Gregor Hakkenberg Adding your property for sale in France to the international advertising site Immogo, starts with registering as an Immogo seller with this form:
As soon as you have completed this form and clicked ‘Send’, Immogo will ask you to validate your identity and your mail address by sending you
French property agents and their UK intermediaries are not fond of Immogo. We support the private seller in his quest to find a private buyer. And of course it irks them to see we only ask 1% whereas they – with their more comprehensive services and bigger risks (hence expensive insurance policies) have to ask 5 or 6%. Please be aware that if Immogo finds your buyer, the 1% is always due. Even if you let your broker handle the transaction.
Being the first of a new concept in property advertising, Immogo had to surmount quite some opposition, namely from the french property agents. The founder, gregor Hakkenberg, had to fight a law suit, suffer a defeat, get back up for the subsequent appeal to finally celebrate the victory. Gregor described his tribulations in an old blog that he just took offline. This gives us the opportunity to republish this interesting story here:
Lundi 17 mars 2008
Immogo forbidden
Today, the judge has taken the advise of the prosecution ( 2 months parole plus 7.500 euros) and added 2 moths plus 2.500 for the plaintifs: the agence immobilières. This means Immogo must pay 10.000 euros and cease all
We are pleased to announce that after several years of absence the creator and founder of our unique property site, Gregor Hakkenberg van Gaasbeek, will return to the Immogo team.
With his extensive experience in advertising and his knowledge of the Internet and search engine optimization Gregor will be working on
One of our advertisers had been trying to sell her house for several years. The end of 2011, forced by quite sad circumstances, she decided to reduce its price from 525,000 to 420,000 euros. A really good price for this beautiful villa with a large pool in the Provence. Just below the average for similar property in her region. Ever since she lowered her price, she received a few dozen serious reactions through Immogo. Mostly from people who wanted to visit on short notice. And as it seems, one of these interested clients is now buying her villa, so she can return to her children in the Netherlands.
Lower price, more success
It is no surprise that a lower price enhances the chances for a quick sale. For us however, this success has another important implication. It means that virtually anyone can sell his house through Immogo, provided the price is realistic. According to our click counter,
In it’s quarterly report the Overseas Guides Company states that France is still the favourite place to buy a second home for britons. With 22%, France leads the popularity charts, closely followed by Span (16%) and the USA (15%). These last two countries are increasingly popular due to the continuous drop in property prices. And … Read more
Are you considering buying a house in France? Remember that many estate agents in France are extremely expensive (up to 9%!). And it is not very complicated to do business directly with the owner. How to go about it? All the information you need is available on the Internet. We’ll be happy to point you in the right direction.
The housing market in France is not very transparent. There is no one big site where all brokers publish their portfolio. Each broker works on its own regional island, trying to screen his offer from all his competitors. This makes it difficult for buyers to get a clear picture of the total market. What’s more, brokers in France usually ask 5% up to
News about the development of property prices in France.
In the first trimester of 2012, the big Real estate Agency chain Century 21 has sold 11.4% less houses than in the same period last year. On a national level, the average price went down 2.1%. Prices in Paris stopped going up (-0.1%).
The trend is still down. Of course we have to realise this downward movement of the last years comes after more than a decade of continuous rises, which some say created a bubble in the French property market. And not just in France. In the Netherlands, for instance, it seems houses are overvalued by a whopping
Let’s say you are considering the purchase of a holiday venue in France. Something we call a ‘gîte’ but the French authorities officially call a ‘meublé de tourisme’ (furnished tourist home) This wish inevitably brings up a couple of questions. Which is better? To buy a normal home, mansion or farm and do some building work to create a guesthouse or holiday rental home exactly as you imagine it? Or should you buy an existing gîte business already used for holiday rental? Sometimes, the question does not even arise, simply because you fall in love with a building and the spot it is sitting in. You could not care less whether it is already a business: you want to live there! But when you are still searching it is something you might want to consider. If only to help you choose a certain research strategy and narrow the field. Whichever you choose, you need not be afraid of the legal implications or other
If I were a rich Swiss, I’d know exactly what to do: buy a house in France for a trifle. What with the Frank nice and strong, the prices down and the sellers at their wits end… you can really find some good deals. And by the way, this is exactly what wealthy Chinese and Russians are doing right now. They are investing in French real estate. And not just big posh buildings in Paris. Villa’s on the Rivièra and in the Biarritz area are just as sought after by these nouveau riche from emerging economies. The Chinese and the Russians seem to have more money than taste. They are fond of marble and gold. It all has to look ostentatiously expensive. And even has to be expensive. If the price is low, the product is not good enough.
The art of selling to Russian ladies
I know an art gallery owner in a very popular tourist village. She sells paintings, ceramics and jewellery she gets from Paris. She told me about a Russian tour guide and interpreter