Anton Redman Posted January 16, 2005 Share Posted January 16, 2005 We drove past a house we liked on Thursday. It had about half a dozen estate agents boards on it. As it was late in the afternoon we contacted the agent who was in the same town and have arranged a viewing next week. Following a very slow spell in the Internet, why do French Estate Agents think there is any virtue in having a Home screen with two moving graphics of 380kb, which are reloaded ab initio, every time you do anything? I found the property with another immobelier at 6 % less. I presume that the first agent I see the property with will be the one who is entitled to collect the commission ? Ignoring the moral question for the time being what happens if I cancel the appointment and simply rebook through the cheaper agent ? What happens if I view thought the expensive agent and then sign up with cheaper agent ? As things stand I will probably stick with first agent but start with the lower price as my price to be bargained down from and some how drop into conversation / on to the floor the paper with the lower price. To be fair they did say the price was very negotiable. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Patf Posted January 16, 2005 Share Posted January 16, 2005 Sorry this doesn't answer any of your questions, but it's worth checking carefully that the immobiliers are offerring the same package. We found our house advertised at 2 agents for 2 prices but one was offerring the barns plus the house and the other just the house. Pat. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nick Trollope Posted January 16, 2005 Share Posted January 16, 2005 [quote]We drove past a house we liked on Thursday. It had about half a dozen estate agents boards on it. As it was late in the afternoon we contacted the agent who was in the same town and have arranged a vi...[/quote]HiBefore you visit a property with an agent, he will get you to sign a mandat saying that, if you buy any property you view with him, he will get his fees. He will sue your wotsit for it, too.As you have surmised, if you change agents before you sign anything, there is owt they can do about it. A 6% difference in fees is not unusual.BTW, why have you reduced the font size on you posting, to read it I had to reduce my screen resolution... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Anton Redman Posted January 16, 2005 Author Share Posted January 16, 2005 I did not change the size of the font but simply pasted out of Word and set the font to the smallest size as everything else looked huge on screen.It is not a 6 % change in their fees, it a 6 % change in total price. The only things I was taught at my mothers knee : Count the cards before the game, never drink anything green and alcoholic, never sign anything you do not understand. Thanks for the post anyway, will let you know what happens, my target price is listed minus 20% anyway Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Logan Posted January 17, 2005 Share Posted January 17, 2005 The first agent will request you sign the mandat before showing you the house. If you decline to sign they will decline to show you round. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Will Posted January 17, 2005 Share Posted January 17, 2005 It's actually a bon de visite that you sign as a potential buyer, rather than a mandat - a small but significant difference.If saving money is important, then if a house is for sale with several agents then the owner has probably instructed a notaire as well - so check with the local notaires. They charge a commission of 2.5% to 5%, though in most cases you won't expect to get the same level of service that you would from a good agent. Of course, if you haven't signed anything there is nothing, in theory, to stop you contacting the sellers direct, if you can find them. French sellers are pretty canny though and will be aware that you are saving agency fees so may not be very interested in a low offer.Also be aware that agency fees vary, which sometimes accounts for differences in advertised asking prices. However, as mentioned above, what you get for your money may be different according to the package on offer, and advrtising rules are different in France. It has ben known for a house to be offered cheaply in an agent's window or on a website, and when you make enquiries you find that the price has just gone up, for whatever reason. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Babnik Posted January 17, 2005 Share Posted January 17, 2005 I would think that the 'gentlemanly' thing to do is to let the more expensive one know about the cheaper one, and if he can't match the price, then I would think that no one would expect you to stick with the most expensive one. Difference in prices could well be due to a different commission % taken by the two.Steve Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jdknott Posted January 23, 2005 Share Posted January 23, 2005 surely be suspiscious as to why the house hasn't sold ?and get a written assurance if you buy (eg in the compromis) that all immo fees are NOT paid by you. it varies.John Knott Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Anton Redman Posted February 24, 2005 Author Share Posted February 24, 2005 Discovered that if an Estate Agent introduces a client prepared to pay the price which the vendour signed up to then the vendour is obliged to sell. (At least in the case of Century 21s Mandate ) so it is worth working through.In the event house which was very attractive has an adjoining miden which took the edge of it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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