okay, next step - where to stay when looking

[james_robins]

hello again,

i am going to be booking my flight out to view some properties and would like to be there by the end of the month. i am planning on coming out on a tuesday morning and flying back on thursday night, not ideal as it is a short visit, but as a minimum, will this give me enough time to see places? i am hoping to meet with a local agent from latitudes to see a number of properties i am interested in and i guess will be with them all day on wednesday. has anyone dealt with latitudes as i have spoken to their england office and they seem to be verey helpful and have a number of agencys listed with them so a lot of properties.

i have narrowed down the areas i am looking at so that bascially, anywhere within the triangle formed by bergerac, limoges and brive is where i am looking for property. would basing myself in or around perigueux be a good idea?

i can get flights into bergerac or at a push bordeaux and then get a hire car to get over that area and see the places.

all very exciting stuff but such a hassle trying to organise it all, but i am sure it will definately be worth it once i find that perfect place.

regards

james

[Suandpete]

    Just a word of warning.  I have no experience of this Agency, however we did use a few which had properties on the internet which we were interested in.  Despite a phone call the day before we left UK to ensure that one particular property was still available and being told that it was; when we arrived we found it had actually been sold 6 months before.  Indeed it was still on their internet site 6 months later.  I have heard this about several different agencies from a range of people. 

We also found that although we were looking in a fairly small area the number of properties you can actually see in a day is quite low - due to the distances between them and the fact that there will probably be a 2 hour lunch break.  You will probably be lucky if you manage to see a total oif 4 or 5.

Bon courage!

[Hoddy]

I endorse what Suandpete have said about trying to make these arrangements over the net and by phone from the UK. We also found that properties which appeared on the net were often no longer for sale and even when we made an appointment with an agent they just gave us a book to go through rather than having chosen some for us which matched our criteria.

As a general thing I don't think I would want to confine myself to just one agency. I think you need to look at several's properties  so that you can get a 'feel' of the sort of price that's right. If you look at the FNAIM site that I recommended you will see the same property offered by different agents at a different price.

There's was a piece in one of our local papers about two or three weeks ago which said that property prices around here (Sarlat) had fallen. I can't find the article now and I can't remember whether they said by ten or twenty per cent. This would suggest that you are in quite a strong position as a buyer.

Best orf luck.

Hoddy

[pagnol]

"would basing myself in or around perigueux be a good idea? "

Only you can answer that one! Have you stayed in the area that you have narrowed down? If not book a holiday and have a look around.Only you can say if somewhere appeals to you or feels right.

I think such a short visit will not be productive. You need at least a week if not longer. Look at Notaires and estate agents for an idea of prices.

Tell them you are coming but don't be surprised if they are not prepared for you  when you arrive. Don't get excited about any properties you ask to see before leaving the UK. I lost count of the number of times we arrived to be told "c'est vendu madame!"

Bon Courage!

 

[james_robins]

thanks to all again, a wealth of information and so good to hear personal opinions and experiences.

i am going to be coming out next week, wednesday to saturday so that i will have all day thursday and friday and some of saturday to get around the region. flying into bergerac, pick up hire car and up to perigueux and then seeing properties.

fingers crossed, i am hoping to find somewhere to start the buying process, but will get over it if i need to come back several more times to find the perfect place.

does anyone living in 24 have a good agent that deals with english speaking clients but does not overcharge that i can email to arrange viewings with?

cheers again,

james

[Gastines]

Either take a good camera or a big notebook. When veiwing a few in a hurry it's very difficult to remember which house had what. Make a note of important questions you want to ask and try and get a definate answer to.  Remember that the letters FAI. means Agency fees included and you will still be liable for Notaires fees of approx 8% on top.  Always worth making an offer if you are a cash buyer, you can always offer more but difficult to go down!! Make sure you know what land is with the property,ask to see the Cadastre plan. Agents have a very good way with sweeping their arms and saying " Down to the trees and over that hill "etc.etc. Also worth checking if the farmer plus his 50 cows and tractors ,have a right of way in front of your kitchen window.

Apart from that , Bonne Chance.

Regards.

[Babbles]

I did exactlty what you propose to by doing short visits, its very intense but looking at houses all day for more than 3 days blows your mind, I found Lattitudes very helpful and pleasant in the London Office but the properties listed where often sold so don't hold out hopes, but you have to start somewhere, At first I spent more time looking at the area rather than narrowing it down to individual properties then used to local immo's, As Gastines says take a camera and and a notebook, I also took a small powerful torch as the leccy is often switched off and the shutters not opened and a compass just to make sure the garden does face south and the terrace does get the evening sun! Research on the web does help greatly and doesn't eat into valuable viewing time also google earth to see the lie of the land and google images using the names of villages etc can give a really good idea of the place. Bon Chance

[P]

We viewed about 200 houses - some visits were for 2 weeks, some for a long weekend.

Second the torch and compass - binoculars can sometimes be helpful for looking at roofs.

Often you will find that it is not a case of wandering into an agents and immediately being taken to be shown properties (some will already have appointments) - use the web to find properties you like the look of, then arrange with the agent an appointment for viewing.

Do not just concentrate on agents who can speak English. If you wish to buy and they wish to sell then you will communicate - if necessary, use something like Google to translate your English into French - it might not be perfect but it will contain the gist of what you are saying and if you have a little bit of French so much the better.

Beware though, what you think looks good on the Internet might not be that good in the flesh - or is that brick/stone.

You might also find that your idea of what you want changes when you do actually view properties. Beware of the agents who then whisk you off to view other properties that you have not asked to see. Our experience was that some think they know what you are looking for and show you appropriate properties. Others seem to think they have you in their grasp so lets show them anything and everything.

For our visits, we would scour the web selecting suitable properties, look at the most logical route to follow, also calculating the distances and hence time required between agents and then made appointments allowing sufficient time to get to the area where the properties were and also view.

The did manage to view anything up to about 9 houses a day but they were long days. We would return to a property in the evening if we felt it was a possibility - looking at its situation etc. We also found that some agents only work on a Saturday morning so it would give Saturday afternoon and Sunday to look at the various areas where properties were a possibility.

To be truthful though, out of 200 properties there were only a handful that were given serious consideration.

The agents will hopefully be looking for feedback from you so that they get an idea of exactly what you are looking for.

Best of luck

Paul

By way of a PS - we originally started by trying to save money and used Balladin hotels, which are cheap and basic. We quickly discovered that we wanted something more relaxing of an evening after a long day looking and therefore used Kyriad or Campanile hotels (still seems strange driving in to Tarbes and not heading for the Kyriad where we spent many many nights).

[suzi05]

Don't be discouraged James, you may find exactly what you want straight away! My parents-in-law decided to buy a place out here, granted they'd decided on the area as they wanted to be near us - but apart from that they didn't know if they wanted a large or small place, with or without garden, in the countryside or in the town. All they were certain of was that it must be detached, need no work done, and not give right onto the road. So here I am sitting in their new house, with attached neighbours either side, the front door opening straight onto the pavement, having just rewired the whole house and my husband is busy re-plumbing before we rebuild a few walls and decorate throughout! And we found it the very first day we looked at properties. We spoke to a local agent who blocked off the following afternoon for us and took us to see about 6 places. We narrowed it down to 2 and chose this one. I wouldn't be afraid of speaking to agents that don't advertise their English abilities. I think you'll find that most local agents around 24 can speak the odd word which is often enough to get you by if you can memorise enough words of what you definately want - toit, jardin etc and definately don't want!

good luck!  I'm sure you'll have a great time!

suzi

sorry, i just noticed that I didn't answer your original question! Where to stay - whta about just getting a B&B when you get there. You may find they can offer help and advice on the locality too.  

www.patiras.com/trinite.htm

[Athene]

We took a camcorder and that was great as we could return time and again to view the houses. However, it has to be said that when we saw our house we did not need this as it was 'love at first sight'!

[Just Katie]

As Suzi said James, dont be discouraged.  I decided to purchase a house in France on a Tuesday, booked and appointment on Wednesday and signed on Thursday.  Impulsive?  I really dont think so, it was 4 years ago and I still dont have any regrets.

 

Good luck.

[LEO]

[quote user="Just Katie "]

As Suzi said James, dont be discouraged.  I decided to purchase a house in France on a Tuesday, booked and appointment on Wednesday and signed on Thursday.  Impulsive?  I really dont think so, it was 4 years ago and I still dont have any regrets.

 

Good luck.

[/quote]

So you must have had Monday off, that week!

[Just Katie]

[quote user="LEO"][quote user="Just Katie "]

As Suzi said James, dont be discouraged.  I decided to purchase a house in France on a Tuesday, booked and appointment on Wednesday and signed on Thursday.  Impulsive?  I really dont think so, it was 4 years ago and I still dont have any regrets.

 

Good luck.

[/quote]

So you must have had Monday off, that week!

[/quote]

No Leo, I went to a party on Sunday night.[:D]

[Catalpa]

Is there a "Granny" in that area? A friend used a south of France Granny to narrow down choices based against specific criteria. It was an extremely successful, time-efficient way of seeing properties and they bought one. The Granny drove them around and overall, my friend reckoned the Granny didn't charge enough for the time and effort she put in to finding the properties.

http://www.propertysearchfrance.org/

And no, I'm not connected with them in any way. [:P]