Taxe d'Habitation

The taxe d'habitation is levied on whoever is living in a place on the 1st of January. You lucked out by not moving in until the 4th. Don't worry, they'll catch up with you next November!
Cheers,
Bev

maria0301 said:

Hi Bev, thanks for that, so we wont get a bill till next November?? What happens if we move out around April/May time as we are looking to buy a house and it might not be in this area??

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Oddly enough, I asked DH that same question. According to him, "they have ways" of finding out where you are and you'll get your bill in November, no matter where you've moved to. (Actually, I think it's coordinated through your income tax declaration.)
Cheers,
Bev

poppet said:

We have owned a second home in France for 3 years and have paid Fonciere since then but no other taxes. We got home last week to find a rather large tax demand for the Habitation for 2009. We took the decision not to ask to many questions in case a retrospective demand was made.

It would seem that we got 2 years "free" as a new build (2007 and 2008), from reading done in the past week. An acquaintance who has had a house also for 3 years has not yet had a bill and we wonder if there is a difference between areas in how quickly they catch up with you.

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That's another distinct possibility, too. My husband reports that when they first built this house we're in, it was 5 years or more before they started taxing them. He even went into the mairie to ask about it (fearing that they'd hit him up for back taxes) and they said to just sit tight and they'd get around to it eventually. (Which they did - with no demand for back taxes.)

I bought two small pieces of property quite some time ago (probably 10 years now) and was wondering when and if I'd get hit for some form of tax. Still waiting.

It's a strange system - and as some of my expat friends have concluded, France is a country that seems to work, but some of us have no idea why or how!
Cheers,
Bev

Miss Brodie said:

is tax dabitation based on a percentage of the rent?

Thanks

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No. The basis for the taxe d'habitation is the so-called "valeur locative brute" which is a function of the square meters of "livable space" in the residence, adjusted for certain enhancements (like the number of toilets, sinks, bathtubs, showers, central heating, air conditioning, etc.). The rental value per square meter is usually standardized each year for the town as a whole, though it may vary by type of property (i.e. flat vs. free-standing house).

Then, just to confuse things further, there are certain allowances based on your tax status - how many people are living in the unit and whether or not they are related, their income level and to some extent their ages.

How much you're paying in rent has little or nothing to do with the tax you're charged.
Cheers,
Bev