Incurie
A dwelling no longer maintained over a long period, to the point where its condition becomes a health risk for the occupant or the building. It describes the state of the property, not a judgement on the person living there.
Glossary
The French words you will meet
Instructing work on a Paris property from abroad means meeting a specific vocabulary — some of it medical, some legal, some administrative. These are the terms that actually appear in quotations, syndic correspondence and completion files, with what each one means.
Insalubrité
An administrative finding that a dwelling endangers the health of its occupants or neighbours. In Paris it is established by the Service technique de l’habitat and may lead to a formal order. A private company never makes this determination.
Syndic de copropriété
The managing agent of a co-owned building, responsible for the common parts. The syndic decides for common areas. Entering a privately owned flat requires the owner’s or occupant’s consent, or an enforceable decision — the syndic’s mandate alone is not enough.
Parties communes
The shared areas of a building: hall, staircase, landings, courtyard, bin room, cellars, service risers. An odour or an infestation travelling through these belongs to a collective decision, separate from whatever happens inside a flat.
Lot privatif
The part of a co-owned building held exclusively by one owner — the flat itself, and often a cellar or a former maid’s room. This boundary decides who may instruct work, and over what area.
Mandataire judiciaire
A professional appointed by a court to act for a protected adult. What they may commission on a dwelling is fixed by the appointing decision, and they must be able to account for every sum engaged — which is why quotations for them are itemised line by line.
CCAS
Centre communal d’action sociale, the municipal social services centre. In Paris it has a branch in every arrondissement. It is the first point of contact for reporting a vulnerable person’s situation. It does not carry out work on the property.
DASRI
Regulated clinical waste, including material soiled by biological fluids and sharps. It follows a traceable disposal route, separate from bulky household waste, and produces a certificate of handover included in the completion file.
Autorisation d’occupation temporaire
A City of Paris permit to occupy the public highway — to place a skip or hold a vehicle during works. It must be applied for in advance. Where the street or the timescale does not allow it, removal runs in rotations instead.
Rotation
One complete round trip of a vehicle between the property and the disposal point. It is the real unit of a Paris job: duration depends less on total volume than on the number of rotations and the carrying distance to the permitted loading point.
Bordereau de dépôt
The receipt issued when waste is deposited in an authorised facility, recording volume and type. It is the document that lets a deputy, a landlord or a notary justify both the expenditure and where the contents of a dwelling went.
État des lieux
The contradictory inventory of a dwelling’s condition at the start or end of a tenancy, drawn up by the landlord or their agent. A dated photographic record from a cleaning company is useful technical evidence, but does not replace it.