How to make an offer on a French property

The procedural walkthrough: writing the offre d’achat, the conditions suspensives that protect you, the timing window, and a working template.

Updated May 2026. No agent ever pays us anything.

If you’ve decided you want to buy a specific French property and you’re ready to make the offer, this page is the procedural guide. The strategic question of how much to offer is at /guides/negotiate-french-property; this page covers the mechanics of the offer itself: what to write, what to include, what to demand, what timing window to set.

The short answer

A French offre d’achat is a written offer with a specific price, a validity period (typically 7 to 14 days), conditions suspensives (escape clauses), and a target compromis signing date. Send it to the agent or directly to the seller in writing. Once accepted by the seller, it binds both parties to proceed to compromis on the agreed terms. Critical: a full-asking-price offer transmitted via the agent legally compels the seller to accept under French agency law; never offer asking unless you intend to buy at that price.

What an offre d’achat is

An offre d’achat (buying offer) is the written document that opens the contractual phase of a French property purchase. It states what you’ll pay, what conditions you’re attaching, and how long the offer is valid. When the seller accepts in writing, both parties are committed to proceeding to compromis de vente on the agreed terms.

The offer itself is not the contract. The compromis (drafted by the notaire 2 to 4 weeks later) is the contract. But the offer’s terms are largely binding on what the compromis will contain; you can’t ratchet the price down at compromis unless something material has changed. So the offer is the moment to anchor every term you care about.

It can be:

A formal letter sent by registered post (lettre recommandée avec avis de réception) to the agent or the seller.
An email, increasingly accepted in 2026 for properties under significant time pressure.
A pre-printed offer form provided by the agent, completed and signed.

All three are legally valid. The registered letter is the most procedurally correct; the email is increasingly common; the agent’s form is common when the property is in active negotiation.

What to include

A complete offer has six elements. Skip any of them at the cost of negotiability later.

The exact price. Specific, in EUR, in numbers and words. “€615,000 (six hundred and fifteen thousand euros)”.

The property. Cadastral reference, address, the parcelle number(s). The agent or the listing has these. Don’t be vague; vague property identification creates room for disagreement at compromis.

The validity period. Typically 7 to 14 days. “This offer is valid until 21 May 2026 at 18h00 CET.” After that date, the offer expires and the seller has no obligation. The shorter the validity, the more pressure you create; the longer, the more time the seller has to entertain other offers.

The conditions suspensives. The escape clauses that protect you between offer acceptance and acte authentique. Standard ones below; specifics matter.

The target compromis date. Usually 2 to 4 weeks after offer acceptance. “Targeted compromis de vente signing within 4 weeks of offer acceptance.”

The target acte authentique date. Usually 2 to 3 months after compromis. “Targeted acte authentique within 3 months of compromis signing.”

The conditions suspensives

These are the legal escape hatches. They become part of the compromis contract, and if any of them fails to materialise, you walk and your deposit is refunded. List them in the offer; the agent and notaire will then reflect them in the compromis.

Mortgage clause (clause suspensive d’obtention de prêt). The most important. Specifies that you’ll seek a mortgage of a specific amount, at a specific maximum rate, within a specific period (typically 45 to 60 days). If you don’t get a qualifying offer, the contract dissolves and your deposit is refunded.

Specify in the offer:

The loan amount you’re seeking (e.g., “up to €450,000 of financing”).
The maximum interest rate you’ll accept (e.g., “at a maximum rate of 4.5% over 20 years”).
The deadline (e.g., “within 60 days of compromis signing”).

Survey clause (if you’ll commission one). Specifies that if a structural survey reveals defects above a financial threshold, you can walk. Costs €700 to €2,500 to commission; worth the spend on any property over 100 years old or showing visible defects.

Right-of-way / access clause. Specifies that if a material servitude (easement) emerges that wasn’t disclosed, you can walk. The notaire’s title search usually catches these but having the clause provides additional protection.

Septic-tank compliance clause (for rural properties on private assainissement). Specifies that if the assainissement system is found non-compliant and the seller refuses to bring it up to standard before closing, you can walk.

Sale of your existing property (if applicable). Specifies that the purchase is conditional on you selling your current property within an agreed period. Less common; sellers often refuse this clause because it makes the deal less certain.

Specific concerns from your visit. If the visit raised something specific (a damp wall, a recent roof repair, an unverified dépendance), name it in a custom suspensive clause. The agent or seller may negotiate the threshold but it forces them to engage with the issue.

The full compromis walkthrough including the 10-day cooling-off window is at /guides/compromis-de-vente.

A working template

Here’s a complete working template for an offer letter. Adapt the bracketed fields. Reference works for purchases up to €1.5M; above that, your French lawyer or chasseur immobilier should review.

Subject: Offre d’achat for [property reference / address]

Dear [Agent name or Seller name],

I am pleased to submit an offer to purchase the property located at [full address, including postal code], cadastral reference [parcel number(s)].

Offer price: €[exact amount in numbers] ([amount in words] euros).

Validity: This offer is valid until [date] at [time] CET. After that, the offer expires.

Conditions suspensives:

- Mortgage clause: I will seek a mortgage of up to €[amount] over [term] years at a maximum rate of [rate]%, with the qualifying offer to be obtained within [60] days of compromis signing. If I cannot obtain a qualifying loan offer within this period, the contract is dissolved and any deposit refunded.

- Survey clause: I will commission a private structural survey within [21] days of compromis signing. If the survey reveals defects requiring works above €[threshold], I may withdraw and any deposit will be refunded.

- [Septic / assainissement compliance, if relevant.]

- [Any property-specific clauses arising from the visit.]

Targeted compromis de vente signing: within [4] weeks of offer acceptance.

Targeted acte authentique: within [3] months of compromis signing.

This offer is grounded in [N] comparable sales within [radius]km over the last [years] years, adjusted for condition, energy rating, pool, stone character, and view. The full comp pool is available at [Adresse.ai share link, if you have one].

I look forward to your response. Please confirm receipt of this offer.

Sincerely, [Your full name, postal address, email, telephone]

The share-link in the second-to-last paragraph is what makes this offer harder to dismiss. Most offers an agent receives are anchored in the buyer’s gut feeling. An offer anchored in 28 comparable sales linked to public records is a different conversation.

After you send it

Three things happen, in some order:

Immediate acceptance. Rare on a first offer below asking; possible if the property has been on the market a long time and your number is at or near the seller’s bottom line.

Counter-offer. Most common. The seller responds with a number above your offer but below asking. Negotiation continues, ideally with each side anchoring their counter to specific evidence. Two to three rounds is typical.

Refusal or no response. If the offer expires without acceptance, you can either send a fresh offer at a higher number, walk away, or wait. A fresh offer immediately after refusal is sometimes interpreted as desperation; waiting a week or two is often more effective.

If your offer is accepted, the agent will confirm in writing and the notaire will be instructed to draft the compromis. From the moment of acceptance, both parties are committed; you can no longer raise material new conditions without renegotiating.

What this means for you

The offer is the most consequential single document in the purchase. It locks the price; it locks the conditions suspensives; it locks the timing. Take time to draft it. Use the template above. Anchor it in evidence. Send it through the agent (registered post or email confirmed in writing).

Don’t make verbal offers. Verbal offers are used in informal conversations to gauge seller flexibility, but they aren’t binding and they aren’t tracked. The written offer is what matters.

Don’t negotiate past your walk-away number. If the seller’s counter is above your model’s price range plus the all-in costs your budget supports, walk. There are other properties.

Questions

Can I make multiple offers on different properties simultaneously?

Legally yes; practically risky. If two sellers accept different offers on the same day, you’re contractually committed to both. Most buyers limit themselves to one live offer at a time, with a clear sequence: this property first, that property second if the first falls through.

What if I want to add a clause specific to my situation?

Add it. Conditions suspensives are not limited to the standard set; you can negotiate any reasonable clause that names a specific external event you can verify. The seller may reject specific clauses but will negotiate the threshold rather than refuse the offer outright.

Does the offer need to be in French?

Legally no, but practically yes. A French agent will work more comfortably with a French offer; the notaire will translate what’s needed for the compromis. If you don’t have a French speaker handy, send the offer in English and the agent will translate (occasionally with errors). For high-stakes purchases, hiring a French-speaking lawyer to draft the offer letter is worth the cost.

What if the seller asks for a deposit at offer stage?

Don’t pay anything before compromis signing. The deposit (5 to 10% of purchase price) goes into the notaire’s escrow at compromis, not before. Any request for funds before then is a flag.

Can I withdraw my offer before the seller responds?

Yes, in writing, before the validity period expires. Once the seller accepts in writing, you’re committed. Before acceptance, you can withdraw without penalty.

What if the seller is slow to respond?

Set a clear validity window in the offer. If the validity expires without acceptance, the offer is dead and you can either re-offer or walk away. If you’ve set a 7-day window and heard nothing on day 6, follow up with the agent before the deadline rather than after.

Try it on your listing

Adresse.ai’s report gives you the comparable evidence to anchor an offer.

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