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Paris · Inheritance · Sale

Selling an inherited apartment in Paris

When you can sell, who signs, how the capital gains tax is calculated, what to do with the contents: the steps of a sale after an inheritance, and how Story’s takes care of them.

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  • Since 2015independent agency
  • Guarantee 110 000 €client funds protected
  • Licensed estate agentCCI Paris Île-de-France
One contactOne adviser follows the sale with the notaire handling the estate and keeps every heir informed, wherever they live.
The apartment preparedClearing, cleaning, small works, surveys: we coordinate the craftsmen to show the apartment at its best.
A reasoned priceConsistent with the declared value and with recent sales in the building: it holds up with buyers and with the tax office.
The steps

The timeline, from the notaire to the sale

  1. The first weeksThe notaire opens the file

    The notaire identifies the heirs, draws up the deed of notoriety and gathers the title deeds. From this point we can visit the apartment and prepare a valuation.

  2. Within 6 monthsThe inheritance tax return

    It uses the market value of the apartment on the date of the transmission (one year when the death occurred outside metropolitan France). After that, late-payment interest applies.

  3. Before the saleThe certificate of ownership

    The notaire registers the property certificate transferring the apartment to the heirs. A sale mandate and a preliminary contract can be prepared in parallel.

  4. The saleA price consistent with the return

    The declared value becomes the acquisition price for the capital gains calculation: a sale close to that value, in the following months, limits the tax and questions from the tax office.

When can you sell?

There is no need to wait for the estate to be fully settled. To sign the deed of sale, the notaire must have drawn up the certificate of ownership transferring the apartment to the heirs; it is often prepared at the same time as the sale. The mandate, viewings and even the preliminary contract can therefore start while the file progresses.

All the heirs who own the apartment sign, themselves or by power of attorney. When they disagree, the rules of joint ownership apply.

Capital gains tax on an inherited property

The gain is calculated between the sale price and the value used in the inheritance tax return, plus the duties and costs actually paid. After five years, works can be counted at a flat 15% of that value. It is taxed at 19%, plus 17.2% social charges, with allowances that run from the date of the transmission: it is fully exempt after 22 years for income tax and 30 years for social charges.

The main-residence exemption does not apply, unless the heir lived there. The notaire calculates the tax and pays it on the day of the sale: that is why an accurate valuation at the time of the inheritance matters so much.

Clearing, preparing, presenting

A family apartment holds a whole life. We give the family time to sort things out, then coordinate house-clearance firms and, if needed, a refresh: paint, floors, electrics. The mandatory surveys (energy rating, electricity and gas if over fifteen years old, lead before 1949, asbestos, Carrez area) are ordered as soon as the mandate is signed.

The apartments we have sold after an inheritance have often stayed in their original state: mouldings, parquet, fireplaces. We present them for what they are, with careful photographs and plans, to buyers looking for exactly that character.

Our references

Recently sold by Story’s in Paris

39 homes sold by Story’s in Paris and the inner suburbs; here are the most recent.

Our Paris sales by arrondissement: 18th (7) · 11th (6) · 3rd (5) · 15th (5) · 5th (2) · 12th (2) · 17th (2) · 19th (2) · 1st (1) · 4th (1)

Let’s talk about the apartment

An adviser from our Paris agency will call you back, and the other heirs if you wish, for a first visit without obligation.

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Frequently asked questions

Do you have to wait for the inheritance tax return to put it on the market?
No. The marketing and the preliminary contract can come first; only the deed of sale requires the notaire to have drawn up the heirs’ certificate of ownership.
Can one heir buy out the others?
Yes: this is a partition with a balancing payment (soulte). The notaire arranges it on the basis of a value everyone accepts, and a 2.5% partition duty applies. Our valuation often serves as the common basis.
Who pays the capital gains tax?
Each heir for their share, but the notaire calculates it and deducts it from the price on the day of signing.
Further reading