department and your ADIL (agence départementale d'information sur le logement, via anil.org) before building them into your plan.

The steps, in order

Visit and check the property: ask for the full diagnostic file (see below) and, for a flat in co-ownership, the co-ownership rules, the minutes of the last general meetings, the charges and any works voted or planned.

Make a written offer, stating the price and a validity period. Once the seller countersigns it, it binds the seller.

Sign the preliminary contract: compromis de vente or promesse unilatérale de vente. The compromis binds both parties — it “is worth a sale” once the conditions are met. The promesse unilatérale binds only the seller, who reserves the property for an option period (often 2–3 months) against an immobilisation indemnity, in practice 5–10% of the price. A notary is not legally compulsory for the compromis, but is strongly recommended; it becomes compulsory for a promesse of more than 18 months.

• Essential suspensive conditions: obtaining the mortgage (and the PTZ, if you apply for one), plus any planning, pre-emption or title condition relevant to the property. If a condition fails, the sale falls through and the deposit is returned. Never sign a compromis without a loan suspensive condition.
• Cooling-off: 10 calendar days. A non-professional buyer of a dwelling can withdraw without reason and without penalty within 10 calendar days from the day after first presentation of the registered letter notifying the preliminary contract (article L271-1 of the Code de la construction et de l'habitation).
• Loan offer: 10 calendar days of reflection, non-negotiable. The period starts the day after you receive the offer; you may return the signed, dated acceptance only from the 11th day, by post. The bank must hold its offer terms for at least 30 calendar days from receipt. No funds may be paid to you before acceptance.
• Notary preparation: about 3 months in general between the compromis and the final deed. The notary checks the identity and consent of the parties, the title and origin of ownership, the mortgage / lien statement (état hypothécaire), planning rules and pre-emption rights (e.g. urban pre-emption by the commune), servitudes and, in co-ownership, that the seller is up to date on charges with the syndic.
• Acte authentique: signed by the seller, the buyer and the notary, at the notary's office. Only a notary can draw up this authentic deed. You receive an ownership attestation the same day; the notary then publishes the deed at the service de la publicité foncière, which makes you owner against third parties, and sends you the full copy a few weeks later. You can use your own notary alongside the seller's at no extra regulated-fee cost — the fee is shared between them.

Papers and diagnostics to check

As the buyer, prepare for the notary and the bank: photo ID, proof of address, civil-status documents (livret de famille, marriage or PACS contract if applicable), last tax notices (notably the RFR N-2 for the PTZ), pay slips and employment contract or accounts for the self-employed, bank statements and proof of your deposit.

From the seller and for the property, require: the title deed, the property tax notice, planning information, the mortgage statement and, in co-ownership, the full syndic file. The dossier de diagnostic technique (DDT) must contain:

• The energy performance diagnostic (DPE), compulsory, valid 10 years for DPEs drawn up since 1 July 2021.
• The lead risk report (CREP) for homes built before 1 January 1949; asbestos for building permits before July 1997; gas and electricity reports if the installations are over 15 years old; termites where the property is in an affected zone; the risks report (natural, technological, mining); non-collective sanitation where applicable; the Carrez measurement for co-ownership lots.
• The regulatory energy audit for a single-family house or single-owner building rated F or G, compulsory from the first visit since 1 July 2024.
• Relevant if you plan to let later: since 1 January 2025, a G-rated home can no longer be newly let (F from 2028, E from 2034, per the DPE page on service-public.fr).

How much does the purchase cost?

The “frais de notaire” are mostly taxes collected by the notary for the State and local authorities, not the notary's pay. The buyer pays them (article 1593 of the Civil Code). As an order of magnitude: about 7–8% of the price for old housing, about 2–3% for new housing subject to VAT (the price already includes VAT and transfer tax is replaced by a reduced publicité foncière tax of about 0.715%). The component-by-component breakdown is on this site's “Buying costs in France” page.

Droits de mutation à titre onéreux (DMTO): the departmental tax is 3.80% at base, 4.50% in most departments, and can reach 5.00% where the department voted the 2025 increase, for deeds passed between 1 April 2025 and 31 March 2028 (article 116 of the 2025 Finance Law, DGFiP BOFiP). Add the communal additional tax of 1.20% and the State levy. Commonly quoted totals: 5.09% (3.80% departments), 5.81% (4.50%), 6.32% (5.00%). First-time buyers buying a main residence are excluded from the 0.5-point increase. Check the exact rate for the property's department — never rely on a single national rate.

Notary's regulated fees: a scale by price band (3.870% up to €6,500; 1.596% from €6,501 to €17,000; 1.064% from €17,001 to €60,000; 0.799% above €60,000), excluding tax, plus 20% VAT, plus disbursements and the contribution de sécurité immobilière. This is the scale usually quoted; the order of 25 February 2026, in force from 1 March 2026, sets the tariff applicable until 29 February 2028 (Code de commerce, article A444-53). Confirm the exact amount with the notary's simulator before signing.

Budget separately: loan file fees, borrower insurance (you may choose an insurer other than the bank's) and the guarantee — a mortgage (by notarial deed, published at the publicité foncière) or a guarantee body's caution. After purchase, expect the taxe foncière (owner) and, where applicable, the taxe d'habitation on second homes and vacant homes: rates are local.

Pitfalls to avoid

Signing a compromis without a loan suspensive condition, or with a PTZ condition worded too narrowly: if the PTZ is refused, you can lose your deposit.

For a PTZ on old housing: underestimating the works share (25% of the total cost of the operation, not of the price alone) or missing the post-works DPE target.

Buying a G-rated house to let it immediately — letting is now restricted (see above).

Assuming the PTZ covers the whole price — it never does. The financing plan must show PTZ + main loan + deposit + frais de notaire together.

Forgetting that the bank may refuse the PTZ even if you meet the State ceilings: solvency and guarantees remain the bank's decision.

Where to check

Service-public.fr: PTZ pages (the “Calculer le montant du PTZ” simulator, commune zones), mortgages, DPE and diagnostics. Notaires.fr: notary directory and fees simulator. ANIL (anil.org) and your departmental ADIL: free, neutral legal information. Impots.gouv.fr: DMTO rates by department. Légifrance: Decree No. 2025-299 of 29 March 2025 (PTZ) and the 2025 Finance Law.

If a paper is missing, a deadline has passed, or anything in this guide does not match your situation, talk to a notary before you sign.