With some exceptions, you cannot terminate a rural lease agreement to take back agricultural land in order to sell it or for your personal use.
We have dedicated an article to the specific case of "reclaiming a leased property to farm it yourself" (see link at the bottom of the page). This is a possibility provided by law.
The purpose of this article is the recovery by its owner of agricultural property leased to a farmer (whether it is a plot of land or an agricultural building) for a use other than farming. We will present the rules protecting the tenant and the options available to terminate the contract.
Let's first look at the situation of the people who ask us this question. They are most often people who have inherited agricultural land and who
are not at all familiar with the subtleties of tenant farming status.
Having no particular links with agriculture and even less with the tenant of the land, they notice that the rent (the fermage) received each year is relatively low. The question then arises of selling the land or recovering it for personal use (garden, land for horses, leisure land, etc.).
In response to this request, we try our best to explain the specificities of rural leases (very different from the contracts for houses or apartments encountered in classic real estate).
It is extremely difficult for an owner to recover agricultural land or a building leased to a farmer, for many reasons which we detail below.
This is undoubtedly the first point to remember: any paid lease concerning an agricultural asset is qualified as a rural lease.
It does not matter whether it is written or only verbal, or whether the payment is only a reimbursement of property tax or the provision of produce.
There are a few exceptions to rural leases, but they are very restrictive.
The death of the owner of agricultural property has no impact on the contract, which continues for the benefit of its holder under the same conditions. Except for the payment of rent, which will be made to the joint heirs or the beneficiary of the partition.
A farm lease is most often concluded for a period of 9 years. At the end of this period, it does not stop but is automatically renewed for a further 9 years.
The owner's wish to recover the property for personal use or for sale is not a reason to oppose its renewal.
As the contract is renewed every 9 years, the tenant ages and may soon be eligible for retirement. The lessor can then oppose the renewal when the tenant has reached the legal retirement age. This can be done at the end of the 9 years or at the end of each three-year period (every 3 years) in the case of a renewal.
It is therefore essential to know the exact date the contract was signed to determine the renewal date: a very difficult situation in the absence of a written agreement.
The tenant can ask the other party for authorization to transfer the lease to their spouse or descendants. In the event of a dispute by the lessor, the tenant can then refer the matter to the Parity Court for Rural Leases (Tribunal Paritaire des Baux Ruraux), which will most often rule in their favor if the beneficiary of the transfer has an agricultural activity or training.
Note that if the farmer has not loyally carried out the terms of their contract, they may be refused the benefit of this measure. This would be the case, for example, if they have systematically paid their rent late, if they have cut down trees belonging to the owner, etc.
When the owner has the agricultural capacity (diploma or professional experience), they can oppose the renewal of the lease to take back the property and farm it themselves. Recovery for non-professional purposes will not be accepted.
The owner must respect a specific procedure (letter delivered by a bailiff 18 months before the end of the term, mandatory clauses to be inserted, etc.) and fulfill many conditions, in addition to their agricultural capacity: obtain an authorization to farm under the "Contrôle des Structures", farm the property themselves for a minimum period of 9 years, etc.
This is a reason that allows the lessor to terminate a lease prematurely: If your plot becomes buildable, you can then partially terminate the lease. You will, however, be liable for compensation to your tenant. This compensation will, in principle, be calculated according to a scale defined by the Chamber of Agriculture of your department, taking into account the loss of income suffered by your tenant.
Tenant fault is also a reason for ending the contract. These reasons are listed by law (Article L 411-31 of the Rural Code): non-payment of rent, poor farming of the property, non-compliance with environmental clauses, sub-leasing, etc.
The tenant making the land available to a company is not a sub-lease and is therefore not a possible reason for termination unless they have not informed you.
If you do not have a legal reason to break your tenant's lease, you can ask them to terminate it amicably. They are, of course, not obliged to accept this proposal.
This agreement will take the form of a contract signed with your tenant indicating the terms of this termination: the plots concerned, the effective date of the termination. It may be necessary to provide for contractual compensation with the tenant, which will be the price to pay to regain a free property.
We strongly advise you to call on a legal professional to assist you in drafting such a document.
When first leasing or changing tenants, it may be appropriate to consider the objective of being able to freely recover the property after a few years.
Several contracts offer this possibility, which we present in an article dedicated to other types of agricultural leasing contracts: the loan for use (prêt à usage), the SAFER availability agreement, the career lease, etc.
If you cannot end your lease, you can still sell your property.
You can sell it to:
Be careful, the sale of leased land is usually done with a discount. This discount linked to the rental status is very real and quantifiable. According to our land price observatory (2024 DVF data), vacant land is traded at an average of €6,038/ha at the national level (median: €5,284/ha). For land subject to a rural lease, the discount is generally estimated between 10% and 30% depending on the region and the remaining duration of the lease, i.e., a value between €4,200/ha and €5,400/ha for a property leased at the median value.
The tenant's right of pre-emption takes priority. If they do not exercise it, then the SAFER's right must be cleared; they have 2 months to exercise this right. This risk will be more or less significant depending on the geographical area and local land pressure.
As you can see, rural lease regulations are extremely protective of the tenant. Established in 1946 after World War II, the lease was designed to promote the development of agricultural production and is therefore favorable to the farmer. It also succeeded a previous regime that was very protective of the owners' interests, which led to a strong rebalancing.
There are therefore few reasons allowing the owner to terminate a lease on plots of land or agricultural buildings. The wish to recover a property or to sell it are not reasons that allow for the termination of the lease.
Among the possibilities offered to an owner, there are therefore:
In any case, it is necessary to consult a notary, lawyer, or rural lease specialist in all these procedures.
