Free tickets to Rennes Exhibition

Rennes, the capital of Brittany (France)  is hosting an exhibition this weekend on, Friday 15,  Saturday 16^th and Sunday 17^th January 2016 about renovation, building a new house and renewal energies. To apply for a free invite, just follow this link here.

All you need to enter is your name, address, phone number and email address. 

Salon Destination Maison 

Address;

Parc Expo Rennes Aéroport
La Haie Gautrais
35172 BRUZ
Tel. 02.99.52.68.42

Under-floor heating company based in France

We installed our electric under-floor heating system 3 years ago. Unfortunately, the thermostat broke down and had to be replaced. I was lucky to find this company based near the Pyrenees and ran by an English man, Will Spray.

See this web site here.

The service was quick and excellent and we received our thermostat 48 hours later by registered post.

If you live in France and are looking for an electric under-floor heating system, I highly recommend this company.

Plan / extrait cadastral

When buying a house or a building plot in France, you will come across a document called ‘plan cadastral’. This document is issued by the “Cadastre” (Land Registry) which is part of the local tax office.

The section where the house or building plot is located is called ‘extrait cadastral’. This document shows the plots (parcelles) in question and the surrounding plots. Each plot is numbered.

The boundaries are not précised so if you want to know the exact limits you will have to employ a géomètre (land surveyor).

If needed, the mairie can print an ‘extrait cadastral’ if you give them the name of the hamlet or even better the section and plot number. The section is always a letter and the plot a number. Ie Section B, No 123.

The “extrait cadastral” is needed when applying for planning permission (for renovation or new builds) in France.

See my other post about Finding and Printing a plan cadastral online here.

Heating system in France for renovation or new build

In France the new way of heating a house, especially for new builds, is an aerothermal system (aérothermie).

An external unit (see photo on the right) extracts the heat from the air and is linked to an internal circuit. Most of new builds have underfloor heating on the ground floor and radiators upstairs.



This system can also provide you with hot water (see photo on the left) and if you live in South of France, where summers are hot, it can be used for cooling or air conditioning. It is optional though.



If you are renovating a house in France and don't know what heating system to choose, look into it as it is very energy efficient. It doesn't take a lot of room and can replace your old oil or gas boiler.


If your main country of residence is France, you might be able to get some money back from the government, check with your local tax office (centre des impôts). It is called 'crédit d'impôts'.

Renovation or New Build in France?

Renovating property in France generally turns out to be much more expensive than anticipated.

Older properties frequently have limited protection against damp, poorly installed electrical and water systems, and inefficient waste disposal. Building regulations may require that these items are bought up to modern standards, involving more expense. In addition a renovation project may require building permits and the delays in administration will add a cost in time and money to the original budget.

The price quoted for French new build property is "ready to move into", which is a substantial benefit to the purchaser who knows from the beginning the total cost of the purchase.

The first choice for French buyers are new properties. These are usually sold quickly because of the financial and lifestyle benefits of buying new build in France.

For more information please visit this web site.

Obtaining a mortgage from a French bank

If you are thinking about buying a house in France or having a house built in France, why not borrow money from a French bank?

There are a number of reasons why it might be worth considering obtaining your mortgage from a French bank:

Interest rates in France tend to be lower than the UK, so you may save a considerable sum of money over the full term of the borrowing.

If you plan to live or retire in France, your finances may be easier to manage if based locally.

A number of French banks will be keen to offer you a mortgage (subject to their terms and conditions).

For more information please visit this web site.

Air-tight test on new build in France

For the past twelve months I have been helping an English couple with building their new house in Brittany, France.

Introduction, liaising with the builder, site meetings, etc until today, the final day! Indeed the very last test was done this morning to find out who energy-efficient the house really is. The test - see photo - showed how air-tight the house is. It measures the uncontrolled air leakage.

The diagnostic tool is called a "blower door". A fan blows air out of the house to create a slight pressure difference between inside and outside. This pressure difference forces air through all holes and penetrations in the exterior envelope.

By simultaneously measuring the air flow through the fan and its effect on the air pressure in the house, the blower door system measures the air tightness of the entire building envelope. The tighter the building (e.g. fewer holes), the less air you need from the blower door fan to create a change in house pressure.

The result was exceeding expectations. In order to say the house is meeting the BBC (Batiment Basse Consommation) criteria the result of the test had to be less or equal to 0,6 m3/h.m2. It was 0.53.

On the ground floor we could not feel any infiltration through the front door or the windows. We could see the difference between air-tight sockets on the ground floor and 'normal' sockets on the first floor. The infiltration was greater upstairs. The TV sockets were the worse, real 'hair-dryers'!

The house is tightly sealed. Fresh air will only come through some vents and will circulate constantly thanks to the VMC (ventilation Méanique Controlée). This will prevent the air to become humid and stale.

The fact the house is air-tight will save the owners energy but will also provide a healthier environment. No more sneezing, coughing and head-ache during the winter months.