{"id":28366,"date":"2026-08-13T11:14:50","date_gmt":"2026-08-13T09:14:50","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.alpimmorama.com\/?p=28366"},"modified":"2026-08-13T11:19:51","modified_gmt":"2026-08-13T09:19:51","slug":"sell-samoens-before-winter-december-2026","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.alpimmorama.com\/en\/vendre-samoens-avant-hiver-decembre-2026\/","title":{"rendered":"Selling your chalet or apartment in Samo\u00ebns: mid-August, the final window to sign by December 2026"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"selling<\/figure>\n\n\n

You've been thinking about it since the spring, you put off the decision during the summer, and you're wondering if you've missed the boat. For putting a property on the market, no, there is still time. To sell in Samo\u00ebns before winter, with the deed signed before the notary by 31 December, this is it: it's happening now, and the margin is counted in days rather than weeks.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The reason comes down to simple arithmetic. Between signing the preliminary sale agreement and the final deed, you need to allow three months on average in France, with an average delay observed by notaries of 92 days. To sign at the end of December, a preliminary agreement is therefore needed by the end of September. This agreement itself requires an offer to have been accepted at the beginning of September. And to hope for a maximum offer by mid-September, your property must already be online, with real photos and a complete dossier, within the next fortnight.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Nobody can guarantee you a signature before Christmas, and I would be wary of anyone who promises it. What I can tell you is that from mid-September onwards, this possibility disappears, regardless of the agency, the price or the buyer.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Is there still time to sell in Samo\u00ebns before winter 2026?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

It all depends on what you call selling. Two objectives, two timetables.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Goal: \u00absign the deeds with the notary before 31 December\u00bb:<\/strong> still possible, provided that the property goes on the market before the end of August and the offer arrives in the first few weeks of being advertised. After mid-September, the hypothesis falls through.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Objective \u00abto have sold during the ski season\u00bb, in the sense of a signed compromise and a committed buyer:<\/strong> You have until early October to launch, with a definitive signature in January or February 2027.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Mid-August: the last window to aim for a December signing<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Many owners of second homes think in terms of tourist seasons: they head up in February, come back down in August, and leave it until next year. The market, however, doesn\u2019t work like that. September and October account for a significant proportion of planned purchases in the mountains, because buyers who have spent the summer in the valley return home with an idea in mind and a budget to be approved by their bank.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Waiting until November to call an estate agent means entering the market just when buyers are busy with other things: year-end, booking holidays, finalising budgets. Your property listing will hit the market at the worst possible time.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This is a distinction worth bearing in mind, as it is the source of most disappointments:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    \n
  1. On sale<\/strong> your property is visible, viewings are starting.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  2. Offer accepted<\/strong> : a buyer places an order at or close to the price.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  3. Agreement to Sell<\/strong> : the agreement has been signed; the case is now legally underway.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  4. Notarial deed<\/strong> : You\u2019ve been paid.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n

    Between step 3 and step 4, allow for an average of three months, with cases ranging from two to five months depending on their complexity. Notaries' statistics show an average observed timeframe of 92 days. A preliminary sale agreement signed on 30 September therefore leads to a deed at the end of December. A preliminary sale agreement signed on 20 October automatically rolls over into 2027.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Why autumn is a key season in the Giffre Valley<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

    Samo\u00ebns has around 75 % holiday homes in its housing stock, according to market data published by SeLoger. In other words, the vast majority of transactions involve buyers who do not live here all year round and who are buying for a specific purpose: a week\u2019s skiing in February, a month in the summer, long weekends, or sometimes to generate rental income.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    These buyers think in terms of the ski season. Anyone who wants to spend the February 2027 holidays in their own flat needs to sign a preliminary sales agreement in the autumn. Anyone who comes across your advert on 20 December will spend the winter viewing properties, not buying one.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Autumn also has one advantage: your property is empty. No tenants, no bed linen to change between viewings, no need to arrange a time slot with a property management company. In January, organising a viewing of a flat let on a weekly basis becomes a real headache, and a buyer who has to wait three weeks for a viewing is a buyer who will look elsewhere in the meantime. I experienced this myself last year with a chalet that could only be viewed on Fridays, between 10 am and 4 pm \u2013 right in the middle of the cleaning slot. The result: a property presented in a state of disarray, impossible to showcase properly, and serious buyers lost because they couldn\u2019t make themselves available within such a narrow time window.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    A reverse schedule to ensure signing takes place before 31 December 2026<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

    You don\u2019t draw up this timetable starting from today. You start from the arrival date and work backwards.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    31 DECEMBER      \u2190  NOTARISED DEED (last notary appointment slot of the year)\nEARLY DECEMBER   \u2190  Lifting of the right of pre-emption, call for funds\nEND OF OCTOBER      \u2190  Loan offer issued, mandatory 11-day cooling-off period\nEARLY OCTOBER    \u2190  End of the 10-day withdrawal period, submission of banking documents\n30 SEPTEMBER     \u2190  PRELIMINARY AGREEMENT SIGNED (absolute deadline)\nEARLY SEPTEMBER  \u2190  OFFER ACCEPTED\nLATE AUGUST         \u2190  LISTING PUBLISHED ONLINE, first viewings\nTHIS WEEK    \u2190  VALUATION, photos, video, survey reports\n<\/code><\/pre>\n\n\n\n
    The tipping point is 30 September. Beyond that, the sale will be signed in 2027, regardless of the good intentions of the parties.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
    Why 31 December is a real date, not a marketing ploy<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
    Three practical reasons, which have nothing to do with snow.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
    The IFI is calculated on the basis of assets held as at 1 January.<\/strong> If your net property assets amount to or are close to the \u20ac1,300,000 threshold, a chalet sold on 20 December is excluded from the tax base, whereas the same chalet under a preliminary sale agreement remains part of your assets. The tax authorities are clear on this point: a property sold subject to a condition precedent before 1 January remains your property until that condition has been fulfilled. A preliminary sale agreement signed in December therefore does not exempt you from the IFI; only the final deed of sale does. The proceeds from the sale, however, constitute liquid assets and are not included in the tax base.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
    Property tax is payable by the owner as at 1 January.<\/strong> The pro rata allocation between the seller and the buyer is a matter agreed in the deed of sale, not a rule. If you are still the owner on 1 January 2027, you are legally liable for the 2027 property tax.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
    Another winter season means another season of heavy workloads.<\/strong> Frost protection, snow clearance contracts, service charges, insurance, letting management or caretaker services. When it comes to a chalet, winter is no small matter.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
    Add a practical constraint that few people anticipate: conveyancing solicitors concentrate a large volume of signatures in the last ten days of December. A file ready on 27th December does not always find a slot. It is better to aim for mid-December and keep a margin.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
    The broader timeline, if December isn\u2019t your target<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
    MID-AUGUST          \u2192  VALUATION\nEND OF AUGUST         \u2192  PREPARATION OF THE PROPERTY AND DOCUMENTATION\nSEPTEMBER        \u2192  LISTING\nSEPTEMBER \/ OCTOBER   \u2192  VIEWINGS\nOCT \/ NOVEMBER   \u2192  OFFER FOLLOWED BY PRELIMINARY AGREEMENT\nJANUARY \/ FEBRUARY \u2192  DEED OF SALE\n<\/code><\/pre>\n\n\n\n
    This week: get your chalet or apartment valued<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
    A valuation isn\u2019t just about setting a price. It helps you work out whether your plan is viable. A property owner who discovers in October that their property is worth 15 % less than they had imagined spends two months coming to terms with the news, and then misses the window of opportunity. If they\u2019re aiming for December, they\u2019ve already missed it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
    What affects prices in Samo\u00ebns<\/h4>\n\n\n\n
    In Samo\u00ebns, the price difference between two flats of the same size can exceed 30 %. What really tips the balance is:<\/p>\n\n\n\n