Sarkozy scraps extra tax on overseas owners of holiday properties in France. The French government is scrapping its proposed tax on holiday homes owned by non-residents. This about-turn will spark relief among thousands of British owners of properties in France.
The decision was announced following a meeting on Saturday 18 June between President Sarkozy and Minister of Budget François Baroin.
Olivier Cadic, who represents the UK for the Council for French Abroad, and a vocal opponent of the tax since it was first proposed, said on his blog (www.oliviercadic.com) following the announcement “I am very happy with the decision, which will be a huge relief to non-residents with a second home in France.” He goes on to say: “I think 18th June was a particularly good choice of date for the tax to have its Waterloo!”
Indeed, on 18 June, the tax came up against high-level political opposition. Senator Joëlle Garriaud-Maylam (UMP national secretary for French-British relations) and eight other senators representing French non-residents met the President at the Élysée Palais and presented their opposition. Olivier Cadic points out in his blog that Alain Juppé, the Minister of Foreign Affairs, also insisted that the proposed tax be abandoned.
Another key factor in President Sarkozy’s decision was that, with French expatriates being able to elect MPs to parliament for the first time from 2012, proceeding with such a decision could have seriously undermined him politically.
Even if the tax had gone ahead, there was still another huge stumbling block in the shape of EU law as it would have discriminated between residents and non-residents. And it would have also come up against problems in French law. As Olivier Cadic said to French Property News: “It is contrary to the notion of equality that is written in to the French constitution – namely that this tax would create a special group who would be taxed.”
The tax, which would have affected around 360,000 households (of which more than half are believed to be British) would have been levied annually and calculated as 20% of the property’s notional rental value (valeur locative cadastrale).
Patrick Joseph, of my-french-house.com says: « The way I see it, it was going to affect far too many better- and well-off French non-residents, most of whom would be from Sarkozy’s electorate, would have potentially put off investors coming to France. It could also have affected the tourism industry (France is the most popular country in the world among tourists, receiving about 75 million visitors a year and has the third largest income in the world from tourism).
« Furthermore, not only it is quite unlikely that the controversial tax reform would have been approved in Brussels, but I would also suspect the cost of putting in it place and managing it could have been higher than the return generated.
« In any case, this is wonderful news for owners of second homes in France and for would-be buyers. »
Writing on his blog on 18 May when the proposed tax was first announced, Olivier Cadic applauded the role British homeowners have played in many parts France and highlighted what he saw as the unjust nature of the tax: “I’m also thinking of our British friends who have invested in France. Often they have restored neglected properties to their former glory, bringing some life and vitality back to deserted villages in the south-west or in Brittany. They’re hardly being rewarded for their efforts now.”

Article issu du magazine French Property News
Cet article est si important pour nos clients étrangers que l\'agence l\'Esprit du Sud le reprend in extenso

C’est une maison vraiment charmante dans un quartier très sympathique de Gaillac. Un grande pièce à vivre (28m2) donnant sur la terrasse puis le jardin et à l’avant la cuisine bien équipée. Dans les étages (2) 4 chambres, deux salles d’eau, un grenier. Au global : 180 m2 habitables et un jardin arboré d’environ 300m2, deux resseres. A visiter à toute heure !!

Plein centre ville de Rabastens, une grande maison au calme et lumineuse. Des travaux à prévoir (chauffage, électricité, chauffage), des éléments anciens à conserver (cheminée, tomettes, planchers anciens), un jardin à investir.

http://www.lespritdusud.eu/bien/638/grande-maison-lumineuse–au-calme–et-son-jardin.html

Since 1^st January 2011, it is mandatory to produce the diagnostic report for all fosse septic and any reports already carried out that is more than 3 years old a new report is required  at the time of signing the sales agreement (compromise) and in case of non-compliance found in this report, at least one repair estimate is required.

The buyer must then proceed to complete the works within a year of signing the sales agreement.

An organisation called SPANC (Service Public d’Assainissement Non Collectif) has been set up to monitor and control all communes in France. They then authorize companies such as Suez, and Veoila to carry out the inspection.

• SPANC must be notified in writing and this may take up to 3 to 4 weeks before they process your request.

ð  We suggest that you make contact with SPANC as soon as you decide to put your property on the market. Otherwise a potential buyer who has to wait an extra 4 weeks may lose interest.

• In case of non-compliance found by the company that has been mandated to carry out the inspection (eg Veolia, Suez etc …), the SPANC prepare a report requiring that the system be put right. This will affect the new owner and they have a year to put things right. The necessary work will be reviewed by at least 1 estimate prepared by a professional and delivered at the signing of the compromise. This work can be very expensive.

ð  That is why it is important to produce all the relevant documents at the opening of negotiations so that there are no surprises later.

Our advice: do not waste time, involve the relevant services now

You can find the contact for SPANC in the Tarn at: http://adspanc81.free.fr/spanc.html

Despite the short trading week last week the GBP/EUR cross certainly didn’t lack in volatility with the total movements between the currencies amounting to approximately 3% over the week

Early in the week Sterling fell to a 13-month low against the euro after a raft of data releases showed a patchy British economic recovery, this in turn suggested the Bank of England would not raise interest rates soon. The pound fell to 1.1048, its lowest since March 2010, as markets continued to factor in diverging rate outlooks with further hikes expected this year in the euro zone.

Analysts said further near-term gains were likely for the euro but the currency was reaching levels that may be unsustainable. “Whilst it is possible to build a 1.08/1.06 scenario based on a strong euro and a weak pound, we do not believe these gains will last, » Chris Turner, analyst at ING.

After another rocky start on Thursday Sterling rebounded from the 13-month low against the euro after the European Central Bank signalled it may not raise interest rates again as early as next month. ECB President Jean-Claude Trichet offered a much less hawkish tone on the central bank’s rate outlook than markets had been expecting after April’s hike, prompting traders to book profits on the Euro’s gains versus sterling after weak UK services data earlier in the day drove the pound lower.

Jean-Claude Trichet’s comments helped push Sterling a little above 1.13 Vs. Euro where it stayed to round the week off on a high.

Source: foremostcurrencygroup