When dealing with the real estate process, a notary is vital. It's their role to oversee the legal aspect of the process, ranging from authorizing various documents to registering the title deeds to their designated government offices. Let's take a closer look at the notary's role in real estate.

A notary in France is defined by:

“A public officer appointed by the Minister of Justice that the State entrusts with a public service mission. For the execution of its mission, the State grants the notary as having public authority, ensuring authentic public service.”

In addition to their certification, the notary in France also serves as a general lawyer whose duty is to advise their clients through various legal processes. Not to mention to assist you and work for your best interests, mostly by providing their analysis of the law and expertise of various legal processes.

Building trust is essential. The notary must be there to listen to you and answer all your questions, from the most basic to the most difficult. Therefore, they have to act according to the Code of Ethics. You can find notary offices that speak multiple languages, you can refers to the site of your Embassy in France. 

It's also important to note that a notary is a liberal professional. They are paid by clients (not by taxpayers) according to a tariff set by the State for the services rendered. 

There is no rule or regulation that sets how a notary is chosen and hired for the real estate process.

As a general rule, the buyer decides which notary is responsible for drafting the authentic deed. However, the seller can still request that their own notary be present on the day of signing.

In the event that several notaries are hired for both parties, no costs are added as notary fees are legally regulated. Their remuneration is increased by 10% of notary fees, regardless of the number of notaries present. The fee will be 1% of the price, subsequently divided according to the number of notaries present.

Nevertheless, it's recommended to hire 2 different notaries at most—one for the buyer and one for the seller—to reassure both parties that their opinions and best interests will be taken into account. 

Geographical proximity is a common criterion for choosing a notary. You can also contact the Departmental and Interdepartmental Notary Office to obtain a list of offices in your sector. And on the notaires.fr website, you have access to a directory and the contact details of over 6,000 offices and 15,300 notaries practicing in metropolitan France and overseas.

Notary fees are what you pay your notary upon the completion of a real estate sale. They also include transfer taxes (taxes and other standard registration and management fees) paid to the State, whether you bought an old or new property. 

Technically, the most correct term is “acquisition fees” since the notary fees only take up 1% to 2% of the final price paid. The rest go to the State (i.e. 5.80% in transfer fees and almost 1% in registration fees, not to mention taxes).

Moreover, notary fees on the acquisition of an old property are valued at approximately 7% to 8% of the price against 2% to 3% of the sale price for new real estate. When signing the authentic deed, the notary will retain this amount from the final price of the real estate transaction.

Notary fees are non-negotiable.

Important Note: It is possible to compare several notaries to see which one has fees you could better afford. Consulting with a notary is also free. You'll only have to pay when it's time to draft the deed of sale.