Your practical guide to relocation

One of our priorities is to help you define your needs so as to provide you with the most efficient tailor-made service.

Thanks to our expert and accurate knowledge and understanding of Paris and Ile de France, we are able to give you informed objective answers and guidance.

Although your children’s school is quite often the leading factor that will determinate where you are most likely to want to settle. However we also take into account other important facts such as your lifestyle, how to ensure practical conditions on an everyday life basis, commuting time, the transport service available nearby, the size/budget ratio etc…
You may find that some compromises may be needed as the perfect home doesn’t necessarily exist. This being said, we’ll do our level best to get as closely as possible to what you are looking for.
 

Choosing between Paris or the suburb depends on your priorities:
• Do you want a house or an apartment ?
• What is your budget ?
• How important is it for you to have outdoors space ?
• How close to your office do you want to be?
• What are your leisures ?
• How old are yout children ? With young children, Parisian life is not always the easiest, especially in certain areas where it is difficult to drive or even use a pram.
• What kind of schools are you looking for? International? Bilingual? French ?
Life in the suburb is not the same as in Paris. If you are not familiar with it, SOFIME will tell you all there is to know about life in both areas.
 

In Ile de France, 71% of the housing market are apartements and 29% are independent houses.
In Paris intra-muros (inner Paris), 96% are group housing. Paris holds the largest proportion of old buildings (built before 1949), ie 64% of the housing stock.
In the 1st and 2nd arrondissements (the historical center), the proportion is even bigger: 9 properties in 10 date from before 1915. However, the further East you go, the more recent building you will find.
The average size of housing in Ile de France is 76 m² (59 m² in Paris). Paris is renowned for its large number of small housing: there are 52% of studios and 2-rooms apartments while there are only 33% in the petite couronne (the closest suburbian area to Paris). In Ile de France at large, 43% of properties hold at least 4 rooms.
So if you’re looking for a big modern house right in the center of Paris, it’s probably better to forget about it….!
 

It’s all down to knowing what your priorities are.
Modern housing will usually enable you to have parking space, optimized housing, plenty of storage space. Old buildings will have more charm with their inevitable « PMC » (l« parquet, moulure, cheminées » - wooden floor, mouldings, fireplaces).
Most of the modern buildings are gathered in the new areas of the 17th, 13th and 15th arrondissements along with the eastern part of the capital and quite often in the close suburb.
West of Paris are the famous buildings designed by 19th century architect Baron Haussman and rarely have parking space. If you opt for one of those, make sure you check there’s public parking available in the vicinity with yearly subscriptions if you own a car.
 

In France, rents don’t follow rules. The only regulation the landlord should respect is the barème de l’IRL (indice de révision des loyers) when they wishe to rise the rent. That’s what you will find landlords quite greedy and taking advantage of the current lack of housing. Unfortunately, it follows that you can rarely negotiate rents.

For buyers, the situation varies a bit more. The price per square meter varies considerably from one area to another, from one street to another and even from one floor to another. Ask SOFIME’s advice. We’ll give you all the updated information you need to know to understand the current housing market, whatever the area, whatever the property you’re looking for.
 

To rent an apartement, you need a number of guarantees which can sometimes be quite demanding for the tenant :
- landlords would usually expect you to earn 3 to 4 times the rent per month
- some landlords require a caution (third-party guarantee) : your family, friends, bank etc… If you resort to a bank, a sum representing several months worth of rent will be kept on an account under your name. Of course you will not be able to use the money until the end of the renting period. It is a guarantee for the bank.
On the day of the signature, you should bring :
- a deposit with the amount of 1 month of rent (excluding expenses, also known as « charges »)
- a cheque for the first rent
- a cheque for the housing agency’s fees, if you have used one
 

Here are the documents you will be asked to hand out when you want to apply for a rental :
- a copy of passport or identity card
- a copy of your family record
- your last 2 tax reports
- your last 3 payslips
- your last 3 electricity or water bils (aka « quittances de loyer »)
- a certificate of employment given by your employer (« attestation de l’employeur »). It should specify your yearly income, your type of contract – bearing in mind of course that a CDI (long-term contract) will be a definite plus in the landlord’s eyes, and when you started the job
- your bank account details (RIB: relevé d’identité bancaire)
- a document proving you do have a bank account in France
 

There are 2 main types of renting contracts (bail / baux de location):

Contracts for unfurnished properties (they are called « baux de la loi du 6 juillet 1989 ») : the minimum renting period is 3 years – it is renewable. It may be able to rent for 6 years right from the start if the owner is an institution. The tenant may leave the place before the end of the contract provided they give a 3-month notice via registered letter, unless the reason for interrupting the contract is professional in which case you may only give 1-month notice.

Contracts for furnished properties : writing a contract for such homes is not compulsory (art. 1714 du Code Civil). However it is in everybody’s interest to write a proper contract. If you have to leave, it is understood that you should give a one month notice to the landlord although it is not as strictly defined as for unfurnished homes.
 

The inventory of fixtures is a document signed between the landlord and the tenant on the day the latter gets the keys to the place. There should be 2 signed copies of it and it should be kept all along the renting period.
The inventory should describe the property, room by room, from floor to ceiling and list all the available equipments including closets, fireplaces, and all possible furniture should there be any.
At the same time as the inventory; you should check the compteurs d'eau and compteur d’électricité (water and electricity meters) and note the references to be reported to the water and electricity suppliers so they can start your energy contract. If the electricity supply has been cut, you should specify on the contract that you will need to test the appliances and check they are in order to validate the contract.
If you have not been able to spot things that were not working properly and that were not in proper conditions, you may express reservations on the contract (“émettre des reserves”), in case you find problems in the future.
 

In 2007, the electricity and gas services (traditionally referred to as EDF and GDF) were privatised. You are now free to choose one provider rather than another.
Unfortunately with freedom of choice, you’ve gained complexity. This being said, should the provider you’ve chosen not be to your liking, you are free to change providers and you can also of course go back to your former provider.
Whatever the provider, it will not change the actual supply. The differences are in the price, the quality of services and the terms and conditions of the subscription.
So how do you make your choice?
Thanks to www.energie-info.fr you will find a wealth of useful information to guide your decision. You will also find a webcrawler with which you will be able to find the contact details of all the providers available.
What you should know is that electricity and gas should be dealt with separately. Some providers may do both, others may do either.
What you pay:
- a flat fee for the subscription + the amount of kWh you’ve used (so it will vary according to your consumption). It is advisable to compare the amount indicated by each provider for "Toutes Taxes Comprises" - TTC price which include TVA. For the electricity, compare la Contribution au service public de l'électricité – CSPE, along with the local taxes. Sometimes also the price per kWh varies depending on which period of the day ("heures pleines / heures creuses" – peak /off-peak hours) you use the electricity or gas.
- the price for the service provided : you may want to compare the quality or type of services offered (phone, email, snail mail), the agencies’ opening hours and how much you pay whenever you call them, the billing process (via snail mail and/or email), how you can pay (CB, cheques, direct debit) and how often you should pay...
- the price for any technical service provided by the supplier

Finally, for an easier comparison, you can use the "fiches standardisées de présentation des offres" that each supplier should give you on request. Those should detail each offer.