From the Inside
Five years working in the French property market.
Here's what I saw.
3 Red Flags in the "Dossier de Diagnostic Technique"
What you really need to know when reviewing the French diagnostic reports on a property.
These are the reports that must be carried out by an independent expert on every property for sale in France. They will all be in French, no translation will be provided, and the full pack can run to hundreds of pages. They do not cover any risk relating to the structure, there is no structural survey as standard in France.
Often they are sent to you after a first viewing if it went well and the property is of interest. Sometimes buyers don’t actually review them, and get surprised later in the process when the notaire goes through the issues they highlight at the signing meeting.
I am going to cover three issues here that would be a red flag to me if I were looking to purchase a property in France. It wouldn’t necessarily mean walking away, just that I would need more information before moving forward with an offer.
1) Termites
This can become an expensive problem very quickly. Termites are highly destructive, and the biggest red flag for me would be finding that they have been discovered but the owner has not yet started treatment. I have walked away from a property in France that I had already made an offer on for exactly this reason, the speed of destruction was visible from updated photos.
There is obviously a spectrum of issues. It might be that termites have been found somewhere on the land rather than in the property itself, and treatment is already underway.
That is much less of a concern, but I would still want to speak with both the expert who found the issue and the person employed to treat it.
Treatment can also be a lengthy process. If you move forward with a property where this is an issue, be prepared for treatment to remain ongoing after your purchase completes.
2) Amiante (Asbestos)
Again, there are various levels of asbestos issues that can be found. At the lower end of the scale the report might note that it is not degrading and that no action is required. The affected area could also be very small.
At the other end of the scale, it could be actively degrading and require immediate treatment, which can be very expensive. There is also a complication if the asbestos is in an area you were planning to develop. For instance, it could be in the roof of an outbuilding you were hoping to convert into additional accommodation or a gîte. I have also seen it in the lining of a swimming pool - degrading, and very costly to resolve.
If anything shows up in the report, make sure you fully understand the implications. I would be cautious about relying on translation apps, I have seen people get poor results and genuinely misunderstand what a report was telling them.
3) Part of the Property Was Inaccessible
This might surprise you, but an independent expert can note that they were unable to access part of the property and simply not cover it in their report. They are still considered to have completed their job, and the report stands. The implications can vary considerably though.
Where the owners don’t live at the property, access for the diagnostic expert has probably been arranged by the agent or a contact of the sellers. That can lead to misunderstandings; a missing key, or a hatch to an area that wasn’t obvious.
The extract below is from a real diagnostic report, giving reasons why several areas could not be accessed.
For some of these issues it would likely be possible to arrange a return visit and resolve the access problem. For one issue though, the expert notes that insulation is laid across the floor of a non-load-bearing space and they cannot move around to inspect it properly. That is not something easily resolved. It may be that you would need to accept the risk that there was nothing of concern in that area.
I have also seen reports where it is clear there is a more serious issue, the diagnostic expert will not enter a room because they believe it would be dangerous to do so. This will probably already have been apparent during your viewing, as the agent would likely not have allowed you to enter either. However, properties are sometimes purchased without a physical viewing, so if you see something like this in a report and you haven’t visited in person, it should be treated as a significant red flag.
If you see any area marked as inaccessible, find out more before proceeding. It may be possible to have the relevant section redone. If not, you need to fully understand the implications before considering an offer.
If you are considering any property in France, make sure you have all the reports - and that you genuinely understand them. If you would like an independent view, that is something we can help with:
And if you want the free guide covering the five questions you should be able to answer before making an offer, you can download it here: