Updated on 2 September 2026: takes into account Law No. 2026-796 of 18 August 2026 (SAFER right of visit, separate notification of non-contiguous properties).
Selling a forest is a process that requires a good understanding of the financial, legal and tax specifics of a forestry investment.
This article presents the elements to take into account when planning to sell a forest or woodland.
You first need to set the sale price of your forest. You can refer to the section on forest prices in our buyer's guide.
Setting the right price is the first condition for a successful sale. To position your property, rely on objective market benchmarks. According to our observatory of forest prices in France, built on 35,100 sales recorded in the DVF data between July 2020 and December 2025, the median price of one hectare of forest stands at €4,936/ha in 2025. Half of all forests sell below this threshold, the other half above it.
Price benchmarks for valuing your forest (2025, DVF data)
These figures are only a starting point: the actual price depends on the tree species, the condition of the stand, recent felling and accessibility. To refine your estimate, compare your property with sales in your region and seek the assistance of a forestry expert. You can also consult our rural property price observatory to see where forests stand among other rural assets.
But given the very many criteria to be taken into account when valuing a forest, it will undoubtedly be very worthwhile to supplement your approach with that of professionals, whether forestry experts or estate agents.
These professionals very often have a database of buyers that can enable you to move very quickly. Forest owners' unions or forestry cooperatives can also provide you with information on purchase plans.
Many of these professionals or organisations publish their adverts on ma-propriete-forestiere.fr, which is now a site widely consulted by many buyers. You can publish your advert directly on our portal or call on one of our advertisers to assist you with the sale.
There are several rights of first refusal or pre-emption that may apply when selling a wooded plot. The notaire in charge of drawing up the authentic deed must notify each holder of a right prior to the sale, failing which the deed will be void.
When selling a wooded property of less than 4 ha, classified in the land registry as woodland and forest, the owners of adjoining wooded plots benefit from a right of first refusal.
To enable neighbours to exercise this right, the notaire will inform these neighbouring owners either by registered letter with acknowledgement of receipt, or by posting a notice at the town hall when there are more than 10 such neighbours.
Once informed, these neighbours then have 2 months to come forward as buyers at the price and on the terms indicated by the seller.
The municipality in which the forest is located benefits from the same right of first refusal as the neighbours of adjoining plots.
Note that where there are several would-be buyers among neighbours and the municipality, the owner is free to choose to whom to sell the property.
The right of pre-emption benefits municipalities that own an adjoining wooded plot subject to a management document.
The right of pre-emption differs from the right of first refusal in that it allows its holder to definitively replace the initial buyer, with no possibility for the seller to withdraw from the sale.
The State benefits from a right of pre-emption if a State-owned forest adjoins the plot being sold
In principle, the SAFER does not have a right of pre-emption over wooded plots.
However, it does have a right of pre-emption in the case of the sale of mixed properties, i.e. the simultaneous transfer of wooded and non-wooded plots. That said, the buyer may keep the wooded plots if the price of these plots was expressly stated in the notification.
The SAFER will also benefit from a right of pre-emption in the following cases:
Finally, since 2017, the SAFER has had a right of pre-emption over forests in Ile-de-France, with the aim of combating the fragmentation of forest areas in the region.
Two new measures arising from Law No. 2026-796 of 18 August 2026 concern forest properties sold together with other assets. Firstly, when the sale combines properties over which the SAFER can pre-empt (agricultural land, or wooded plots in the cases listed above) and non-contiguous properties over which it cannot (an isolated dwelling house, a forest unconnected to the land), the notaire must send two separate notifications, each with its own price, and the SAFER can pre-empt the agricultural lot alone without the seller being able to require it to buy the whole. Secondly, the SAFER may ask to visit the properties, which suspends the two-month pre-emption period until the visit takes place or the owner refuses. For an estate combining woodland, farmland and buildings, the apportionment of the price between the lots in the notification therefore becomes a decisive step. We detail these rules in our article Partial SAFER pre-emption: what the 2026 law changes.
While forestry taxation is specific, the rules for taxing capital gains on the sale of a woodland plot are standard.
Capital gains generated on the sale of woodland and forests are subject to property capital gains tax. However, if the forest owner is considered a professional, the gains will be taxed as business capital gains, a regime we do not cover in this article.
Calculating the capital gain: The capital gain is the difference between the initial purchase price (increased by the costs incurred at the time of purchase) and the sale price (increased by the costs borne by the seller).
Capital gains tax is 36.2%, an overall rate that comprises:
Allowances are applied to each of these taxes:
Applying these allowances results in full exemption after 30 years of ownership.
Exemption for sale prices below €15,000: Sales of property for less than €15,000 are exempt from capital gains tax. In the case of sales to separate buyers, this €15,000 threshold must be assessed buyer by buyer. In the case of the sale of several land registry plots to the same buyer, the €15,000 threshold is assessed plot by plot for non-contiguous plots. For contiguous plots, this threshold applies to the price of all of these plots together.
This capital gains tax regime applies to both private owners and Forestry Groups (unless they have opted for Corporation Tax).
If you have benefited from the tax advantages linked to the IFI (wealth tax on property) or to transfer duties (Monichon regime) and you sell your forest before the end of the 30-year commitment, you will have to transfer your obligations to the future owners of the property, with an undertaking to provide you with information on the future management of the property, so that the taxpayer can then file their ten-yearly good management reports.
The sale of shares in a Forestry Group benefits from a favourable regime, as registration of the deed with the tax authorities is carried out for a fixed cost of €125 (compared with 5% for other predominantly property-holding companies) versus 5% for sociétés civiles immobilières. This saving on duties benefits the buyer, not the seller.
Demand for forests for sale is very strong in France and there is no doubt that you will quickly find a buyer if your sale price is consistent with market prices.
However, you must not overlook the specific features of the existing rights of first refusal and pre-emption, and you must factor in the tax impact on the capital gain realised.
