I’ve inherited a 2000m2 warehouse!

[Duncan Robinson]

hi all

My wife has inherited a large 2000m2 warehouse from her grandad in Le Mans France.

It’s a massive space, that’s needs some work doing.

What would you do with it?


I need help guys and girls!

 

[7Tom7]

self storage seems to be a good earner here, not sure about France but could be an option.

 

[Ashley_Price]

Good morning, @Duncan Robinson, welcome to UKBF.

Can you clarify if the warehouse is in France or England?

 

[Duncan Robinson]

Good Morning,

Sorry, to clarify the warehouse is in Normandy France.

 

[Ashley_Price]

Okay, you're possibly going to need to look into French laws, and accountancy etc. Let me know if you want advice from an English accountant, who is now based in France with a French firm, she will be able to help you with any finance issues.

 

[The Byre]

If you are running a business, the only sensible thing you can do with any assets for which you have no use, is to sell them - or at least rent them out.

If you speak French then I would place this thing with a local agent to be rented out, after fixing it up.

Trying to find a business idea to fit a dormant asset is the business equivalent of trying to push a length of string.

 

[Mr D]

Firstly I'd suggest look at whether you want to keep the warehouse. If you don't then may want to look at selling it.

 

[Socio South West]

Ye Gods.... How much did her grandfather dislike his grandaughter????

She has been left a delightful minefield..... and that's without the current Brexit uncertainty involved. The property market in France at the moment is like a limp lettuce with masses of property on the market but very few buyers.

Property and tenancy laws are extremely different in France, as is the taxation system - If you haven't discovered already, getting the property transferred into your wife's name is a labour of Hercules in itself, especially if the Will has been proved under the English system.

Without knowing your wider circumstances, my suggestion to you would be to get what you can for it, and get out of it unless you want to be dragged into the French system.
Whatever you do, get some good advice - there are a lot of expat lawyers who will be able to advise you.

If you do decide to run with it, suggest you get a Euro account - Credit Agricole Britline is designed for Brits in France, and is staffed by English or fluent English speakers - and they put the likes of Twat (Rhymes with Sat) West and other British banks to shame with their level of service.

 

[Socio South West]

Actually.... as an afterthought.... I just wonder whether renouncing the legacy completely might be the best course of action....

One of those that I would like to know what you did and how it all ends up.

 

[Chris Ashdown]

From the tiny amount i know of French law, inheritance can be a minefield with many people potentially having a claim. so that's the first thing to do establish if you are the recognised sole owner in french law

2000 square meter is a very large warehouse even the land will have a value

 

[Duncan Robinson]

The problem is the roof is asbestos so to remove the warehouse I’m guessing would cost tens of thousands I’d imagine. To remove and then develop 4 houses on the plot would cost too much to be worth it I think. (Could be wrong)

I had an idea of creating a large partition/wall/curtain on a track that would allow me to develop the space as an when demand for storage increases. So start with 100m2 and develop that with a new floor, containers, lighting etc. And when you need more space, the ability to roll back the wall and develop further.

How dies that sound?

 

[Mr D]

The problem is the roof is asbestos so to remove the warehouse I’m guessing would cost tens of thousands I’d imagine. To remove and then develop 4 houses on the plot would cost too much to be worth it I think. (Could be wrong)

I had an idea of creating a large partition/wall/curtain on a track that would allow me to develop the space as an when demand for storage increases. So start with 100m2 and develop that with a new floor, containers, lighting etc. And when you need more space, the ability to roll back the wall and develop further.

How dies that sound?

In Britain it would sound OK for someone willing to rent part of a building.
In France, would local laws, customs and ways of working manage that?

 

[Gordon - Commercial Finance]

How dies that sound?

Like a lot of travelling back and forth to France....

Presume you like in the UK yes? Better to make it a passive asset just collect the rent as and when rather than having to work it.

 

[Deleted member 59730]

The problem is the roof is asbestos so to remove the warehouse I’m guessing would cost tens of thousands I’d imagine. To remove and then develop 4 houses on the plot would cost too much to be worth it I think. (Could be wrong)

France has very different ideas about planning than the UK. Change of use may not be possible if the warehouse is in an industrial zone. In some communes in France building plots go for £800 with services. Better to talk with a french real estate person.

 

[The Byre]

How dies that sound?

Like a solution looking for a problem to solve.

In the UK, there is a sort of 'property-mad-cow-disease' largely driven by a lack of rent control and a lack of government-sponsored pension schemes. People have had to buy houses in order to have some sort of security in old age. This type of 'property-mad-cow-disease' just does not exist in France or Germany.

In simple terms, a 2,000 sq m shed with an asbestos roof is not to win the lottery. Here it would be worth c.a. £500,000. There, it is a bill for 100,000 Euros to knock it down and get rid of the asbestos and all the rubble.

I doubt you will be allowed to rent it out with that roof on it.

 

[Duncan Robinson]

Cheers Brye

Realistic response. Like it. No hope then?

 

[Gecko001]

Asbestos roofs are actually mostly cement and are not generally considered hazardous if left alone. However, if you want to do any alterations which involves the roof or even make repairs to the roof, there will be additional costs due to having to work with the asbestos cement.

I would not throw my hands up in despair until you get advice on how to deal with asbestos. I would actually hire an expert in asbestos from the UK rather than someone in France at least initially. The laws in France might differ from those in the UK regarding asbestos, but they will not necessarily be more stringent than in the UK.

 

[The Byre]

Have a read here -

http://solidarites-sante.gouv.fr/IMG/pdf/Nouvelles_obligations_amiante_proprietaires_ERP-2.pdf

and here -

https://moncouvreur.pro/diagnostic-toit-en-fibrocimen/

You may find (depending on circumstances) that you are obliged to remove this roof and only an accredited company can perform this work. I would talk to a few local builders first, to gain a realistic idea of what is involved financially.

Ideally, you should replace it with a metal roof - and France is the home of the metal roof and there is a giant factory for that stuff in Alsace-Lorraine. Most metal roofing in the UK comes from them.

 

[Deleted member 59730]

The laws in France might differ from those in the UK regarding asbestos, but they will not necessarily be more stringent than in the UK.

Except that France is much more strict over liability and you need to show you have taken proper safeguards. I would never hire a UK expert for a French property because his report might not stand up in a French court.

 

[Gecko001]

Except that France is much more strict over liability and you need to show you have taken proper safeguards. I would never hire a UK expert for a French property because his report might not stand up in a French court.

The OP needs to get some advice on the asbestos as there is so much hysterical nonsense on the subject of asbestos that perhaps they should get some professional advice on the matter in English. We have some very good experts on the UK on the matter. I said initially the OP should get some advice from the UK. I said this as I think it is a step too far to get reports written probably in French to a brief written in English. Any work will have to be carried out in accordance with French laws.

 

[GraemeL]

Indoor storage for caravans.

 

[Mr D]

Indoor storage for caravans.

Is outdoor storage for caravans an issue? Just thinking unless security was pretty good the costs would be higher than outdoor storage without much benefit to the caravan owner.

 

[Deleted member 59730]

I said this as I think it is a step too far to get reports written probably in French to a brief written in English. Any work will have to be carried out in accordance with French laws.

You miss what I said. To be safe from French liability law you need to take the necessary FRENCH steps because no matter how good your English report is it is not likely to protect you from French law.

(You might remember the smokescreen that Al Fayed put up over Diana's death. Under French law he was the person ultimately responsible for employing a drunk driver.

Under French liability law they even jailed the Health Minister over the contaminated blood scandal.)

 

[The Byre]

It is not just a question of liability - if the roof material is starting to deteriorate, he will have to get it removed by a company that has the necessary government approved accreditation.

That's not a 'could' or a 'may' or a 'better if' but a 'must'. If that roof is 'dodgy' the local authorities will insist on it being removed.

And in most European countries except the UK, the removal of asbestos is scheduled work that must be completed by a registered master tradesman with the proper certification. Some goof-ball from the UK, regardless of how knowledgeable or educated, ain't gonna cut it!

 

[Chris Ashdown]

Accidentally have it burnt down whilst you are in England trying to sell it

 

[Socio South West]

Accidentally have it burnt down whilst you are in England trying to sell it

.... If only asbestos, cement and metal were flammable..... !

 

[Mr D]

Accidentally have it burnt down whilst you are in England trying to sell it

Funny you should say that.
Happened at least once in England, expensive place to do up burns to the ground and site much easier to build on afterwards.

 

[Duncan Robinson]

so my options are.

1. Leave it as giant shed

2. Try go somehow burn it down but make it look genuine

.... great

 

[Deleted member 59730]

so my options are.

1. Leave it as giant shed

2. Try go somehow burn it down but make it look genuine

It depends where it is. If it is close to other viable rented buildings you could rent it out. When was it last occupied?

 

[Mr D]

There are other options. Sell it. Give it away. Have it improved.

 

[The Byre]

so my options are.
1. Leave it as giant shed
2. Try go somehow burn it down but make it look genuine
.... great

That reminds me of the episode of Handcock, with the following two-hander between Tony H. and Sid James featured -

TONY: Sid! How the devil are you?
SID: All right I suppose!
TONY: Well, I was sorry to hear about your warehouse burning down last week - and with all that valuable stock in it too!
SID: That's not last week, you fool! That's next week!

 

[Duncan Robinson]

Haha

What if I personally took down all the sheets and stored them on site? Reckon that’s illegal in France?

 

[The Byre]

From what I can gather, you are not allowed to touch the stuff, though as you are the owner of the building, maybe you can - but the French trades guilds are very protective of their members and the building authorities tend to support them.

You really have no alternative, but to ask a local. My French brother-in-law got rid of his own asbestos, hosed it down and bagged it all up and took it to a local dump set aside for that purpose - but that was several years ago and for his private house. The laws have tightened up since then - as outlined in those two documents I posted earlier.

The obvious thing to do, is to get a few quotes from local asbestos removal companies, get the bloody stuff removed and stick a metal roof on the thing and then rent it out.

Metal roofs are very, very easy to put up! A nice DIY job for you!

 

[Deleted member 59730]

It may not be serious. There are three categories of asbestos problems in France. Serious, medium risk and not very serious. Asbestos roofs which have been there some time are likely to be in the less serious category which means you have to have it inspected every three years for signs of damage. Medium risk means inspection every year. It is only the most serious which needs removal.
The most serious bit is the liability which applies to everything from unfenced swimming pools to food poisoning.