As we are often contacted by buyers at an early stage of a home search, here are some useful points you should consider when buying property.
The 2 stages in buying
It is important to know if you are at an "Exploratory stage", or in a “Ready to buy” stage , as planning is quite different in each case.
Exploratory stage: At this stage, you can decide to spend months or even years checking different areas and properties on the internet. When you are exploring, avoid contacting multiple agents or visiting houses as agents will notice this, and you will end up losing credibility if you need their help at a later stage. Also if you visit houses before you are able to buy, you may never get the. However feel free to discuss your project with us, we will be pleased to offer advice.
Ready to buy stage: Once you know the type of house you like and your ideal location, then you can start the real search and build up a shortlist of favourite houses. Again before contacting dozens of agents to get details on each property you find, consider using Smartfinder Home to take this work off your shoulders. We can check the properties you find, and propose also other properties for you to look at. This is the collaborative search, and working as a team we end up speeding the whole process for you. We also ensure you don’t miss out on other buying opportunities.
Financing – the last step to being ready to buy
If you need to sell a property to finance your purchase, then sell the property before you buy. It is well known that cash buyers are in a stronger position during price negotiation. And it is easier to do this than to get a bridging loan called a “pret relais”.
If you need a house loan to buy your property, avoid contacting banks one by one, and think of using a broker who can tell you exactly the conditions required and help you get the best deal. We can recommend some good brokers for both French and Foreign residents needing home loans, an interesting option in France with interest rates still at record lows.
And if you don’t need financing, but you need to be reassured before buying here, speak to other expats who have moved to the region. The Angloinfo forum on the web is a good alternative if you don’t know anyone personally. And there are many other tips from our previous blog articles that will help you find a home more easily.
The 2 stages in buying
It is important to know if you are at an "Exploratory stage", or in a “Ready to buy” stage , as planning is quite different in each case.
Exploratory stage: At this stage, you can decide to spend months or even years checking different areas and properties on the internet. When you are exploring, avoid contacting multiple agents or visiting houses as agents will notice this, and you will end up losing credibility if you need their help at a later stage. Also if you visit houses before you are able to buy, you may never get the. However feel free to discuss your project with us, we will be pleased to offer advice.
Ready to buy stage: Once you know the type of house you like and your ideal location, then you can start the real search and build up a shortlist of favourite houses. Again before contacting dozens of agents to get details on each property you find, consider using Smartfinder Home to take this work off your shoulders. We can check the properties you find, and propose also other properties for you to look at. This is the collaborative search, and working as a team we end up speeding the whole process for you. We also ensure you don’t miss out on other buying opportunities.
Financing – the last step to being ready to buy
If you need to sell a property to finance your purchase, then sell the property before you buy. It is well known that cash buyers are in a stronger position during price negotiation. And it is easier to do this than to get a bridging loan called a “pret relais”.
If you need a house loan to buy your property, avoid contacting banks one by one, and think of using a broker who can tell you exactly the conditions required and help you get the best deal. We can recommend some good brokers for both French and Foreign residents needing home loans, an interesting option in France with interest rates still at record lows.
And if you don’t need financing, but you need to be reassured before buying here, speak to other expats who have moved to the region. The Angloinfo forum on the web is a good alternative if you don’t know anyone personally. And there are many other tips from our previous blog articles that will help you find a home more easily.
RSS Feed
