Selling a property in Nice when you live abroad

Many owners in Nice do not live here: Italians from the north, British, Swiss and Scandinavian owners, and French expatriates who kept a foothold. Selling from Milan, London or Dubai is entirely possible and happens every day, but four things change, and it is better to know them before you start than to discover them when it is time to sign.

This page covers what falls within our job: organising the sale. The tax side of your own situation is a matter for your notary and, where needed, your tax adviser. We set out the principles, not your particular case.

This is the first worry, and it has a simple answer. Both the preliminary contract (the compromis) and the final deed can be signed by power of attorney: you appoint a representative, often a clerk at the notary's office, who signs on your behalf.

The power of attorney must be an authentic one. There are two ways to get it without travelling: before a notary in your country of residence, with an apostille or legalisation depending on the country, or at the French consulate, which offers this as part of its role. Allow two to four weeks, and plan for that delay when the compromis is signed, not when the final signature is due.

Since 2020, many French notaries have also offered remote electronic signing: you sign by video call with your identity document to hand. Ask the notary's office at the start, as not all of them offer it and it changes the timetable.

This is the most misunderstood point, and it depends on one thing only: where you are tax resident.

You live in the European Union, Iceland, Norway or Liechtenstein

No tax representative is required. This exemption has applied across the board since 2015, so a seller living in Italy, Belgium or Germany has nothing to arrange here.

You live elsewhere: the United Kingdom, Switzerland, the United States, the Emirates and so on

An accredited tax representative is compulsory when the sale price is above €150,000 and you have owned the property for less than thirty years. Below that price, or beyond that period of ownership, the sale is exempt.

The tax representative is an approved company that guarantees the capital gains tax calculation to the tax authorities. Its fee is generally around 1% of the sale price and can be negotiated. The notary appoints it, so you have nothing to do, but the cost should be part of your net proceeds calculation from the start.

This is where the choice of agent matters most. An empty property shown by someone who only drops in quickly sells badly, and buyers notice straight away.

In practice, this is what we take on for an absent owner: holding the keys and opening up for each viewing, a written report after every viewing covering what people liked, what put them off and what may happen next, keeping an eye on the property between viewings, and airing it before appointments, which matters more than it sounds in an apartment that has been closed for months.

We also agree a fixed rhythm for updates, kept up however busy things are, even if it is only to tell you that nothing happened this week. An owner abroad who hears nothing always imagines the worst, and is often right to worry.

The notary transfers the sale price, less capital gains tax and costs, to the account you name. A bank account abroad is perfectly fine as long as it is in your name, so you do not need to keep a French account.

There are two things to watch, though. Large international transfers go through compliance checks that can add a few days. This is routine verification rather than a problem. And if your account is not in euros, the conversion happens at your bank's rate, which is rarely the best one. For a significant sum, it is worth comparing options before the sale rather than after.

A sale from abroad takes no longer than any other, as long as you plan ahead for the two steps that do not depend on you.

• Valuation and marketing: we can do everything without you, from photographs and access to the property.
• Compromis: you can sign by power of attorney or remotely. This is the moment to start the power of attorney if you need one.
• Tax representative, if your situation requires one: the notary appoints it, so allow a few weeks.
• Final deed: two to three months after the compromis, as for everyone else.

We organise the sale, handle the viewings, report back, work with the notary and stay with you until the funds are transferred. We speak French, Slovak and English at the agency, which takes care of part of the conversation.

We do not calculate your tax, and we do not replace your notary or your tax adviser. The capital gains tax of a non-resident depends on your country of residence, the tax treaty between that country and France, how long you have owned the property and sometimes your membership of a European social security scheme. That is specialist work, and we would rather point you to the right person than give you a rough figure you might take as a commitment.