PARIS Real Estate Finders (PREF)

Real Estate Terms and Definitions

French Terminology

A renover entierement

Needs complete renovation

Acune perte de place

No wasted space. Used to describe well organized, if smaller, apartments

Agences s'abstenir

No real estate agents need inquire

Aménagée

Installed or arranged as in cabinets in a kitchen

Ascenseur

Elevator. In older buildings often very small, ornate and quaint, but serviceable. Rarely holds more than two persons

Au 2e

On the second floor. Parisian first floor is American second floor "i.e., the French consider the ground floor as "zero," not "first"

Balcon

Balcony

Buanderie

A laundry room as part of the apartment; unusual in Paris

Bel hauteur sous plafond (hsp)

Spacious high ceilings (gives smaller rooms more eye appeal)

Bricolage

Handyman work done by a "bricoleur"

Carrelage

Tile work, usually in bathrooms and kitchens; unusually, done for floor covering

Cave Cellar

In older buildings often stone-walled, dark and with unpaved floors (perfect places to store French wine)

Chambre

Bedroom

Chambre de bonne

Maid's quarters at the top of classical Parisian, Haussmannien buildings

Chauffage

Heating -- both space and hot water heating Collectif means a shared heating system Individuel means individually controlled (which is more desirable)

Charges

Monthly or quarterly charges for the maintenance of common areas and amenities in co-op occupied buildings

Chaudiere

Hot water heater usually found in the kitchen or main bathroom or both; may be individual or common; usually gas-fired and may serve as the source of hot-water radiant heat in rooms

Cheminee

Chimney or fireplace, often left over from days when Paris housing was heated by coal fires in each major room; a marble item of classic decor and charm

Chêne

Oak. Ancien is solid oak from > 100 years ago. Massif is the thinner, modern equivalent of solid oak. Flottant is a thin layer of oak over a particle board composite which gives a soft ("floating") feeling underfoot

Climatisation

Air conditioning (which is rarely needed in Paris)

Concierge / Gardienne

Building superintendent

Cuisine

Kitchen

Cuisine americaine equipée

A kitchen, usually opening to a dining area, that has a full complement of modern appliances

Dans voie residentielle

Residential street

Demolition

Removal of old fixtures and structures before new renovation can begin

Digicode

An entry control system using a numeric pad and code

Doublage

The installation of double windows for thermal or sound control

Double sejour

An extra large living room area made by joining two adjacent rooms

Eau chaude

Hot water

Electricité

Electricity -- this work should only be done by certified professionals

Enfilade

An apartment layout where rooms are "in a row" often off one long hallway; not usually desirable

Ensoleille

Sunny

Equipée

Sold with equipment or appliances included (i.e., especially kitchen items)

Etage

Floor or landing. Often abbreviated as "e" (e.g., Au 2e -- "On the second floor")

Etoile

An apartment layout that radiates from the entry in a "star" pattern that provides the most convenient flow and access for all rooms

Exposition

Exposure to the light (important in The City of Light)

Fenetre

Window

Haussmannien

Baron Haussmann was the Prefect of the Seine for many years in the latter half of the 19th Century; he influenced and oversaw the most dramatic modernization of the city in its history and the typical, ornate, 6-story residential buildings are one of his main legacies

Interphone

A telephone handset or speaker system by which a person at the entrance may speak directly to a resident of the building

Isolation

Insulation work for thermal and/or sound proofing a home

L'acte de vente

French title to real property

Loi carrez

Law requiring exact apt size measurement (m2) as part of sale

Lumineux

Luminous and full of light. Increases as one goes higher in a building

Maconnerie

Cement work that may precede flooring or tile work

Mandat

Seller's contractual agreement with real estate agent that lists property for sale and sets the agent's commission for same

Mansarde

That part of the top of a building where the external walls begin to cant inward to accommodate the roof coming to a peak

Menuiserie

Carpentry work -- often needed with built-in shelving or storage units

Meublé

Furniture

Mezzanine

An elevated horizontal platform that serves as a workspace or sleeping area to take advantage of ceiling heights of 3 meters or more

Millieme

Percentage of building ownership over a denominator of 1000 -- an apartment millieme of 50/1000 would be a 5% ownership portion of the overall building for your apartment

Moulure

Mouldings, often of plaster of Paris, that were built as decor into the ceilings of classic Parisian buildings

Notaire

A solicitor who specializes in real estate and inheritance transactions and who charges a fee established by law for her services

Parquet

Decorative wood floors, often oak, cut and laid for visual effect in classic Parisian housing

Peinture

Painting

Pieces

Rooms. Usually counts the major rooms in addition to the (taken-for-granted) kitchen and bath --i.e., "3 pieces" -- an apartment with a living room, dining room and a separate bedroom

Pierre de taille

Building face of stacked, individual stone blocks -- the classic Paris look

Placard

Closets or cupboards

Plafond

Ceiling

Plomberie

Plumbing -- a frequent source of problems in older buildings

Porte blindee

A metal security door with locks, latches and levers that give the most security to the front door of your residential unit

Proche de toutes commodites

Near to all conveniences

Promesse d'achat

The final written commitment to buy a property; your legal ownership document

Promesse de vente

A contract to buy real estate prepared by the Notaire. Upon signing, one is generally obligated to deposit 5-10% of the agreed upon purchase price.

Quartier

Neighborhood

Ramonage

Chimney sweeping -- must be performed and certified annually if you use your fireplace

Rangement

Storage spaces - often in short supply in Paris apartments

Ravalement

Cleaning of the facade of building, which must be done every ten years by law and which in residential buildings results in an assessment per unit

Rez-de-chaussee

On the ground floor (which is the "zero" floor in France)

Rosaces

Decorative plaster rosettes in center of a ceiling

Salle de bains

Bathroom; often does not contain a toilet which is in a separate room

Salle de manger

Dining room

Sejour / Salon

Living room

Soussoul

An occupied space below ground level usually for parking or storage, but occasionally adapted for regular habitation. They are usually high humidity spaces

Square Meters (m2)

A metric measure of area that corresponds to the size of a living unit. In Paris there is a strict measurement law (loi Carrez) that assures that the described size of a unit is accurate. One m2 is approximately equal to 10.75 square feet (FT2)

Standing

Elegant, prestigious, classic, as in high end Haussmannien buildings which typify Paris construction

Tax Fonciere

Property tax paid annually by the owner

 

Tax Habitation

Annual occupancy tax paid by the party occupying the premises on January 1

Tomettes

Hexagonal, terra cotta tiles used in older residential buildings in Paris. A charm element in older construction

Traversant

An apartment layout that "runs through" from one end of the apartment to the other, usually with windows at each end; elsewhere known as a "shotgun" apartment

Travaux à prévoir

Needs extensive work or renovation

Une bonne copropriete

Amiable apartment owner's association -- important for cooperative living

Vue degagee

A view that is unobstructed

Vue sur les toits

View over rooftops

Vue sur rue et cour

Looks out (view) to street and inner courtyard

WC

Toilet Often separate from other bathroom facilities