It might be too late, but I’d avoid mentioning a return to the UK as they might lead a potential buyer to think that you’re desperate and they can take advantage. Again, I tend to think the worst of humanity when it comes to buying and selling houses but I find it saves time and avoids disappointment.
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We find that very annoying too.
Why should a buyer expect you to pay for installing a swimming pool.
Tell them that the price is for the house as it stands, not to include any improvements they may wish to make.
I think that many of the people who go on these programmes are actually short of money and think they will get a better deal by using the programme as a negotiator.
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We learn something from every experience and I will take a much more pragmatic approach in the future. We are not deperatate to sell as we love it here but age is not kind to us any more and it is best we make a move while we are still able to do so and enjoy a bit of life with our family again.
I am not disappointed really as I did not expect to sell. It was a bit of a joke I had with the immobilier as 22 months ago I had just come out of hospital and someone locally wanted to see our house, I put them off as much as I could but they insisted. Two days later they made an offer which we accepted. Then followed months of being fobbed off, eventually we said we would not hold it for another 12 months as they wanted. I came out of hospital 12 days ago and within a week these latest clients came and have made an offer. I do not intend going into hospital again just to get the third time lucky offer to sell.
The Notaire put my house up for a good price and told me it was overpriced but even with the €20k less off that original pricing that I accepted, I was still well in pocket and sufficient to pay for this new house. Since then, three houses within a few mins of my old house have been for sale for over 18months now and none of them have dropped what are ridiculous prices. I sold within 3 days of it going up for sale! €50k less though is an insult to be honest. As an idea and something a lot of people are doing these days, if you live near a road, why not put a for sale sign up yourselves on your land where it can be seen, a local person maybe very interested indeed for family? You then only have the Notaire to deal with, no agents etc!
Hi Elizabeth,
As an estate agent operating in rural France I would suggest you consult the Govt website https://explore.data.gouv.fr/ to see exactly what - and for how much - property has been sold in your neighbourhood over the past 5 years.
These are real figures as reported by the notaires involved and not Agents’ estimates or vendors’ dreams.
You may have priced your property a bit too high (hence the unwelcome low offers) … or else you are not advertising to the right market. At the moment it’s the Swiss, the Belgians and the Dutch who are buying rural property; not the French (who can’t get mortgages).
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Thanks for the advice Simon. I will look at that site later today.
We are with an international estate agent and a local one and another a bit further afield. I will seriously look at dropping the local one and going with another as a fresh client and thus cover a different market. At the moment I am convalescing so not got a lot of brain energy so will wait a week or so to contact them.
I had never been in a house with fluffy carpet on the walls, or seen a whole wall (including the fireplace) covered with a photograph before coming here to 24, or quite so much brown including on the ceiling - but then visiting houses for sale isn’t like visiting your friends’ house is it, you probably have absolutely nothing in common with the owners.
Everything in Bretagne was/still is, painted dark brown or pink where there is wood - ceilings and wall lambris covering and under that, green most likely arsenic type paint. Ours was like that and had to be all replaced it hid a multitude of problems and the amount of fungus and rot that OH found in properties he was renovating for clients was unbelievable,out of sight and out of mind was the mantra I think. The house I used to look after for rich city folks had material on the walls of every bedroom to match the curtains and bed linen, it was awful and I had to regularly hoover it from top to bottom it held all the dust. I found out from the owner that it had all come from Libertys of London!
Thank you @SimonOliver for a very useful link, now bookmarked.
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AKA “the DFS sale” technique.
No you’re not, Chris! I get a daily ‘Property Alert’ and just today there was just such a one.
Lots like this.
And another thing - so many with no wall cabs in the kitchen
Where do they keep the comestibles?
Quite so.
The valuation of the house next door to me was so elevated that there were no viewers at all. The original valuation of my house turned out to be double what I paid.
In Spain, the agents used the X/sq m formula for the locale, which included the top end €1m + properties of the city centre of Valencia as well as the Franco era tenements of my barrio. The place sold for 1/2 the agents’ original estimate.
Yes, I really need to pay more attention to auto complete.
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Here’s another. Very sprauncy but where do they keep stuff?
It’s not a work in progress. A very organised bunch Note the neatly coiled cables for the phone and modem
That’s a 5* tool rack. Many a panel saw - 1 for cross-cut, one for ripping, one for …
That flypaper puts me off moreso than the lack of cupboards.
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Also, if they do decide to put up wall cupboards they will have to move all the down lights as they will be blocked off.
Never seen a heated towel rail in a kitchen before either. I suppose it’s quite a good idea.
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Thanks for that new (to me) word.
I had no idea of its provenence. It’s just a word I’ve always used when something is … sprauncy.
How to achieve sprauncy ? - titivate. A word I’m surprised to find not everyone knows.
I have learned a few yiddish words from N.Y. Jewish pals - ‘tuch/tuchas’ - bum [rear end]. ‘Mazeltov’ - a pity/too bad. Everyone knows chutzpah - cheek/cheeky.
The joke that defines chutzpah goes - a young lad kills his mother and father. Up before the judge he pleads clemency “because I’m a poor orphan”
The joke that defines the Jewish mother goes -a Jewish gangster gets shot up by another gang. He staggers, on his last legs, to his mother’s house. She opens the door …
“Mother! Mother! Help me!”
“Tcht! First we eat. Then we talk”
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Excellent idea. Logged that one now.
Yes, I noticed that. As the ex, an artist, used to say “Not very aesthetic, is it?”
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Hmm… It’s actually one of the dullest kitchens I’ve ever seen, especially as it seems to be one that’s in actual use rather than a catalogue picture.
Nice word btw.
Reminds me of the kitchen of a guy I used to work for.
All very slick, designerish like the one here but going round opening the cupboards - wall and floor units - all were empty but one, where there was a box of corn flakes, a jar of instant coffee and a bag of sugar.
The fridge had only a bottle of Vodka and a carton of milk.
He ate out all the time. Very NYC, which is where he was from.