Legal Question about VVE and French Law

Questioner

We have a second home in France in a park of 18 houses, one of which is occupied by a property manager. Half of the owners (all Dutch) rent out their properties, and the other half do not. We have a homeowners' association (VVE) with a board of owners. 1) Is this VVE subject to French or Dutch law? 2) It is legally valid if a majority vote in the AGM approves an additional contribution from the renting owners. 3) Is it legally valid if the VVE requests an additional contribution from the renting owners? May I contact you without any obligation?

Questioner

French law applies to the homeowners' association (VVE) that governs your French home. Unfortunately, I'm not familiar with French law in this area. I would advise you to consult a French lawyer. The question is whether the VVE is allowed to distinguish between renting and non-renting owners when the VVE generally permits the rental of properties. After all, an owner who doesn't rent can decide tomorrow to rent out their property. Furthermore, the fact that an owner doesn't rent doesn't mean they don't make their property available to others. Legally speaking, the only difference between making it available to third parties (friends, family members, or even strangers) and renting it out is that rent is officially paid. Whether this distinction may lead to a difference in the contribution to the VVE is debatable. Unfortunately, without further investigation I cannot help you further.

Questioner

Dear questioner, In principle, French law applies, but a choice of law may be made for this association, or the association may already be considered foreign. To make definitive statements, more information is needed about the establishment, the articles of association, and so on. Intuitively, with knowledge of Dutch law, I would say that it is unlikely that national rules will differ so much that what would be unreasonable under one legal system would be considered reasonable under another. Usually, the rules are quite similar; the reasonableness and fairness of the law serve as a guideline, also in French law. Therefore, charging an additional contribution from members who rent out must have a reasonable basis other than pure profit motive. For example, it could be argued that the renters use the park facilities differently, resulting in more cleaning, faster deterioration of play equipment, and so on.