Reading architectural plans

Most people buy their property pre-completion, i.e. off-plan. At your first meeting, the Bouygues Immobilier sales advisor will show you a simplified plan showing the relative size and position of the rooms.
When you reserve your house or apartment and sign the contract of sale at your notaire, you will also be required to sign a more detailed plan. This drawing will include items such as suspended ceilings, ventilation ducts and drains, and is a contractual document with legal implications.

Our advice is to pay special attention to the following 6 points when viewing the plans of your future property.

• Orientation: does your house or apartment face north, west, east or south? The plan will normally contain at least one of these compass points.

• Scale: the scale normally used is 1:100 (1 cm = 1 metre).

• Floor areas: the floor area of each room is shown on the plan, as is the ceiling height.

• Line thickness: these indicate the nature of the walls. Thick lines indicate load-bearing (structural) walls, whilst thin lines indicate partition walls.

• Door and window openings: showing clearance and opening direction.

• The type and width of doors and windows: these are usually specified.

Some items may be omitted from plans to avoid over-complication, so if you need more information, please ask your Bouygues Immobilier advisor.

There are many different types of plan showing different aspects of the building (diagram of electrical circuits, for example) and different viewpoints.

• Location plan: this drawing shows the apartment building or house in the context of its immediate environment (garden, local district, etc.).

• Block plan: this is a “plan” view showing the outlines of the buildings on the plot and their orientation.

• Elevations: these drawings show the external architecture of the building.

• The internal plans: these can be in horizontal section (plan view) and/or vertical section (elevation). The latter shows you the roof space and room heights.

There is no standard governing the abbreviations used on architectural plans, so you should refer to the legend shown on the plan to find out what they mean.
However, here are some commonly-used abbreviations.
AL : short for “allege” in French. This means the distance from the bottom of a window to the floor. This abbreviation is normally followed by a figure indicating the precise distance.
ATT : short for “attente” in French. This means that an item has yet to be fitted (e.g. the dishwasher in a kitchen).
CVR : coffre de volet roulant (roller blind housing).
CF : conduit de fume (chimney flue).
E.A. : entrée d'air (ventilation point near a window).
LL : lave-linge (waching machine)
LV : lave-vaisselle (dishwasher).
R : réfrigérateur (refrigerator).
S.10 : indicates the presence of a 10 cm threshold between the bottom of a window and the floor to accommodate a plinth (for example).
VH : ventilation haute (high-level ventilator).
VMC : ventilation mécanique contrôlée (controlled mechanical ventilation).

With Bouygues Immobilier, there’s no ambiguity: prior to reservation, your advisor will help you understand every detail of the plans of your new property.