Seanie

Not sure who you're replying to Claire :-)   Regards, Sean

dealing with house (apart from my own purchase s) - no I don't buy and I don't sell houses for others ! Negotiating generally, yes, selling other things, yes ! This all sounds very feeble but the desire to genuinely help people and be paid as a direct result of that help (at no net cost to the buyers) that drives me to try this ! My job was a quality control technicien for a company constructing motorways - l'A83, A87, A11, A10, A28 , A346, A7, A9, A89, A1, A26 -  I've worked on 'em all and loads of other stuff besides ! I used to drive 1300kms every weekend plus the kms I did in the week, there and back to be with my family so doing a few 100 kms in a week to visit houses on behalf of others is nothing ! I gave up the job to work this project, the website is coming along, the rest of what I need  (hardware) I've got now, the remainder is to finalise the website and take out my ads ! I expect I shall visit at least the major property fairs in the UK, Ireland and since I spent 4years in Holland (and speak it), I shall probably visit them too. I suspect that the Dutch buy much lower than me here but it might be worth a visit up there, I've still loads of friends who'll put me up and it'll be great to see them !

It is 175 per m² on the Vendée coast - example of two Vendées ? Supply and demand - no more - no less ! I don't believe in 'your' two France's ! It is a multi-layered society...atm ! You try to group us all together to agree with you  - "let's face it" and then add a question mark at the end "...would they ?" You're not convinced Teamedup, eh ? I think it's clear from Ragdolls' text that they were very satisfied with the negociations they accomplished, I don't think that they went further to find out more info (please come in and confirm/deny Ragdoll) and they clearly stated that had someone been availailable, they would have considered engaging them. It's not a question of whether buyers can or can't do their own work, it's a question of choice, as stated by Ragdoll, some buyers may simply prefer to have someone else do the work whilst they continue with their lives/responsibilities/obligations !  

Aha ! You see, bought but not to move into ! I've two friends in the UK who think like you, buy now for later ! Where did you buy again ?

Bobc - that's what they're quoting here - there is almost full employment here in North Vendée and there is a lack of rentable housing, particularly 3 beds. plus so people (French) are building and renting out ! They're getting quite entreprenant :-)

Thankyou Ragdoll for your constructive comments, for sharing your experiences and congrats with your purchase ! Clarkkent - who said households were moving here, I quoted the figures I'd heard of people BUYING here - it doesn't imply that buyers will move here ! Investments for later use or for renting out now or holiday homes or for retired parents or, or, or...there are many reasons (right or wrong) why people buy abroad ! Thankyou for your contribution btw :-) Maybe we should ask Ragdoll if they are quitting their jobs and moving across with their families ?

[quote user="Quillan"] No, I'm not treating buyers like morons but we are as a nation, nice people who don't want to make a fuss. Well I think you are wrong. A lot of Brits in my area see the locals a peasants, badly educated, bordering on being idiots and hold them in total contempt. To be honest from my experience it's usually the Brits that fit this description and not the French and I actively encourage Brits to go buy somewhere else, the further away from here the better.[/quote] Ohh, don't be like that - I understand we judge from personal experience but that means you are the unluckiest person over here with British neighbours :-) WHERE DO YOU LIVE-ish, so I may avoid your fellow compatriots ? I know one 'brit' who is a bore, doesn't make any effort to speak or learn French but the rest really enjoy mixing it with the French - that was part of being here - I personnaly have trouble understanding why anyone should come over here and then ignore and just despise 'the natives' ! I do understand why you should want 'em to buy elsewhere :-) Here, building land is 12-22 euros per m² !

I don't see the interest of the seller to negociate the agencies' fees  -they don't pay them so why should they care ? I agree that most (if not all) people who buy here have already at leats bought before. THEY believe that they are getting a deal, it's easy to compare prices here with over there and think that the 150m², delightful cottage here is a bargain at £140,000 when they can sell their 3 bedroom semi for £360,000 ! The fact that they could negociate and get it for £125,000 may well pass over their heads and also their ability to negociate in a (still) strange land where they are not completely at ease and easily over-awed ! No, I'm not treating buyers like morons but we are as a nation, nice poeple who don't want to make a fuss, and the price is cheap, the agency person is pleasant, speaking their broken but understandable English and they will help us to organise the utilities too :-) ! There is still loads of 'good stuff' in our area and land is always being released for building too ! As an aside, what do you all consider as the likely results of Frances' attempts to release capital in peoples' homes by allowing them to re-mortgage to spend how they wish ? We've had that phenomenon in the UK for several years now ! And is is that common for people (French or Anglo-Saxon) to buy a property, demolish it and rebuild new ??? Happy New Year and above all good health to all !

Thanks Will - and others ! All constructive and critical advice welcome. I read somewhere that this year 600,000 houses were bought by British and Irish and that it was forecast that a further 800,000 were expected to be bought in 2006 ! If this is a fraction of buyers a couple of years back........ Well, if they're on a very low budget (and I think we're talking of less than 150,000 euros are we not ?) - I agree with you, then my services may appeal as I will calculate them to suit such people ; less of a fixed fee, more as a % of money saved ! Why have they less of a budget - all the credit taken since a few years costing more - wish to pay it off.....no longer willing to live it up in a large French manor house but enjoy a simple life ? Why have / are people buying new in France ? The new laws to eventually force heritage properties to be sold after a fixed term, despite one or more children being against the sale (for whatever reasons) will liberate more properties ! This plus your forecasted drop in buyers, especially the well-endowed ones should see a burst of the bubble of price increases no ? Like we saw in the South East in the UK in the early '90s ? I don't think house prices will ever drop to those values of say, 5 years ago, but a plateau will endure for the next 18 months ! What say you ? And HAPPY NEW YEAR to everyone !  

We're all experts when we've been here and bought and if not experienced problems, we've heard all about them happening to others ! Err, a structural survey doesn't warn you of grazing/water or use of certain outbuildings' rights; it doesn't warn you of plans to build a by-pass at the end of your back-garden or a lotissement/supermarket  next door - is that what is meant by half the fun of not knowingabout the property you buying ? Must be a right laugh to spend hours on a DIY project that could have been avoided or paid for by money saved... I definitely do not consider most people who buy in France the dummies mentioned here, most I'm sure are forward thinking, intelligent people who've learned French and accepted that s**t happens and one must get on with it ! I do consider that not everyone thinks as you all appear to (you represent those who have bought and not with the intention of buying) and also that many people don't have the time to spend hours visiting everywhere and everyone - their 'fault' if you like but don't call 'em dummies :-) ! I expect them to pay for the privilege of having their 'johnny' do their groundwork for them and I am getting on with my scheme ! Is what I'm proposing so terrible for you to swallow ?   At least I'm re-learning English - thanks for the lessons !

So there is - my apologies (worse than l'Acadamie Française:-) - back to the point (s) !

What I'm proposing is not to avoid the buying fees but to reduce them ! How ? : a negociation on the selling price between buyer and seller (or in the most part - sellers' agents, whether it be a notaire or estate agent) in order to negociate, valid points must be found (agreed ?), hence a property search (similar to a survey) AND a research via the mairie and elsewhere to ascertain whether or not there may be complications with the house. This would also serve to determine whether prospective buyers wish to continue with their purchase of the house THEY THEMSELVES have found ! I don't want to offer a house-finder service - that's part of the fun and joy of owning and in any case is well covered by agents and also house-finding 'grannies' ! I will of course remain entirely independant and as I may base my fees upon money saved between the asking and eventual selling price, it is entirely in my interests to better serve the buyers ! Should this be scary to estate agents ? I hope not because the more confidence (and fewer stories of 'woe') that  there are in the market, the more buyers will buy which is good for everyone ! This may all seem very specific to you all and as suggested, serve a limited sector of the market - we'll see :-) Of course, estate egants and notaires could offer this form of research themselves but so far haven't !

It must be hard to keep to high standards of ethics when bills must be paid and most of, if not all ones' salary comes from the sales of houses ! I'm curious, what is the % charged by agents to sell, there is one near me charging up to 14% !

There is at least one agency near us charging 14% to sell your house - someones' raking it 'cos the boss has a new BMW X5 ! Chap has to pay for it somehow :-)  

No, I'm trying to see if there is job here - not create one, but perhaps we mean the same thing. Aside from that, I'm genuinely interested in prospective buyers' opinions - all that have been shared here are from those of us who've "been there, done that" etc. And before Internet and cheapie flights it was harder to buy a house and did require a good level of intelligence. Do you believe that the buyers looking acros the water now are of the same calibre as yourselves ? And (I repeat myself) even if they are capable, perhaps they don't want the hassle and are happy to pay to avoid that ! Grannies are only there to help after the sale, agencies will go out to meet prospective clients but still no-one is available, once a property has been chosen, for advice and help (if requested) just until the property is theirs ! I don't want to get into prperty maintenance / refurbishment - that's a minefield but I persevere and insist that currently, no-one is offering independant advice to buyers BEFORE the sale ! It's a shame that even one instance happens which sours the dream of someone ! Maybe I'm not being realistic - we'll see :-)   Still be nice to hear from propsective buyers or those who are only just thinking of buying - are there any on this forum ?