Your LGBTQ Buyer's Agent in the French Riviera

To deviate a little from the regular articles about the LGBTQ community in the French Riviera. I thought since I often get asked from visitors to the region about the local real estate market, that I would present some information and properties occasionally showcasing examples of the architecture, locations and price ranges in this part of France. It also lets you know a little bit more about my work here.

With that being said, here I go...

With the US dollar currently at parity with the Euro (August 2022), the influx of Americans looking for that prime property investment or secondary home has brought with it both excitement and confusion.

The first question we notice by initial contact and on different online forums is, that people are excited about the possibility of buying a property in France but then just don’t know where to start.

Since France doesn’t have an MLS database system of homes online like in the US or Canada and without knowing exactly where you would like to be, a myriad of options can come up in a search adding to the confusion adding to that, just who can you trust in the France real estate realm?

This is where a buyer’s agent can help.

It all starts with a free consultation to find out what you require in a property so that we can start fine-tuning our search solely for your purposes. If everything between us feels like a match, once formally instructed, we will ask you to sign a mandate de recherche, stating that we work on your behalf as your one principal point of contact throughout, to search for, and obtain the best possible property deal.

For ourselves at Experience The French Riviera, although we have properties throughout France since we are based in the Cote d’Azur, this is the area we focus on in our daily lives, some would even say obsess over. We can also advise you on other buyers' agents in other locations of the country.

Over the past 11 years, we have built up a strong network of individuals and business owners in a variety of fields as part of a shared local economy with our main work being in the luxury property world and the trusted real estate partners we communicate with every day of the year.

As independent agents, we find that we have the benefit of not having to stay within the limitations of a specific agency with only their properties to try and sell. We have the freedom to build upon our long-term business relationships with the variety of agencies we work with, enabling us to know the local market more intimately, offer more options, and safeguard not only ourselves but more importantly our clients.

Our reward for working with you is loyalty, which is rare these days and very important to us. With so many options available online for most anything, it’s nice to know we have a client who wants our services geared specifically for them.

In today’s world, it’s understandable that people are shopping around, but in the France property sector, we notice they start to quickly become confused in the process themselves.

Since we already work with most of the agencies in France anyway, we can save everyone time by being the go-between and streamlining the efforts, especially when properties are generally listed at the same prices with every agency as we expect to negotiate on a property for a client in any regard.

We will know (or find out) how long a property has been on the market, its history, and why. We will utilize all available sources for you: online searches, private, off-market partner sale listings, trade journals, and in this region, where information is knowledge, by word of mouth and then verify it all.

We can access the real market of properties, not just the ones shown to try and entice international clients.

We will compile a finely tuned list of property options for you so as not to overwhelm you with choices, so the more realistic details you require in a property that you can let us know about, the better and quicker we can serve you.

We will also let you know from the beginning if what you are looking for in a property is actually available in the region as we don’t want to entice you about a dream property that just doesn’t exist.

We are here to do the legwork for you, saving you time (and money), to see if a property will meet your standards, and besides us asking the important questions with an agency/agent about a home, we can provide a live feed of a property visit (if you are not able to travel) so that you can see more details and areas and also ask questions.

We will also ensure you have as many videos and photos as you need. Always keep in mind, that we would be your sole agent. Not the vendor. We would be acting on your behalf and completely upfront with the agents we are dealing with and totally open and honest about properties for you.

Being detail oriented, if a property looks like it has issues, you will be the first to know. It is important that the property suit everything you require, not a second-best choice.

We also believe that due diligence is an important part of the job, we will not only look at a specific property for you (or of course with you) we are very observant and will ask about any local changes surrounding a property, upcoming construction, noise issues, etc.

When your dream property has been found, this is when we can do the negotiations also on your behalf within your comfort level. Something we have been doing here for years, not only for sales but also for holiday villa rentals.

When the property of your choice has been found and negotiations are underway, we can help guide you on a list of notaries who will also work on your behalf.

You are probably now asking, how does a buyer’s agent get paid?

It is usually by the seller and is also included in the sale price as quoted to the buyer and written in the sale deeds. All information will be submitted to you from the beginning of any process.

Since we have been in business in the region for over a decade. Over this time we have built the reputation of not being commission-hungry (very rare to find). This is why people come to us, as we would negotiate on behalf of a client whether it is for a sale or vacation rental, to the point that the client and owner are both happy and that is when the referrals also start increasing our way. Then everyone is content. A win for all involved.

And after the sale, as a buyer’s agent, we are there as continued support as we truly believe in building long-lasting friendships with everyone we work with as life continues to evolve.

This is just a quick brief about how a buyer’s agent can benefit the client. If you have any other questions, feel free to connect with myself at: Info@experiencethefrenchriviera.com