You are not only buying a flat: you are buying a share of a building, along with its running costs, its already-voted decisions and its debts. A façade renovation approved six months before your purchase can mean tens of thousands of euros — and it will appear in no listing.
The good news is that none of this is confidential. The seller is legally required to hand these documents over, at the latest when the preliminary contract is signed. You just have to read them.
1. The documents the seller must provide
For the sale of a lot in a copropriété, French law requires in particular:
- the co-ownership rules (règlement de copropriété) and the division schedule, with any amendments;
- the minutes of the last three annual general meetings ;
- the building's maintenance log (carnet d'entretien);
- the summary sheet (fiche synthétique) of the co-ownership;
- the global technical survey (DTG) if one has been carried out;
- the financial information : charges paid by the seller over previous years, sums that may be claimed from you, outstanding arrears and debts, and the works fund.
If you are told these will “come later”, push. Their absence is itself a signal.
2. The AGM minutes: where the real costs hide
The richest document, and the least read. What you are looking for:
- Works voted but not yet called in — façade, roof, lift, regulatory upgrades. They are owed even if not yet invoiced.
- Works postponed year after year — usually a sign the building cannot afford them. They will eventually happen, and you will be there.
- Ongoing disputes — against an owner, a builder, or the managing agent.
- The tone of the meetings — a contested managing agent or very low attendance tells you a lot, even if it costs nothing directly.
Key point: how the cost of works is split between seller and buyer depends on when the payment calls fall due, and can be adjusted in the preliminary contract. That makes it a negotiating point — one to have your notaire confirm.
3. Charges: compare per m², not in absolute terms
“€2,400 of charges a year” means nothing on its own. Relate it to the surface and look at what it covers: a building with a lift, a caretaker and collective heating structurally costs more than a small one without services — and that is not abnormal.
Above all check the trend over three years. Charges rising well faster than inflation deserve an explanation.
4. The works fund
Co-ownerships must build up a fund for future works, contributed to annually by the owners. Two things to look at: how much is in it, and the multi-year works plan it relates to.
A well-funded reserve is reassuring. A near-empty one in an older building means future works will be called in all at once — with you there to pay. Note that sums already paid into the fund stay with the co-ownership and are not refunded to the seller, which should normally be reflected in the price.
5. The financial health of the building
- Arrears. When several owners stop paying, the others carry the cost. A high arrears rate is a genuine financial risk.
- Debts owed to suppliers.
- The number of lots. A roof bill divided by eight lots lands very differently from one divided by eighty.
- Any formal alert procedure or court-appointed administrator — a serious sign of a building in difficulty.
6. Turning all of it into euros
Every item above converts into an amount, and every amount belongs in your offer. A façade renovation voted at €18,000 for your lot is not an atmospheric argument: it is a costed line, documented in minutes, that the seller cannot dispute.
It is also why two identical flats in neighbouring buildings can legitimately be worth different amounts — and why comparing against the neighbourhood price per m² alone is never enough.
Start with the price
Before working through AGM minutes, check that the starting price stands up. OffreJuste compares the address with sales actually signed around it and gives you a defensible offer range, to which you can then add the co-ownership findings. Analyse an address for free.