The choice to buy an apartment or villa in the South of France is of course a huge step. But once the decision has been made emotionally and you opt for more sunshine and quality of life, an Internet search for the offer follows. And that’s overwhelming, so where do you start in finding a real estate agent? In France, you will find as many brokers and real estate agents on every street as bakers and pharmacies.
Being a real estate agent in France is therefore a popular profession, especially because the sales commission for a broker is a lot higher than in other countries. Those who sell a few expensive houses no longer have to work for the rest of the year. This is usually the reason why you will not be called back immediately. Or that you do not receive an email as an answer to your question. In France, people work to live and not the other way around.
How to choose a real estate agent on the Côte d’Azur?
The choice to work with one real estate agent is of course very personal. But if your dream home is in the shop window, why not go in there? The buying process in France is aimed at optimally protecting the buyer; in all cases, you have a large reflection period to undo your impulsive purchase. If you have made a choice for 1 real estate agent, you will of course only have access to the listings of this broker. You are also free to choose multiple agents; this is particularly useful if you are looking in a special neighborhood where the local real estate agent always knows more about a house that has just come onto the market.
The commission rate fluctuates depending on the property. In average these are the average commissions that are included in the selling price: 8% for properties up to €50,000, 7% from €50,000 to €120,000, 6.5% from €120,000 to €200,000, 6% from €200,000 to €500,000, 5% from €500,000 to €1 million, and 4.5% for properties above €1 million. However, most agencies along the Côte d’Azur ask 5, 6% or even 7% HT (plus tax) for properties above a million because they have a certain reputation. And a beautiful office with lots of happy people. The commission is regularly authoritatively concurred and is arranged when a business order is agreed upon. Project developers fix the commission they will pay when lofts are offered to an agent.
Realtor commissions in France are represented by Law No. 70-9 of 2 January 1970 (Loi Hoguet). Be that as it may, you can always try to get a better price and total deal.
Sales guidance for your real estate property
Being Dutch and enjoying living in France, we visited in our first year’s many brokers before we bought a property. It came with a shady contract and lots of problems afterwards. Two properties further and lots of experience wiser, we knew that there was a market for our service-based concept. And so we started in 2006 with “Living on the Cote d’Azur”: a platform to help foreign buyers in particular in choosing a real estate agent or project developer. We are not a French real estate agent or a broker, but we connect people and we provide international promotion for project developers and real estate agents in France. At their request, we assist customers during the sales process.
Our cooperation with new customers first starts with an inventory of the housing requirements and the budget. This is followed by a targeted selection of the current offer. Unlike in the Netherlands and Belgium, there is no exclusivity when selling a home. A new construction project or a luxury villa in the South of France can be offered by up to 20 estate agents. So it is possible that while you talk to one real-estate agent, the desired home is sold by another agent.
If a house feels good, even from a distance, acting quickly is the solution; you then take a non-binding option and fly in within 5 days. With an option to reserve, you save time for which you don’t have to pay anything. You only block potential sales by others. Read more about making a property reservation from abroad.
Good service as an advertisement in real estate
Living on the Cote d’Azur advises with the choice of a possible mortgage and explaining the contracts. We are present at the signing of the French purchase contract. We strongly believe that the Service is the best Advertising. We like what we do and are almost always available for your questions. A growing number of customers from different countries have written a review about us that you can look back at the Feedback company. Below you will find a number of responses from the English, German and Dutch sites.
Working with Living on the Cote d’Azur, is engaging with a strong platform that works with almost all major brokers and project developers. This gives you a fixed point of contact in your own language and a fast service. The choice is yours. But whatever broker or service you choose; we wish you a lot of sun and beautiful moments in the South of France!
Ab and Jo
How do you choose a real estate agent on the French Riviera?
Find out what other people are saying;-)
Wolf
With the help of Ab Kuijer’s excellent know-how of the real estate market, we were able to quickly find the right property for us. He knows about new projects even before they are on the market. His valuable information gave us a good feeling when we decided on a property. Ab reacts very quickly to any kind of question, is highly reliable and is a very pleasant person. Especially when you’re not from France this market is not easy to find something on your own.
Mike
We have been searching to buy a villa in France and are unsure what area would fit us best. Also, the Internet is full of houses and agents and we didn’t know where to start. We decided to choose Living on the Côte d’Azur as our buyer advisor. Ab showed us several options during the year and was always available for questions. Finally, we found the perfect villa in Ramatuelle. I can recommend their team if you want dedicated service.
Hubert
Ab and Jo are very helpful, knowledgeable, and always available. Excellent guidance, Thank you very much!
Virginie
A dream that came true thanks to Ab, everything was possible in our own language and Ab was able to quickly find out our desires, very nice cooperation and definitely recommended!
Cees
We got to know Living on the Côte d’Azur as the ideal intermediary. They provide the service we thought didn’t exist in France. Tribute! Jo and Ab, keep it up !!
Gerard
Very good experience. Ab is an expert, very friendly, and committed broker! Compliments
Evert-Jan
Living on the Cote d’Azur made us aware of the fantastic house in Mandelieu-La-Napoule. As always in such a situation, especially in France, the final agreement and final purchase require a lot of guidance, and they have advised and guided us very well.
Volkert
Ab and Jo guided us well with our purchase in the South of France, it is nice to have your questions answered in your own language in another country. We can absolutely recommend them to others.
Edgar
We experienced fast and open communication, professional advice and a pro-active attitude as very pleasant. Ab listens and thinks along so that we finally found our dream home!
Kristof
We were tipped for a nice new construction project on the French Riviera, exactly what we were looking for.
Gabriel
We had very good contact with M Kuijer. He was also later ready for questions etc.
Beata
I received a highly competent, very personalized, all in all, an excellent service during my purchase process. The turnaround time to get my queries answered efficiently was extremely short (my emails were answered immediately most of the time, but always within only a couple of hours).
Eva
The advice and the service were very good.
Katarina
Our experience with Living on the Cote d´Azur was excellent. The service of the company is quick and helpful. We appreciate their personal attitude. I would fully recommend this company.
Ian
I contacted Ab at Living on the Côte d’Azur because I had found a house on development near a Biot that I was interested in buying. Because I lived in Australia at the time, I wanted someone local who could deal with the agent, the builder, and keep an eye on things. Ab did all of that and more – negotiating a good deal with the sales agent, answering any questions we had about the new house buying process, and keeping us updated as the build progressed. I was impressed with the service I received and delighted with my home in the sunny south of France
Hasmit
Excellent knowledge of the local market. Very personalized & Honest Service. Two thumbs up.
