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Finding out what houses sell for


Hiker
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I understand French property can sell for substantially less than the advertised price, particularly at the moment, and want to get an idea of what places actually sell for. We saw one rural property that we liked, but it has now been sold. Is there any way I can find out what places sold for after they have been sold, as I believe you can with the Land Registry in the UK.

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It is one of those popular myths that French properties are sold significantly below their asking price. Every buyer will assure you he got a bargain, every vendor that he held out for and got his asking price.

If a property is for sale through an agency, it should normally be correctly estimated and priced in accordance with properties of a similar kind in that particular location. Unfortunately, no two properties are precisely the same, and consequently there is considerable leeway - depending on aspect, location, condition, disposition of the rooms, state of decor, age and condition of plumbing and electrics etc etc.

If you are interested in a property, within your budget, then you can make an offer below the asking price - but to be convincing you must have a reason and cost estimate (eg a property needs completely re-wiring). You cannot expect an owner to reduce the price if the property is simply more than you can afford!

One last word, private sellers notoriously over-value their property for emotional and nostalgice reasons, whereas an independent third party such as an agent will take a more realistic view. A recent report (which I have posted on the FrenchEntree forum) says the French property market is currently stagnant because potential buyers are hesitating (uncertainty about the future) and sellers refusing to reduce their asking price. The head of one of the largest French agency groups reckons that even a 5 or 10 per cent reduction would be enough to get the market moving again.

Sorry, long answer to a short question, but as this is your first post I thought some additional info might help.

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When we went to sell, it was just as the crash happened. I called a few estate agents who came round. Truthfully, some of them gave us estimates that were in fact €100k euros than we got. We said no to such ridiculous estimates and went with one who suggested more or less what we thought. We mentioned these unrealistic prices to the one we took and he said that clients like high estimates and sometimes won't come down........ and don't sell! Which I see in the UK all the time. (Friends having their house on the market in 2007 at a price way OTT and have never brought it down and never sold it!)
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Friends of ours sold about 18 months ago. They disagreed with the agents valuation and despite upping it by a further €50k, they had a full price buyer inside a fortnight.

I think properties in France are significantly more difficult to accurately value than they are in UK and too many vendors seem to base their selling price simply on what they paid and how much they have spent on it since, and then add on as much as 100% for their 'profit'.

Unfortunately that only works in UK on TV programmes such as 'homes under the hammer' and 'property ladder' !

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