Landlord Notice to Sell in France (Conge pour Vente): Notice Periods, Your Right to Buy and the Over-65 Shield

A French landlord who wants to sell a rented home has a specific tool for it: the conge pour vente, a notice to sell that ends the lease at its term and, in the same letter, offers the property to the sitting tenant first. It is one of only three grounds on which a landlord can refuse to renew an unfurnished lease, and it comes wrapped in a right of first refusal and a set of protections for older tenants that a hurried letter can easily get wrong.

This page explains the notice period, the tenant's right to buy at the stated price, and the rule that stops a landlord displacing an elderly tenant of modest means without rehousing them. It is written from the tenant's side. For the notice a tenant gives when they choose to leave, see our tenant notice period page; for what happens if a tenant stays on after a valid notice, see the eviction page.

Information last verified on 22 July 2026. This page presents general legal information, not legal advice.

Six months to sell empty, three if the flat is furnished

A landlord cannot end a running lease at will. Article 15-I of loi n 89-462 du 6 juillet 1989 lets a landlord bring an unfurnished lease to an end only at its term, and only on one of three grounds: to sell the property, to take it back for the landlord or a close relative to live in, or for a legitimate and serious reason such as the tenant's own breach. To sell, the landlord must give at least six months' notice before the lease term, served by recorded letter, by a commissaire de justice, or handed over against signature.

A furnished home runs on a shorter clock. Article 25-8 sets the landlord's notice at three months before the term of a furnished lease, on the same three grounds. In both cases the notice is only valid at the term of the lease; it cannot be used to cut a lease short partway through.

If the notice is irregular in form or served too late, it does not end anything, and the lease simply renews. A tenant who receives a notice to sell should therefore check first that it gives the full period and that it reaches the term of the lease, before turning to the offer it contains.

The notice letter is also an offer to sell

The feature that sets the notice to sell apart is the tenant's droit de preemption, a right of first refusal. Under article 15-II of loi n 89-462, a notice to sell counts as an offer of sale to the tenant at the price and terms the landlord has stated. The tenant is first in line to buy their own home.

The offer is open for the first two months of the six-month notice. If the tenant accepts within that window, they then have two months to complete the purchase, extended to four months if they stated in their acceptance that they intend to fund it with a loan. Silence for the first two months counts as a refusal, and the tenant must then leave at the end of the notice. A tenant who accepts and buys does not owe an estate-agent commission on the purchase.

The right of first refusal does not apply to every sale. In particular, it does not arise where the buyer is a close relative of the landlord, up to the third degree (troisieme degre inclus), who takes the home to live in as a main residence for at least two years after the notice ends. A sale of the whole building, rather than of the single let dwelling, follows different rules again.

If the landlord later sells cheaper to someone else

The right of first refusal has a second stage that protects the tenant against being offered a high price and then undercut. If the tenant turns the first offer down and the landlord goes on to sell to a third party at a lower price, or on more favourable terms, the sale cannot simply proceed.

Article 15-II requires the notaire handling the sale to notify the tenant of the lower price and terms, and that notification is itself a new offer. The tenant then has one month to take it. This stops a landlord from setting an inflated figure to clear the tenant out, then quietly selling for less to a buyer who was waiting in the wings.

The protection for tenants over 65

French law shields older tenants of modest means from being displaced by a sale. Under article 15-III of loi n 89-462, a landlord cannot serve a valid notice to sell (or a notice to repossess) on a tenant who is over 65 and whose annual resources are below a ceiling set for access to social housing, unless the landlord offers that tenant a suitable alternative home in the same area, matched to their needs and means.

The shield reaches further than the tenant alone. It also applies where the tenant has in their household a person over 65 whose resources are below the same ceiling, so a family caring for an elderly relative is covered as well. The age is assessed at the term of the lease, and the resource test uses the annual figure against the social-housing ceiling in force.

There is a deliberate counterweight so the rule does not trap small landlords. The protection does not apply where the landlord is an individual who is themselves over 65, or whose own resources are below the same ceiling. The law balances an older tenant against an older or modest owner, and in that case the owner's ability to sell prevails.

Notice to sell, notice to repossess, and legitimate reason

The three landlord grounds under article 15 are easy to blur but carry different obligations. A conge pour vente ends the lease so the landlord can sell, and triggers the right of first refusal described above. A conge pour reprise ends the lease so the landlord, or a defined close relative, can move in and live there, and it must name the beneficiary and the genuine reason. A conge for a legitimate and serious reason, most often the tenant's own breach such as persistent late payment, does not carry a right to buy because nothing is being sold.

What the three share is that they only operate at the term of the lease and only with the full notice. None of them is a shortcut to remove a tenant during the lease. Where a tenant simply stops paying, the landlord's route is not a notice at all but the arrears procedure set out on the eviction page.

What a tenant should check on receiving a notice to sell

A tenant handed a notice to sell has several things worth verifying before doing anything else. The notice must give a full six months (three if furnished) and expire at the lease term; it must state the price and the terms of the intended sale, because that is the offer; and it must reach the tenant by one of the accepted routes. A notice that is short, early, or missing the price is open to challenge.

The tenant is never obliged to buy. Declining the offer simply means the lease ends at the term and the tenant leaves, having had the option first. A tenant who wants to stay, believes the notice is irregular, or falls within the over-65 protection can take free advice from the local ADIL or raise the matter with the commission departementale de conciliation before the term arrives.

For the tenant's own notice, the deposit, and the wider set of housing rules, see our pages on the tenant notice period, the security deposit, and the France tenant rights hub.

Frequently Asked Questions

How much notice must a French landlord give to sell a rented home?

Six months before the term of an unfurnished lease, under article 15-I of loi n 89-462 du 6 juillet 1989, and three months before the term of a furnished lease, under article 25-8. The notice can only take effect at the term of the lease, not partway through, and it must be served by recorded letter, by a commissaire de justice, or handed over against signature. A notice that is short or served too late does not end the lease, which then renews.

Does the tenant have the right to buy the home first?

Yes. Under article 15-II the notice to sell is itself an offer to sell to the tenant at the stated price. The tenant has the first two months of the six-month notice to accept. If they accept, they have two months to complete the purchase, or four months if they stated they need a loan. A tenant who buys their own home this way does not pay an estate-agent commission. The right does not apply where the buyer is a close relative of the landlord, up to the third degree (troisieme degre inclus), moving in as a main residence.

What if the landlord then sells to someone else for less?

The tenant is protected against being outbid downward. If the tenant declined the first offer and the landlord later agrees to sell to a third party at a lower price or on more favourable terms, article 15-II requires the notaire to notify the tenant of those new terms. That notification is a fresh offer, and the tenant has one month to accept it. This prevents a landlord from naming a high price to clear the tenant, then selling cheaply to another buyer.

Can a landlord sell and evict a tenant over 65?

Not freely. Under article 15-III a landlord cannot serve a valid notice to sell on a tenant over 65 whose annual resources are below the social-housing ceiling without offering a suitable alternative home in the same area. The protection also covers a tenant who houses a person over 65 with resources below that ceiling. It does not apply, however, where the landlord is an individual who is themselves over 65, or whose resources are below the same ceiling.

Is a notice to sell the same as the landlord moving back in?

No. A notice to sell (conge pour vente) ends the lease so the landlord can sell, and gives the tenant the right of first refusal. A notice to repossess (conge pour reprise) ends the lease so the landlord or a named close relative can live there, and carries no right to buy because nothing is sold. A notice for a legitimate and serious reason, such as the tenant's breach, is a third, separate ground. All three take effect only at the term of the lease and with the full statutory notice.