Is it possible to buy my ex-partner's share in French home?
Wanting to purchase an ex-partner's share of a property is not unusal
If possible, the legal status of the relationship can impact the various costs
Brain light / Alamy Stock Photo
Reader Question: I would like to buy my former partner’s share in our house. Do I have to contact the same notaire I used last time and will I have to pay similar charges to when the house was purchased?
This is quite a common situation, and does require the services of a notaire, but not necessarily the same one you used when you bought the property together.
The first step is to agree together on a fair value for the property and it is best to get a number of professional estimates, from estate agents and/or notaires.
Once you have agreed on this it is possible to fix the amount, called soulte, that needs to be paid to the other party.
For example, assuming the house was 50/50 in shared ownership, and it is valued at €300,000, then you should pay €150,000 (the purchase deed will specify if it was bought in different proportions).
Commonly, however, there will be some outstanding mortgage. Assuming, for example, there is still €100,000 capital to pay on the loan, then you should deduct half of this (€50,000) from the payment you will need to pay to your ex-partner.
Unless you can pay the full sum from existing resources you will need to ask your lender to agree to you continuing the mortgage payments on your own which may involve an increase in the interest rate.
Note your lender is not obliged to agree to this, the lender may decide, for example, that you cannot realistically meet the mortgage payments on your own.
Read more: Explainer: Role of notaire in France and what to do if not happy
In terms of fees, where the process is between ex-spouses or PACS partners as part of settling their affairs, the main charge is a 1.1% ‘share-out’ fee, based on the property’s value, less any outstanding mortgage.
In other cases, eg. between unofficial partners, there is a standard stamp duty fee of 5.8% on the value of the part that you are acquiring (there are some additional fees involved for registration of the transfer and the notaires' work, bringing the total to around 7% to 8%).
The fees are at your expense unless you and your ex-partner agree to share them which is common practice in a divorce.
