I am selling a house with land from abroad, can the Safer pre-empt?
The rural land agencies, the Safer, hold a pre-emption right over real estate for agricultural use, land, farms, farmhouses that belong to them, in the zones set by decree and above a minimum area specific to each territory. A village house with its garden is not concerned, a farmhouse with its hectares may be, and the notaire decides. The notaire notifies the sale to the Safer at least 2 months before the deed, the Safer answers within 2 months, its silence counts as waiver. It may pre-empt at the agreed price, or offer a lower price, and the seller then has 6 months to accept, give up the sale or go to court. For the seller abroad nothing changes but the calendar, the preliminary contract carries the no-pre-emption condition and the agent handles viewings.
Which property the Safer may pre-empt
The rural code gives the Safer a pre-emption right over real estate for agricultural use and the movables attached to it, bare land with an agricultural purpose, the dwellings of a farm, certain forest parcels, and shares in companies whose main object is holding or working an agricultural estate. Notaires point out that this right is exercised only in the zones delimited by decree and above a minimum area, which varies from one département to another.
A town house with its garden, a flat, a villa on a building plot therefore escape the Safer. A former farm sold with its land, a Provençal farmhouse surrounded by vines, a hunting or grazing estate fall within its scope, in whole or in part. Some sales escape it by nature, those between relatives up to the fourth degree, to co-heirs, divisions between joint owners and family gifts.
The notice, the time limit, and the price revision
The notaire sends the Safer a declaration of intent to sell, describing the property, its price and conditions, its cadastral references, the identity and occupation of the parties. This notice must be given at least 2 months before the final deed of sale is signed. On receipt of a complete file the Safer has 2 months to decide whether or not to pre-empt, and its silence counts as waiver, what practitioners call purging the right.
If the Safer pre-empts at the agreed price, the deed is passed in its favour and the ousted buyer is informed. If it finds the price excessive, it may offer a lower price, and the seller has 6 months to accept, give up the sale or ask the court to set the price, silence counting as acceptance. Pre-emption is rare, the Safer uses it to settle a farmer, enlarge a holding or protect an area, but the sale calendar must always allow for it.
| Holder | Property concerned | Time to answer |
|---|---|---|
| Safer | Property for agricultural use, land, farm buildings, in the zones and above the areas set | 2 months, pre-emption at the price or at a revised price |
| Municipality, urban pre-emption right | Buildings in the urban or future urban zones where the municipality has set it up | 2 months from the declaration, silence counts as waiver |
| Tenant of an unfurnished dwelling | The dwelling they occupy, when the landlord gives notice to sell | 2 months to accept the offer of sale |
Who may pre-empt the sale of a property, and how fast
What distance changes, and what it does not
Distance changes nothing in the law, it changes the calendar and the logistics. The preliminary contract contains a condition precedent of no pre-emption, and the time between the preliminary contract and the deed includes the Safer's 2 months, plus the municipality's when the property also lies in an urban zone. The seller signs the preliminary contract and the deed by power of attorney or by remote appearance, and the notaire receives the answers of the Safer and the municipality on their behalf.
On site, the BRIVEO agent shows the house and the land, lets in the surveyor and the land surveyor if boundary marking is needed, and informs buyers about current farm leases, which follow the property and give the tenant farmer their own pre-emption right. Valuing a rural property takes the land, the buildings and the attached rights into account, the municipality's price per square metre is not enough.
Frequently asked questions
My village house has a large garden, can the Safer step in?
No, unless the land has an agricultural use and exceeds the minimum area set for your département. The notaire checks it on the cadastral plan and the parcel register, and attaches the proof of exemption to the file.
Can the Safer lower my price?
It may offer a price below that of your preliminary contract. You then have 6 months to accept, withdraw the property from sale or ask the court to set the price. Your silence counts as acceptance, so answer within the time limit.
How much time should I add to the sale calendar?
Allow for the Safer's 2 months between the preliminary contract and the deed, which run alongside the buyer's loan period. The notaire sends the declaration as soon as the preliminary contract is signed so as to lose nothing.
Read next
- Notaires de France, « Vente de biens à usage agricole, le droit de préemption immobilier de la Safer » (mis à jour le 7 mai 2026)
- Fédération nationale des Safer, « Le droit de préemption »
- Code rural et de la pêche maritime, articles L. 141-1-1, L. 143-1 et suivants, R. 141-2-1 et R. 143-4
- Code de l'urbanisme, article L. 213-2 ; loi n° 89-462 du 6 juillet 1989, article 15
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