The first stage consists to choose and buy a ground. It is crucial because it conditions the success of the step. The selection criteria are multiple and must be studied with as much care than for the acquisition of an apartment or a house. You will be able to configure your house like its architecture with the nature of the ground and administrative information relative. The same applies as for a housing, the orientation and the exposure have as much importance. Concerning the ground and the basement, you must discover true nature of it not to find you in an inextricable situation. Even if the cost is expensive, do not hesitate to entrust the study of it to a specialist.

Two types of grounds are offered to you at the time of a purchase, the ground in allotment which has guarantees concerning the constructibility and viability like connection with the water supply networks of electricity or gas. On the other hand, you will have to respect certain standards on the architecture and the environment of the house. You can also choose an isolated ground which leaves you a greater walk of operation but which involves risks when with the nature of the grounds or environment.

You must get near the town hall a certificate of town planning which will confirm that the ground is constructible, will attest architectural standards and will specify the rules of building density compared to surface as well as the layout constraints of the accesses. The POS (plane of occupation of the grounds) must also be consulted to inform you into force about the rules of construction locally. You get the schedule of conditions if you wish to buy a ground of allotment as well as the decree to parcel out detailing work or other installation to come. In order to establish the exact surface of your ground, we advise you to make carry out a demarcation by an geometrician-expert who will establish in the real limits.

When you buy a ground, you follow the same procedures as during the acquisition of a real estate energy of the signature of the compromise of sale to that of the notarial act. You here is owner of a ground.

Before starting work you must obtain a permit building which will make it possible to check if the project is quite in conformity with the legislative measures and lawful. That touches all types of constructions. Rebuilding works with identical require also a licence. Except if it is about renovation work, like in the case of a disaster. You must make the request for your permit building with the town hall. The file includes/understands an administrative form, a copy of the land register, a key plan and the plan of the frontages. It will be necessary for you to wait two months after the reception of the complete records for the houses. The licence will have to be posted with the town hall in the eight days which follow the decision or the not-opposition, for one duration two months and visible publicly. In the event of refusal, the applicant can urge a debate with the competent service in order to make modifications to the preliminary draft, it can also lodge an equitable relief with the Prefect or finally deposit a recourse for abuse of power near the administrative court.

You now have several solutions to make build your house. Either the manufacturer will provide the plan or will deliver it to you yourself.

You deliver the plan, you address yourselves to a company which will carry out carcass work (foundations and walls), the setting out of water (roof and sealing) and out of air (external doors and panes), other possible work being realized under your responsibility within the framework for contracts for company batch by batch. This type of contract without plan is fixed with identical rules that those of a contract with plan, including as regards guarantee of delivery. On the other hand, you can sign the contract without same titular being of a commitment to sell of the ground. The manufacturer does not need to unscrew work which it does not complete itself. The parts are free to define the spread of the payments and the methods of price adjustment, the only legal constraint being the balance of 5% reserved until the reception.

You must choose the companies providing précautionneusement, in order to avoid the bad surprise like nonthe solvency or the quality of work undertaken. If it occurs of the problems, react as soon as possible. Do not hesitate with send an injunction by a letter registered to announce the days of delay taken by the building site. If the final delivery period is exceeded by the fault of the contractor, you must put it in residence to complete the work. If it exceeds a certain date, you have the right to ask in justice for the cancellation of the contract and the damages. If the building site is given up, you can also ask for the authorization of continue work with another company. If the company files for bankruptcy its, you must quickly address to the receiver in order to decide continuation or abandonment of the building site.

According to the law of December 19, 1990, the contract of construction with plan includes all the details of the project such as for example:

• the plan and the descriptive note of work, these documents having to mention all work essential to the establishment, the adaptation on the ground and the use of the house, in particular, work of connections to the sewer and the other public networks;
• the total price of construction including the taxes which had by the manufacturer, the cost of the plan, the guarantee of delivery and if necessary of the guarantee of refunding and the expenses of studies of the ground;
• conditions of the price adjustment, if it is envisaged;
• the date of opening of the building site, the completion period of work and penalties envisaged in the event of delay of delivery;
• the justification of the guarantee of delivery and the insurances of professional and decennial responsibility;
• spread of the payments according to the progress of the work.

The contract of construction with plan offers the advantage of knowing how much you will spend for construction. The price mentioned includes/understands the cost of construction, the remuneration of the manufacturer, the costs of development of the plan, the studies of the ground, the various guarantees and all the taxes. The price due to the manufacturer is contractual and final, therefore you will not have to pay any supplement. A regulation exists concerning the price which is regulated according to the evolution of work. When the manufacturer profits from a guarantee of refunding provided by an financial institution or an insurance company, it can ask you up to 5% the signature of the contract and again 5% at the most during obtaining of the permit building. In the absence of a guarantee of refunding, the manufacturer can ask you up to 3% of the price the signature of the contract.


Once the opened building site, the manufacturer can require of you to the maximum:

• 15% of the total price to the opening of the building site
• 25% with the completion of the foundations,
• 40% with the completion of the walls,
• 60% with the setting out of water,
• 75% with the completion of the partitions and the setting out of air,
• 95% with the completion of work of equipment, of plumbing, joinery, and heating,
• 5% with the reception of work.

The reception of work is also a crucial stage. You must carry out an inventory of fixtures in company of the manufacturer by the means of a statement dated and signed by the two parts.

All the defects of conformity, all the defects and all the disorders apparent must be written on the statement. You have eight days of time. To protect the consumer, the law forces to the manufacturer the subscription of a guarantee of delivery auprès an financial institution or of an insurance company. This guarantee aims at protecting you from the risks from bad completion of the work, from the risks of delay in the building site or when the manufacturer files for bankruptcy his. In this case, the guarantor must put in residence the receiver appointed by the court to decide, within one month, the continuation or the abandonment of the building site. In the event of failure to reply or of negative answer, the guarantor must then appoint another manufacturer to finish the building site.