{"id":5831,"date":"2026-05-12T16:17:32","date_gmt":"2026-05-12T16:17:32","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/immogo.com\/how-to-circumvent-the-real-estate-agent\/"},"modified":"2026-05-12T16:17:32","modified_gmt":"2026-05-12T16:17:32","slug":"how-to-circumvent-the-real-estate-agent","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/immogo.com\/en\/how-to-circumvent-the-real-estate-agent\/","title":{"rendered":"HOW TO CIRCUMVENT THE REAL ESTATE AGENT?"},"content":{"rendered":"

Everyone has to earn a decent living. Including the real estate agent. But a lot of people think the real estate agents in France ask more than decent fees. In other words, 6% is a lot of money for something that costs much less in other countries. The high agency commission is, in addition to the sometimes sad level of service, a major reason why many people try to bypass estate agents in France. <\/p>\n

HOW CAN THE SELLER BYPASS ESTATE AGENTS?<\/h2>\n

In France, for many years now, 30% of houses have been sold directly by the private individual, without a<\/em> real estate agent<\/a>. In addition, another 5% are sold by the notary (who charges a 3.5% ‘negotiation fee’ if he finds the seller). But all in all al large proportion of houses find a new owner through the various sites that advertise houses for sale ‘entre particuliers’. Like the indispensable LeBonCoin<\/a>, where all potential buyers look, and of course IMMOGO<\/a>, a site more geared towards foreign buyers. It’s very legitimate. If you can take nice photos yourself and write a tempting description, why not put your house on a real estate site? You can then lower the asking price by at least 5% compared with the real estate agent’s, because there’s no commission. <\/p>\n

HOW TO AVOID THE REAL ESTATE AGENT WHEN YOU’RE A BUYER?<\/h2>\n

As a property seeker and future buyer in France, you should first take a look at LeBonCoin. After all, the offer is vast. On LeBonCoin, click on the ‘Particuliers’ tab to see only real estate offers without an agency. The ‘sort’ tab allows you to sort by ‘most recent’ or ‘price’, for example. <\/p>\n

As you can see, there are far more offers from estate agents than from private individuals. But you also have to realize that a lot of houses are put on line by a private individual and by two or even three agencies. So don’t just look around, scroll down to see if the same house is also for sale ‘entre particuliers’ for a more attractive price. Or for the same price, but with 5% more room for negotiation. <\/p>\n

And of course, you can also take a look at what’s on offer here on Immogo, where many homes are presented with good descriptions and lots of photos. There are also quite a few houses from foreign sellers who are moving within France or returning home, but almost always with texts translated into French. Real estate agents are not welcome at Immogo. That’s why all the houses on this site are FSBO – sold exclusively by private owner. <\/p>\n

TRY TO DISMISS THE REAL ESTATE AGENT LATER? NOT A GOOD IDEA! <\/h2>\n

Like many buyers, you can try to bypass the real estate agent by seeking out the private owner directly. Online, or if you find the house somewhere “out there”, via neighbors or through the town hall. This kind of circumvention is part of the game. But taking the real estate agent out of the game after you’ve started <\/em>a deal with him… that’s not OK. That means you’ll have found a house through the agency and visited it with the agent … and then you’ll try to do business with the owners behind his back? Not cool. After all, the real estate agent has done his job. He (or she, of course) advertised the house, so that you would find the house with him (or her), the real estate agent showed you the house… so it’s only fair that you and the seller also entrust the buying process to the real estate agent and that you (the seller especially) pay his commission. The deliberate and retrospective exclusion of the real estate agent is inappropriate and prohibited by law! <\/p>\n

WHAT ARE THE LEGAL PENALTIES?<\/h2>\n

The consequences for the buyer are not that serious. At most, you’ve signed a “bon de visite”, from which the real estate agent can derive few rights. The negative consequences are mainly for the seller, who after all has signed a solid contract with the real estate agent. If the seller sells the house privately to someone found through the real estate agent, the real estate agent will immediately sue. The seller will lose this lawsuit anyway, as the simple mandate he has signed is clear on such matters and legally irrefutable. <\/p>\n

In short, if you really<\/i> want to bypass the real estate agent, then strictly avoid dealing with him from the outset. But don’t try to get him to work just to cheat him, because the seller could end up paying heavily for it. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Everyone has to earn a decent living. Including the real estate agent. But a lot of people think the real estate agents in France ask more than decent fees. In other words, 6% is a lot of money for something that costs much less in other countries. 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