Stephen Smith (France) Ltd

[Diane]

We have found a large plot of land with a lake and planning permission to build a large house 500sq metres. We would prefer to build a smaller house and place a few mobile homes on the site for holiday let. Would we need to get planning permission to do this, the owner is not sure and we don't want to waste time etc. if it's going to be a definate no no. Also any advice on what book to buy to give an easy understanding on the laws of buying in France. Any advice welcome. The land amounts to 12 acres.

[Lesley]

Well, maybe your first port of call should be the Mairie on whose patch the land is situated to find out if there is a POS and, if there is, see what it says.

If planning exists, get a copy of the form which has been issued and take it along with you.

There will be a local DDE - Planning - office. It's worth checking both with Mairie and the DDE to see if your new outline is liable to be allowed. If planning permission exists, it will need to be modified.


Further help and advice can be obtained from the departemental CAUE offices.

You could ask a local surveyor, preferably somebody independent of the agent, if he could do all this for you.

How you make any contract to buy subject to having this planning permission, I cannot advise, but am sure Stephen will.

Best of luck.

POS - Plan d'Occupation des Sols
DDE - Direction Départementale de l'Équipement
CAUE - Conseil d'Architecture d'Urbanisme et d'Environnement

Some of the forms are:

PC158 : Demande de permis de construire (universel)

PC158 bis : Demande de permis modificatif (pour modifier une permis existant, en cours d'exécution et avant le certificat de conformité)

PC157 : Demande de permis de construire une maison individuelle (sur un terrain constructible où il n'existe rien encore, et vous avez de préférence demandé un certificat d'urbanisme)