Do the French negotiate when buying property? Discuss!!

[jon]

Well  it seems that some people like people and others like to have fun.

Fun is about shareing exsperiences with others and seeing others hurt or sad is very uncomfortable....to most human beings.

Maybe thats where we are going wrong...being hard/macho/does that give kids an insight to concider others.

Educating the youngsters to get what they want...no matter.

Fun....where has fun gone...has it been taken over by a bank balance?

[woolybananasbrother]

This is fun, a great game between buyer and seller. And both sides know the rules until an external is introduced who upsets the applecart. Trouble is that there are still a few easily picked poickets out there.[6]

[groslard]

To get a better idea of the real price of a property it's best to approach the seller directly.

Estate agents in France have only recently gained ground in the market, and it used to be common to deal directly with the seller, and just go to the Notaire. Something of this mentality remains, and unless the seller has unwisely signed an exclusivité you can simple look at the plan cadastral, ask for the owner's address, and contact them. Obviously you can't do this if you have been shown round by an agent, but I am assuming you have identifed the property either from photos or from a 'à Vendre' sign

I have done this with two properties, and in both cases the owner was quite happy to deal direct.

On one occasion I saw something advertised at 225000 and when I telephoned the seller he said he wanted 150000. I offered 140000, and got it.

On the second I saw something at 160000, was told by the nosy neighbour that it was damp, and she had offered 80,000 so I put in a direct offer at 110000 and got it, and the neighbour didn't mind because I   put in a separation wall that solved both our problems.

This doesn't harm your relations with anybody except the Agents

But those prices were in Francs..

[Russethouse]

This thread has been 'pruned' after complaints from other forum users.

Please keep to the topic and keep 'chit chat' to the 'Other Topic' section.

 

[Ian]

Buying a home is likely to be a mix of "heart" and "head".  For most of us, there needs to be an emotional attachement to the environment we live: both the area and the real estate property. Calculating the "value" of the "head" element of the deal is guesstimate-style mathematics.  The "heart" bit is much harder to calculate (for yourself, never mind pontificating to or on behalf of someone else).

Buying real estate as an investment: whether commercial or residential is simpler. It's just maths/financials...and a bit of emotion (not wanting to lose face, wanting to be seen as getting a good deal/be smart/gain respect etc)

Expect ruthless negotiations from any professional in the latter case no matter what their nationality and respect the "softies" in the former: emotions are just as important than logical calculations.

Other property (copyrights, musical rights, patents etc) tend to be a mix of both in my experience.

[AnOther]

I tend to agree with David but for another reason.

It's not unknown for the French to sometimes virtually strip a house of everything not specifically mentioned in the sale agreement, doors, light fittings, even the heating boiler went in one case I was told of, so antagonising a seller is best avoided if at all possible [:-))]