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2 octobre 2026

Mandatory diagnostic reports for selling an apartment (2026-2027)

List, validity periods and changes to the DPE in 2026 and 2027

When selling an apartment, the mandatory diagnostic reports are gathered in a technical diagnostic file handed to the buyer: the energy performance certificate (DPE) and, depending on the age and location of the property, the lead, asbestos, electricity, gas and termite reports, the risk disclosure statement and a few other documents. In Beausoleil, Cap-d'Ail, La Turbie, Menton and Roquebrune-Cap-Martin, a risk disclosure statement is needed for every apartment, as is a termite report, according to the prefectoral order published on the Alpes-Maritimes prefecture website (accessed on 2 October 2026). For the DPE, the calculation for electricity changed on 1 January 2026 and will change again on 1 January 2027, with no obligation to redo a DPE that is still valid.

The technical diagnostic file in brief

To sell an apartment, you must gather several diagnostic reports in a technical diagnostic file (dossier de diagnostic technique, DDT), appended to the pre-sale agreement (promesse de vente) or, failing that, to the notarial deed of sale (acte authentique). Its contents are set by Article L271-4 of the Construction and Housing Code (code de la construction et de l'habitation).

Most reports are drawn up by a certified diagnostic inspector, whose certification you can check in the official directory. To sell with our agency, see our page on selling your property in Beausoleil.

The list of mandatory diagnostics for selling an apartment

Here is the list drawn up by Service Public, with the validity periods given in the official fact sheets.

Energy performance certificate (DPE)

The energy performance certificate (diagnostic de performance énergétique, DPE) must be less than 10 years old on the date of the pre-sale agreement or the deed, subject to the specific rules for older DPEs (see below).

Lead (CREP)

The lead exposure report (constat de risque d'exposition au plomb, CREP) concerns homes built before 1 January 1949. It is valid indefinitely if it finds no lead, or lead at a concentration below 1 mg/cm². Above that level, it must be less than one year old at the time of the sale.

Asbestos

The asbestos report (état d'amiante) is required if the building permit was issued before 1 July 1997. If it was carried out on or after 1 April 2013, it is valid indefinitely; if it is older, it must be redone before the sale. If the report places List A materials under periodic monitoring, a new assessment is due within 3 years; after renovation work, a new report is advisable. In a co-ownership building (copropriété), also ask the managing agent (syndic) for a copy of the asbestos technical file (dossier technique amiante, DTA) for the common parts and its summary sheet.

Electricity and gas

These reports are required when the internal installation is more than 15 years old. Each must be less than 3 years old on the date of the pre-sale agreement or the deed. For gas, a certificate of compliance less than 3 years old, issued after the installation was modified or extended, can exempt you from the report.

Risk disclosure statement

The risk disclosure statement (état des risques) is mandatory in risk areas, notably in seismic zones 2 to 5. You can fill it in yourself, for example with the online service, and you hand it to the buyer at the first viewing. It must be less than 6 months old. In areas subject to vegetation clearance obligations (obligations de débroussaillement), it also includes an information sheet on those obligations.

Termites and dry rot

The termite report (état termites) is required in areas designated by prefectoral order (arrêté préfectoral). In a co-ownership building, it covers the private portions. It must be less than 6 months old when the pre-sale agreement or the deed is signed. Information on the risk of dry rot (mérule) is also required in areas identified by order.

Other documents depending on the situation

  • Airport noise: in zone A, B, C or D of a noise exposure plan (plan d'exposition au bruit), the seller fills in an aircraft noise statement (état des nuisances sonores aériennes).
  • Wastewater: if the co-ownership building is not connected to the public sewer, a report less than 3 years old on its off-mains wastewater system is required at the deed. Outside Île-de-France, an inspection of the connection to the public sewer is only required if a municipal order imposes it.
  • Safety or unfit-housing order (arrêté de mise en sécurité ou de traitement de l'insalubrité): if one exists for the property, it is added to the file.
  • Wood heating: if the property has a wood-burning appliance and lies within the perimeter of an atmosphere protection plan (plan de protection de l'atmosphère), a certificate of the appliance's compliance with the rules set by the prefect is added to the file.
  • Housing information log (carnet d'information du logement): it concerns homes built, or renovated with work that has a significant impact on their energy performance, for which a building permit application or a prior declaration of works (déclaration préalable) was filed on or after 1 January 2023. It is handed to the buyer no later than the deed.

Carrez law floor area

This is not a diagnostic report, but the pre-sale agreement and the deed of sale for a co-ownership unit (lot de copropriété) must state the floor area of its private portion (surface loi Carrez), excluding cellars, garages, parking spaces and units of less than 8 m². Without this information, the buyer can seek to have the sale annulled no later than one month after the deed, unless the deed states the floor area. If the actual area is more than one twentieth smaller than stated, the buyer can obtain a proportional price reduction, within one year of the deed.

In Beausoleil and the towns near Monaco

In our area, two documents need to be provided for every apartment. First, the risk disclosure statement: according to Géorisques, Beausoleil, Cap-d'Ail, La Turbie, Menton and Roquebrune-Cap-Martin are in seismic zone 4 (medium). Any sale listing must therefore state that information on risks is available on Géorisques. Our page on property in Beausoleil details the risks identified for the town.

Second, the termite report: according to the Alpes-Maritimes prefecture page accessed on 2 October 2026, prefectoral order no. 2017-319 includes these five towns, across their entire territory, in the département's termite monitoring and control zone. Check with your diagnostic inspector that this order is still in force. For dry rot, check with the prefecture.

DPE: what changed in 2026 and what changes in 2027

Older DPEs are no longer valid

According to the Ministry responsible for the environment, DPEs carried out before 1 July 2021 are no longer valid (since 1 January 2025 at the latest) and must be redone before the sale. Since 1 July 2024, the rating thresholds have also been adjusted for homes of 40 m² or less (a new-rating certificate, or attestation de nouvelle étiquette, can be downloaded free of charge from the Ademe DPE-Audit Observatory).

Since 1 January 2026

The factor used to convert final energy into primary energy for electricity has fallen from 2.3 to 1.9. DPEs carried out between 1 July 2021 and 31 December 2025 remain valid; if the new calculation improves their rating, a new-rating certificate can be downloaded free of charge, without a new visit, from the Ademe DPE-Audit Observatory.

From 1 January 2027

The order of 19 August 2026 (arrêté) lowers this factor from 1.9 to 1.7, for DPEs and energy audits. According to Service Public, the rating of a home that uses electricity for many purposes may improve by one class, or even two in rare cases; the improvement will not be systematic and no rating will be downgraded. DPEs that are still valid will remain so until they expire (10 years for those carried out since 1 July 2021) and can also be updated free of charge if their rating improves.

On the same day, the order of 11 June 2026 will come into force, adapting the DPE to European law: new information, notably on renewable energy, and an “A0” label for buildings considered zero-emission.

If your apartment is heated by electricity, check whether an improved rating is available: the sale listing must show the energy and climate classes, the estimated annual energy costs and, for a home rated F or G, the statement “logement à consommation énergétique excessive” (home with excessive energy consumption).

DPE and energy audit: two separate documents

The energy audit (audit énergétique) does not replace the DPE. It concerns the sale of a house, or of a building with several homes belonging to a single owner, rated E, F or G. Article L126-28-1 excludes homes governed by co-ownership rules: the sale of an apartment in a co-ownership building is therefore not affected.

If a report is missing or expires before the deed

Under Article L271-4, if the lead, asbestos, termite, gas, electricity or wastewater report is missing or no longer valid at the deed, the seller cannot claim exemption from the corresponding warranty against hidden defects (garantie des vices cachés). If the risk disclosure statement or, where applicable, a safety or unfit-housing order is missing, the buyer can seek cancellation of the contract or a price reduction.

So check the validity dates as soon as the property goes on the market, then before the pre-sale agreement and before the deed: a document that is valid at the pre-sale agreement but has expired by the day of the deed must be replaced by a new one, appended to the deed (Article L271-5). Keep a particular eye on the termite report and the risk disclosure statement, which must be less than 6 months old.

Are you thinking of selling an apartment in Beausoleil or a nearby town? Our agency, at 10 boulevard de la République in Beausoleil, offers a free, no-obligation valuation.

Laura-Lynn Nacher de Coster, Managing Director of Transal Properties

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