Update from the Languedoc

The Real South of France

One of the best parts of being a property finder is that you never know what you going to get, whether it be travelling through a place you’ve never been through before or finding ‘the’ property that will meet your clients requirements 100% and more or the view that you will take in or the people you will meet.

This was never so more true than a recent search I carried out for some Australian clients. Knowing that they wanted to purchase in this wonderful part of France was great for me, the only difficulty I had is – where do I start? There are so many places to choose, look at, and consider from the coast to the mountains, from towns to villages meant I could have spent the whole 6 weeks the search took just being a tourist taking in all that I saw and the acquaintances I made.

My clients had an average budget but a big list of requirements the most difficult of which was the location – anywhere between Béziers and Perpignan! So I knew I had my work cut out but then again as I live here and have an extensive network of contacts I eventually identified twenty properties for them to view when they arrived.

Being from Australian presents its own problems, cost of flights, somewhere to stay, car hire and fuel to mention a few and that is where as a property finder I can help significantly, having the time to search extensively and check in depth each and every property that matched their requirements. Their time was going to be split viewing my properties and ones that they had identified themselves. Its far to say my clients had done their homework but a lot of what they had identified turned out to a huge disappoint for them

Many wonderful viewings later my clients decided that they preferred one of the properties I had identified for them that exceeded their expectations (especially the view as they thought for the budget it wouldn’t be possible) in a town that I had never visited before with a new contact of mine. As an added bonus some of their neighbours also happened to be Australian. After some fair negotiation we were able to secure their dream property for 51,000 Euros less than when it first went on the market in 2011.

And that is why I never know what I’m going to get being a property finder.

Spotlight on the Languedoc property market:

This year has seen favourable movement for buyers in this part of France with prices coming down to perhaps more realistic levels in the current economic climate. This is mostly due to both local and overseas owners realising that what they think their property is worth and what someone will actually pay are two very different things so you have a situation where buyers are serious yet wanting to negotiate and sellers who are more open to negotiation. As long as both sides are realistic both parties can get what they want. On some recent searches I’ve seen properties that have been on the market for the last couple of years being reduced by up to 100,000 Euros suddenly being sold within weeks.

So the plus side is more properties become available to my clients, the only downside? Properties are getting snapped up quicker so sometimes I’ll find a property for a client and it’s sold before I even have the chance to view it!

Regardless the market here will continue to surprise with many bargains still to be found, it’s knowing where to find them that counts and that’s part of my role on behalf of my clients.

•With thanks to Neale Roberts, Property Finder