6.9 Renting a flat — Epoché
What you will be able to do Answer a rental advert by phone, ask the rent and what it includes, and arrange a visit. Visit a flat or a room, ask about the rooms, the floor and the neighbourhood, and say what you think. Discuss the deposit, the guarantor and the moving-in date, and take time to decide. Use vous with a landlord and an agency, and tu with future flatmates. Sentences from this lesson, before the explanation. Read the French aloud; all of them come back below. French English Notre maison compte sept pièces, la salle à manger comprise. [1] Our house has seven rooms including the dining room. Combien de pièces y a-t-il dans cette maison ? [2] How many rooms does this house have? Laissez-moi voir ce que vous avez dans la main ! [3] Let me see what's in your hand. Laissez-nous faire notre boulot ! [4] Allow us to do our job. Faites-vous payer la livraison ? [5] Do you charge for delivery? Êtes-vous ici pour négocier ? [6] Are you here to negotiate? Vous devriez payer vos dettes. [7] You should pay your debts. Vous ne m'avez pas comprise. [8] You didn't understand me. Prerequisites : 5.12 — the words of housing from 5.12 Vocabulary are put to work here: le loyer , les charges , la caution , le bail , meublé . You also need polite requests with the conditional from 4.15 Grammar . Finding somewhere to live in a French city is competitive, and the conversations are short and practical. You see an advert, you phone or write at once, you visit with several other candidates, and if you want the flat you say so on the spot and bring your file. This lesson follows that sequence in four exchanges, each built from real sentences of the corpus, and then shows how to put them together. Who is speaking to whom A landlord, le propriétaire , and an estate agent are addressed with vous , and will address you the same way. The relationship is commercial, and often there is money and a contract at stake; stay formal until the lease is signed, and usually after. With other students or young people sharing a flat, la colocation , the visit is an informal interview: the flatmates say tu from the first minute, and you should answer with tu . The questions are different too. A landlord asks whether you can pay; flatmates ask whether you are pleasant to live with. Renting in French The advert. Rental adverts are dense with abbreviations: T2 for two main rooms, cc for charges comprises , m² for the surface area in square metres. The surface matters more than the number of rooms in France, and the rent is usually quoted per month. What is included. The first question after the rent is always whether the charges are included. Charges comprises means the monthly figure covers the building costs; en sus or hors charges means they come on top. The file. Landlords choose between candidates on paper, so bring copies of your identity documents, proof of income and, very often, a guarantor's documents. A student usually needs a parent or an official scheme to stand as garant . Exchange one — the phone call Je cherche une chambre à louer. [9] I'm looking for a room for rent. Cette chambre est à louer. [10] This room is for rent. Combien coûte le loyer ? [11] How much is the rent? Est-ce que l'eau est comprise dans le loyer ? [12] Is the water included in the rent? Les charges sont en sus. [13] Utilities are extra. Puis-je voir la chambre, s'il vous plait ? [14] Could I see the room please? The caller's three questions are the ones to learn. Combien coûte le loyer ? asks the price. The question about water, est-ce que l'eau est comprise dans le loyer ? , is the pattern for anything: replace l'eau with le chauffage or l'électricité . And the request to see the room uses puis-je , the formal inversion of je peux . Exchange two — the visit Laissez-moi vous faire visiter notre maison. [15] Let me show you around our house. À quoi ressemblent les pièces ? [16] What are the rooms like? Cette maison a six pièces. [17] This house has six rooms. Où est la salle de bain ? [18] Where is the bathroom? C'est vraiment lumineux. [19] It's really bright. Nous vivons près de la gare. [20] We live close to the station. The owner is renting a room in a shared house, so the visit covers the whole house. Faire visiter , in the first line, is to show round : visiter with faire in front means to make someone visit. Une pièce is any main room; une chambre is a bedroom. The last line gives the location, which in a French city usually means the nearest station. Exchange three — the conditions Avez-vous besoin d'une caution ? [21] Do you need a deposit? Veuillez payer deux mois de loyer comme caution. [22] Please pay a deposit of two month's rent. Quand puis-je emménager ? [23] When can I move in? Two months' rent is the legal maximum for a deposit on a furnished flat; for an empty one it is a single month, as 5.12 Vocabulary explained. The owner has not yet mentioned the guarantor, but will: most landlords ask for one, a person who undertakes to pay if you do not, se porter garant . Exchange four — deciding Je vais y réfléchir. [24] I'll give it some thought. Je vous rappelle plus tard. [25] I'll call you back later. J'ai signé le bail aujourd'hui. [26] I signed the lease today. Je viens d'emménager ici. [27] I've just moved here. Je vais y réfléchir , I'll think about it , is the polite way to leave without committing. In a tight market it can cost you the flat, and French renters often decide during the visit. Je viens d'emménager ici uses venir de from 4.23 Grammar : I've just moved in . A visit, step by step Put the four exchanges together and you have the whole process: ask the price and what it includes, arrange to see the place, look at the rooms and ask about the location, ask about the deposit and the date, and then either think about it or sign. Each step needs only one or two sentences of the kind above. The sentences to keep ready are Combien coûte le loyer ? , Est-ce que les charges sont comprises ? , Puis-je voir l'appartement