Can a notary manage a rental property?
Yes. The French notarial rules (règlement national du notariat) allow notaries to manage property on behalf of their clients, as an ancillary activity, under a written mandate specifying the scope of their task and their remuneration (article 7.1.2.3). The mandate is signed before any work begins, so that the owner knows in advance what the office will do and at what cost.
Property management fits naturally with the notary's other work. The office that drafted your purchase deed, a gift of the property to your children or the settlement of an estate already holds the title, the plans and the history of the property. It can also advise on how the rental income fits into your overall arrangements, as described on our page on wealth planning with a French notary.
What the office handles for you
The mandate lists the tasks entrusted to the office. For an owner abroad, it usually covers every stage from the first advertisement to the tenant's departure, with a yearly statement for the tax return.
- Letting: assessment of the rent, advertisement, viewings, selection of the tenant and review of the tenant's file.
- Lease: drafting and signing, as a private agreement or as a notarial deed.
- Inventories: check-in and check-out inventories, return of the deposit within the legal time limits.
- Rent and charges: collection, receipts, yearly review of the rent under the reference index, adjustment of service charges.
- Upkeep: tenant requests, quotes and follow-up of works, relations with the co-ownership manager.
- Income: yearly management statement to prepare the declaration of rental income.
The notarial lease: an enforceable title
A lease drawn up by the notary as a notarial deed (bail notarié) carries the enforcement formula. Under article L111-3 of the Code of Civil Enforcement Procedures, notarial deeds bearing that formula are enforceable titles. If the tenant fails to pay, a judicial officer (commissaire de justice) can recover the rent and charges due, for example by attaching bank accounts, without first obtaining a court judgment.
The notarial lease also gives the agreement a certain date and a conclusive record of its terms, and the original is kept by the office. Recovering possession of the property from a tenant who stays on remains a matter for the court, which alone may order an eviction. The recovery of the sums due, however, can start as soon as the rent is unpaid.
The main rules for residential lettings
Residential lettings of a main home are governed by the law of 6 July 1989. The lease is written, and a technical survey file is annexed to it: energy performance certificate, lead report for buildings constructed before 1949, electricity and gas reports for installations more than fifteen years old, risk statement and, where relevant, aircraft noise. New model leases apply to leases signed or renewed from 1 October 2026.
Energy performance now determines whether a dwelling can be let. Since 1 January 2025, dwellings rated G cannot be let under a new, renewed or tacitly renewed lease; the same rule will apply to dwellings rated F from 1 January 2028 and to those rated E from 1 January 2034. We check the certificate before any letting and, when works are needed, their timetable.
| Rule | Unfurnished letting | Furnished letting |
|---|---|---|
| Minimum lease term, individual landlord | 3 years | 1 year (9 months for a student) |
| Maximum deposit | 1 month's rent excluding charges | 2 months' rent excluding charges |
| Tenant's notice | 3 months, or 1 month in certain cases | 1 month |
| Landlord's notice at the end of the lease | At least 6 months | At least 3 months |
Rents protected at the Caisse des dépôts
Notaries hold client funds in an account at the Caisse des dépôts et consignations, the French public financial institution. The rents collected on your behalf are paid into that account, separate from the office's own funds, then transferred to you at the intervals set in the mandate, after deduction of the charges and the agreed fee.
Every transaction appears in the management statement. Owners who live abroad receive their income on the account of their choice, in France or in another country, together with the statement of the period.
Owners living abroad
Rental income from a property located in France is generally taxable in France, whatever the owner's country of residence, subject to the tax treaty between France and that country. The office's yearly statement lists the rents received and the deductible expenses, which your tax adviser uses for the French return and, where required, the return in your country of residence.
The management mandate can be signed remotely, without a trip to Chartres. When you later decide to sell the property or to give it to your children, the office already holds the file: see our pages on selling property in France and on gifts and estate planning.
Fees and how to start
Property management falls outside the regulated notarial tariff. The fee is agreed in writing in the mandate before the office acts. The notarial lease itself is subject to the regulated tariff. Our page on notary fees in France explains the difference between regulated fees and agreed fees.
A first meeting, at the office or by video call, lets us visit the file with you: the property, its current tenant if any, the surveys and your expectations. You can book it through our appointment page.