Selling a home in Nice means assembling up to twelve documents, and which ones you need depends on the age of the property, its installations and its address. Here is what you must provide, how long each report stays valid, and the three points sellers get caught out on at signature.
The short version. In Nice, the état des risques is compulsory for every property: the commune sits in seismic zone 4. The energy audit does not apply to apartments in co-ownership, whatever their energy rating. And two documents must be handed over at the first viewing, not at signature.
The documents a seller must provide
Together they form the dossier de diagnostic technique, annexed to the preliminary sale agreement or, failing that, to the deed of sale. The list is set out in article L. 271-4 of the French construction and housing code, in the wording in force since 11 April 2024. We give the French names throughout, because those are the names you will see on the reports themselves.
Whatever the property
- Diagnostic de performance énergétique — the energy performance certificate. Every apartment, and houses from 50 sq m upwards. Listed historic monuments are exempt.
- État des risques — the statement of risks. Required in areas covered by a risk prevention plan, in seismic zones 2 to 5, in radon potential zone 3, in coastal retreat areas and where brush clearance is compulsory. In Nice the seismic classification alone makes it systematic.
- Police orders on building safety and health affecting the building, where any exist. Worth checking in the older fabric of the Old Town and Riquier.
Depending on the age of the property
- Constat de risque d’exposition au plomb — the lead report, for any dwelling built before 1 January 1949. In Nice that covers the Old Town and much of the Carré d’Or, Les Musiciens and the Masséna quarter.
- État amiante — the asbestos report, wherever the building permit was issued before 1 July 1997. That takes in the vast majority of the Nice housing stock, including the 1960s and 1970s buildings of the port and Mont Boron.
Depending on the installations
- État de l’installation intérieure de gaz, if the gas installation is more than fifteen years old.
- État de l’installation intérieure d’électricité, same rule for the electrical installation.
- Assainissement non collectif — the private drainage inspection, if the property is not connected to the mains. Rare in the city, common on the hillsides and private roads.
- Certificate of conformity for a wood-burning appliance, if the property lies within an air protection plan area and has one.
Depending on the address
- État relatif à la présence de termites — the termite report, in communes delimited by prefectoral order. In the Alpes-Maritimes the surveillance and control zone was established by prefectoral order n° 2017-319 of 10 March 2017.
- État des nuisances sonores aériennes — the aircraft noise statement, if the property falls in zone A, B, C or D of a noise exposure plan. The plan for Nice Côte d’Azur airport was approved by order of 8 February 2005, amended on 24 December 2020.
- Dry rot risk information, in delimited areas.
In co-ownership
- The Carrez private floor area, stated in the deed.
- The lead report covers only the private part used as a dwelling; the termite, gas and electricity reports and the police orders cover the private part of the lot. You are not required to survey the whole building.
- Carnet d’information du logement — the property information record, if a permit was filed or energy renovation works undertaken since 1 January 2023.
How long each report stays valid
This is the question that costs sellers the most: a file assembled too early expires between listing and signature, and a surveyor has to be called back in a hurry.
| Document | Validity for a sale |
|---|---|
| Diagnostic de performance énergétique | 10 years |
| Audit énergétique | 5 years |
| Lead report, if absent or below 1 mg/cm² | unlimited |
| Lead report, if 1 mg/cm² or above | less than one year |
| Asbestos report carried out since 1 April 2013 | unlimited |
| Asbestos report predating 1 April 2013 | must be redone before the sale |
| Internal gas installation | 3 years |
| Internal electrical installation | 3 years |
| Private drainage | 3 years |
| Termite report | 6 months |
| État des risques | less than 6 months |
One trap that still catches people out: energy performance certificates issued between 1 January 2018 and 30 June 2021 have not been valid since 1 January 2025. Those issued from 1 July 2021 do run for the full ten years.
The energy audit does not apply to apartments
This is the question we are asked most since one seller in five discovered their property rated F or G. The regulatory energy audit applies to the sale of individual houses and whole buildings held by a single owner. Apartments in co-ownership are not subject to it, whatever their rating.
The timetable for the classes concerned: F and G since 1 April 2023, E since 1 January 2025, D from 1 January 2034. The audit stays valid for five years and must be given to a prospective buyer at the first viewing.
In practice, in Nice: a G-rated apartment at Le Régina or Le Florian sells without an audit. An E-rated villa on Mont Boron needs one. So does a small block held in its entirety by a single seller.
What is specific to Nice
The statement of risks is compulsory across the whole commune
Nice is classified in seismic zone 4, described as moderate. That alone makes the état des risques compulsory for every property sold in the commune, with no need to look further. Depending on the address, the risks recorded by the State are added to it: flooding by torrential river rise, by run-off and mud flow, by marine submersion, ground movement, rockfall, landslip, differential settlement, coastal retreat, forest fire, industrial risk and the transport of dangerous goods.
Termites
The department is covered by a surveillance and control zone established by prefectoral order. The termite report is valid for six months only: it is the document to order last, once a buyer has been found, not when the property goes on the market.
Aircraft noise
Nice Côte d’Azur airport has a noise exposure plan. Properties within one of its zones must be accompanied by an aircraft noise statement. The eastern side of the bay — the port, Mont Boron, Cap de Nice, Cimiez — lies well away from the zones concerned, but the check is made address by address, never neighbourhood by neighbourhood.
Radon
Nice is classified in radon potential category 1, the lowest level. No particular obligation follows from it for a sale in the commune, unlike some communes of the back country.
Two documents to hand over at the first viewing
This is the point most sellers are unaware of, and that many agencies handle badly.
The état des risques must be given to the prospective buyer at the first viewing of the property, if a viewing takes place. The rule has applied since 1 January 2023. If it has not been handed over by the preliminary agreement at the latest, the buyer’s cooling-off period only starts running when they receive it.
The energy audit, where one is required, follows the same rule: it is handed over at the first viewing, by any means, including electronically.
In practice this means the file has to be ready before the first viewing, not before signature. That constraint is ours to carry: we do not show a property whose état des risques has not been issued.
What you risk if one is missing
The consequences differ according to which document is missing.
- Lead, asbestos, termites, gas, electricity, drainage. If one of them is missing or out of date at the signature of the deed, the seller cannot rely on the exclusion of liability for hidden defects on that particular point. The clause that normally protects you falls away.
- Statement of risks and police orders. A heavier sanction: the buyer may seek rescission of the contract or ask the court to reduce the price.
- Non-compliant private drainage. The buyer must have the works carried out within one year of the deed. It is a point that gets negotiated on price, almost every time.
Conversely, the recommendations attached to the energy performance certificate and the aircraft noise statement are indicative only: a buyer cannot rely on them against you.
When to order them
The order matters, because the validity periods are not the same.
- As soon as you decide to sell: the energy performance certificate. It governs the listing, which cannot be published without its rating, and it lasts ten years.
- Before the first viewing: the statement of risks, and the energy audit if one is required.
- Straight afterwards: lead, asbestos, gas, electricity, Carrez. Their validity is long or unlimited, so there is nothing to gain by waiting.
- Once a buyer is found: the termite report, valid for six months only.
What we do for you
At the first meeting we draw up the exact list for your property: year of construction, permit, age of the installations, the position of the building with regard to risks and to the noise exposure plan. You know what to order, in what order, and what you can leave out.
We work with certified surveyors in the area, we arrange their visit and we check the reports on arrival. An asbestos report that finds material present, an electrical inspection that raises defects: these are negotiating points, and it is better to deal with them before an offer arrives than during.
Our sources
- Article L. 271-4 of the code de la construction et de l’habitation, in force since 11 April 2024 (Légifrance).
- Property surveys required on a sale, service-public.gouv.fr, updated 7 March 2025.
- Energy performance certificate, service-public.gouv.fr, updated 1 January 2026.
- Energy audit on the sale of a poorly insulated home, service-public.gouv.fr, updated 1 January 2025.
- Lead exposure report, service-public.gouv.fr, updated 17 August 2026.
- Asbestos report, service-public.gouv.fr, updated 6 December 2024.
- Statement of risks, service-public.gouv.fr, updated 1 January 2025.
- Validity periods of property surveys, French ministry for ecological transition.
- Seismic, radon and risk classifications for the commune of Nice, Géorisques.
- Prefectoral order n° 2017-319 of 10 March 2017 establishing a termite surveillance and control zone in the Alpes-Maritimes, and the noise exposure plan for Nice Côte d’Azur airport approved on 8 February 2005 and amended on 24 December 2020, prefecture of the Alpes-Maritimes.
This page sets out the law as it stood on the date of publication and replaces neither your notaire’s advice nor that of a certified surveyor. Obligations are assessed property by property.