I am looking for some pragmatic advice on the best UK platforms to reach buyers interested in French property.
I am currently selling a fully renovated character stone house located in Donzenac (Corrèze), just 20 minutes from Brive-Vallée de la Dordogne Airport. It is a turnkey setup featuring fibre optic broadband, a UV-treated pool, and an independent guest annexe.
While it is currently listed with a local French estate agent, I am open to a direct private sale to bypass the agency fees.
What would be the most efficient portals or networks to market this directly to UK buyers? If anyone happens to be looking in this specific area and wants to see the details, feel free to send me a PM. I can share the Leboncoin link or pictures privately.
Purple bricks is a well known UK site for direct sales, but whether it attracts anyone looking for a French property I have no idea.
The French site that markets heavily to the UK is GreenAcres so perhaps ask your agent whether they use them as well as the standard ones. I don’t think they accept private sales.
There’s also this one, which I personally loathe on principle just because it’s too “place in the sun” rose tinted but is apparently very well used by people other than me,
Fair enough, you caught me! I won’t deny that if a direct sale happens right here, it’s a win-win situation for both parties by cutting out the agency fees.
Thank you for the concrete recommendations. I will definitely look into Green-Acres to maintain the private sale route. Leggett is a well-known agency, but using them would defeat the ‘zero commission’ objective I am trying to offer the buyer.
If anyone does want the Leboncoin link just out of curiosity (or knows someone looking in the area), my PMs are open. Cheers!
You are technically correct that the commission is deducted from the final funds by the Notaire. However, economically speaking, it is always the buyer who ultimately finances this amount.
In France, agency properties are typically advertised as ‘FAI’ (Frais d’Agence Inclus). The mathematical reality is simple: the agency takes my required ‘net vendeur’ (the amount I actually receive) and adds their 5% to 8% commission on top of it to determine the public asking price.
By selling directly, I can list the property at a lower overall asking price than an agency would.
The buyer’s win: They pay less for the property itself, and consequently pay slightly less in Notaire fees (as those are calculated as a percentage of the purchase price).
The seller’s win: I maintain my required net amount while offering a more competitive price on the open market, which usually speeds up the transaction.
It’s a purely structural financial advantage for both sides of the contract.
Yes, but the seller normally factors this fee into the asking price. I think what Cyrille is suggesting is that he could offer a discount equivalent, or near enough, to the agent’s fee. That way, he’s not lost out and the buyer has saved a few Euros.
I guess it depends whether a foreign buyer would want the fuzzy feeling they’d get from working with an agent… If they’re first time abroad buyers then they may be hesitant.
That is a very fair point regarding the ‘fuzzy feeling’ and the apprehension of first-time buyers abroad.
However, it’s important to clarify a major difference between the UK and French systems to those buyers. In France, an estate agent provides zero legal security. 100% of the legal and financial security—from drafting the ‘Compromis de Vente’ to holding the funds in escrow and checking planning permissions—is handled by the Notaire, who is a strictly impartial government-appointed official. Whether you use an agent or buy privately, the Notaire process remains exactly the same.
As for the technical reassurance, a buyer often gets a more accurate picture directly from the source. Having personally managed the comprehensive renovation of this property—overseeing everything down to the structural works and the tiling finishes—I can provide a level of technical transparency and historical detail that an agent simply cannot. Coupled with the mandatory structural surveys (Dossier de Diagnostic Technique / EPC), the buyer has a complete, objective file.
A 6% discount in exchange for dealing directly with the owner and the Notaire is usually a very effective cure for any initial hesitation!
While I appreciate the cautionary tale, comparing a fully renovated, turnkey stone property to a ‘turkey’ suggests you haven’t actually looked at the details, the proportions, or the photo gallery of what is being offered.
A few factual points to put things into perspective:
Objective Valuation & Legal Framework: In France, the market dictates the price, and the Notaire acts as the ultimate legal gatekeeper to ensure a compliant transaction. Furthermore, the mandatory technical diagnostics (DDT) provide a strictly regulated, objective assessment of the property’s condition, leaving absolutely zero room for hidden ‘turkeys’.
Professional Execution: This is not a superficial, weekend DIY flip. The renovation was overseen and executed with the rigorous standards of a professional trades instructor. The finishes, from the structural masonry to the tiling, are meticulous and fully documented.
Visual Evidence: The sheer proportions of the house, the active UV-treated pool, and the fully independent guest annexe speak for themselves in the Leboncoin gallery.
If a transparent, direct sale of a high-quality property in Donzenac does not align with your current search criteria, you are entirely free to scroll past this thread.
For those who are genuinely looking to purchase in the area without absorbing a 6% agency markup, my PMs remain open.
@Cyrille19 , my tip for you is that you learn to read the room! Most of the regular contributors on SF already live or have property in France, and certainly don’t need a layman’s explanation of how the property market works.
True, a lot of big agencies draft the compromis themselves now just to speed up things and lock the sale.
But honestly, from a buyer point of view, I would prefer the Notaire to do it from day one. The agency person is working for a commercial business and their main goal is to secure the commission.
A Notaire is 100% neutral. He has to protect both buyer and seller equally by the law. Having him doing the compromis means all the tricky legal checks (like urbanism rules or servitudes) are handled by an impartial expert right at the beginning, not just rushed at the end.
Plus, asking the Notaire to draft it doesn’t cost one penny more—it is already included in the standard Notaire fees paid at the end. Paying 6% agency fees for a commercially drafted contract, when the Notaire make a more secure one in his standard fee, just doesn’t make sense financially to me.
Just to add to my previous reply: if a buyer really want this ‘fuzzy feeling’ and feel more safe using an agent, it is perfectly fine for me. I can introduce them to the local agent I have a simple mandate with. They will just have to pay the standard agency fees for it, but they can absolutely choose this option if it reassure them. It is 100% their choice!
And one last thing: if they want to feel completely safe, the buyer can absolutely choose an English speaking Notaire, or even a UK solicitor who know French law, to represent them. In France, you can use two Notaires for a sale (one for me, one for the buyer) and it don’t cost one penny more because they just share the standard fee together. So they can have their own English legal expert to secure the transaction on their side!
