# Do many French properties have historic status?



## steevh

What's the deal with historic building status in France?

While trawling French property websites I never see any mention of whether the property is a listed building or subject to other similar provisions.
By contrast, in Germany just about about every interesting looking building over a century old is protected as a historic monument, making it expensive to renovate, as all manner of bureaucratic hoops must be jumped through.

I realize France has a much larger stock of old properties than Germany, but I never see historic status mentioned, even on places several centuries old.


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## Bevdeforges

Some towns in France have simply designated sections of the town (often in or near the town center) to be historic zones, and there are rules about renovation for any property within the zone. Also, as you may have noticed, mentioning the protected status of a property is likely to turn off potential buyers, so they "save" that information for someone who is seriously interested in the place.


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## Crabtree

The little hamlet where I have my french farmhouse was built using stone from several old chateau in the area after the Revolution.It's name in Breton means "New town" as the original village burnt down so it was rebuilt with the material available.As a result the whole village is subject to an overview by the "Batiments de France" and they had to be consulted over replacement windows/doors and re slating the roof.This was done by the Mairie who put their observations on the proposals and sent it off to BdeF who only amended the plan slightly by requiring black hooks on the slates.It just meant a slightly longer wait to start work.
How you find out if a building is listed I have no idea as in our case this was never mentioned by the previous owners or the notaire -but to be fair it was not the actual building but the whole context of the area




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Make sense of... Bâtiments de France


If you live in a listed building or in an historic area, any significant changes you wish to make to your home may need authorisation from the Architectes des Bâtiments de France




www.connexionfrance.com


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## BackinFrance

There are a great many heritage listed buildings in France, but the rules vary greatly as to the requirements of Bâtiments de France, including within the same immediate area. It is worth actually asking if you are purchasing an old building,and in particular asking the notaire. If the building is listed, ask Bâtiments de France what their requirements are and whether there are outstanding issues that need to be addressed.


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## steevh

At the moment I'm just at the stage of trawling property websites, and I'm just surprised I havent once seen any mention of protected status. I dont even know the term for it in French, as yet.

In Germany, you become aware of it very fast. Basically anything that looks 'historic', is over 100 years old and is going cheap is almost guaranteed to have a 'Denkmalschutz' on it. Germans love their rules and regulations, so this really bumps up the cost of any renovation work you might have to undertake.

Here in UK, I'm used to seeing ads in the estate agent windows that carry 'Grade II listed' or whatever.

Also, the areas I'm interested in are the more depopulated, so there is a large stock of rural property that hasnt been upgraded in decades.

I don't think anyone would want to hide the status of the building, as clearly finding out about it down the line -- with a sudden doubling (or more) of renovation costs -- would be bound to be a deal-breaker.


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## Bevdeforges

If you do an Internet search on "historically protected properties in France" you should find a number of short articles explaining the way things are done here for protected properties. Most of these come from expat groups or real estate companies and they may have some of the information you are looking for.

But once again, this seems to reveal some of the "cultural differences" between the Brits and the French. I noticed several articles include "how to have your house declared a historic monument" - in part, I suspect, because there are certain aids and subsidies available for restoring protected properties. 

As in so many things here in France, the exact nature of any restrictions on renovation or changes in appearance can vary from one area to the next. The articles are agreed on one point, however. You should be able to obtain any historical monument classification information on a specific property from the notaire handling the sale (it's one of the things the notaire is expected to research as part of the transaction) and/or the local mairie.


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## Lalla

My recollection of Dick Strawbridge's explanation in his Escape To The Château TV series, is that getting a building listed is often voluntary. He was surprised that his building was not, and that he would be allowed to remodel it fairly extensively, which, quite a few years on, he's pretty much done. There are tax breaks and grants associated with getting listed, however everything you do then has to be approved and carried out with appropriate materials and so you will have to work within restrictions. Presumably this is why a majority of owners don't go for it.


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## zarathustra

Lots of old medieval housing falling into disrepair around where I live. I met a guy who owned a small hamlet, and alongside his home was a nice old stone house which looked around 19th century. When I asked him about it, there was a stone plaque with a date from the 1640's! When he spoke to the mayor, he told him he could pull it down if it was a problem. Thankfully he was more into preservation and worked on it, and rented it to a local teacher instead.
I wish more people had the budget to renovate these older properties, the new builds, while practical and cheaper, slowly take the character out of a place.


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## SPGW

The owner can voluntarily register for a fee, with organisations like the Fondation du Patrimoine. They advise on renovations, grants etc. Being in the vicinity of a historic building also restricts what you can do to a property hence the need for declarations to the mairie for approval.


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## Nomoss

You don't even have to own a listed property to be affected by conservation regulations.
A friend near Agen was unable to have the roof of his house replaced after most of it blew away in a storm until the new tiles etc. were approved by Bâtiments de France, because of a derelict tower in the distance, which caused months of delay before work could begin.
We are in a small town (pop. 2,000) which has a historically protected church, and approval must be sought from B de F for work done on any properties within a km of it, which includes most of the town.
This doesn't prevent hideous tin sheds being erected for businesses who ignore empty properties in the town centre.


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## peeps

Hello, 
We had to submit a satisfactory request for a window, as we live within the designated area of a building of historic interest. If you want to know if you could be affected you can research the location using the government website here Atlas des patrimoines
We also checked here for termites in any area:
Rechercher | Observatoire National Termite
For flooding and other risks, here:
Connaître les risques près de chez moi | Géorisques

good luck in your search.....


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## steevh

Thanks for all the useful info. -- especially the point about being nearby to a protected building.


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## Nomoss

steevh said:


> Thanks for all the useful info. -- especially the point about being nearby to a protected building.


I wouldn't worry too much about it. Just about every villlage around here, in Le Minervois, has a protected building/ruin/near-ruin or two, but that doesn't prevent permission being garnted for reasonable or essential works. It just takes a bit longer, maybe an extra month or so. In any case, the application forms for work usually contain a clause to the effect that if there is no response within a certain period, I think a month, that it may be assumed that approval is granted.

If you have doubts about a property you are interested in, have a chat with the Maire. They are usually interested in anyone wanting to buy and improve property in their towns.


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