56 French Property News August 2019 http://www.completefrance.com
The great
Your long-held dream of a place in France is about to become a reality.
But what happens when you make contact with an estate agent?
Julie Savillhas the inside info on what to expect
O
ver 95% of French property searches
begin online. For some people, that is
followed by a visit to a specialist
property show to meet a few agents in the flesh
and get a feel for who they’re dealing with.
Others will hop straight on a plane and get
viewing. Whatever your style, there are a few
key things that a good agent should ask you,
tell you and show you.
Given the online nature of initial searches,
you’ll be looking for an agent with a well-
designed and easy-to-use website. If you are
not yet decided on area, you may want an
agent that covers a wide geographical area and
has a good number of properties, giving you
lots of choice.
Frank discussion
At your first phone or face-to-face conversation,
expect a full and frank conversation about your
requirements in terms of geography, property
style, land required, your timescale, ‘red line’
non-negotiable must-haves and, of course,
budget. When money comes into the equation,
embarrassment can swiftly follow, but try to put
that aside – it shouldn’t matter to your agent if
you want to spend €20,000 or €2m and we need
to know where to pitch the search.
You should expect to be asked how you plan to
fund the purchase. It might be with a mortgage,
equity release, cash or the sale of another
property. If you are selling, it will only be
classed as a cash onward purchase once youhave completed the sale. Why do we need to
know how you are funding the purchase?
Because we have a duty of care to all our
vendors to make sure that potential buyers are
in a position to proceed, and in France it is a
legal requirement to obtain this information.
You might be asked to provide proof of funds –
which is something you’d want from your agent
if you were selling, right?
If you are unable or unwilling to discuss
timescales and ability to proceed, you shouldn’t
expect an agent to answer endless questions
about specific properties or the detail of life in
France. Working on commission, agents do need
to know if you are on a short or longer buying
cycle, whether you’re half-tempted to move toEXPERT ADVICE