“More Information Please”

Nobody (buyers, owners or agents) wants to waste their time by viewing unsuitable properties.

When asking for more information from any agent, try to be as specific as you can. More information covers a multitude of information from the surrounding area, the house, room sizes, schooling, transport links etc. There is no point in us telling you all about local schooling if you do not have children for example. Also give the agent as much information as you can about you and or your family’s requirements. Is the house a holiday/permanent home? Budget is helpful for us to know too, and does your budget include renovation work for instance?

I have had instances where people have arrived for visits with a back seat full of children I knew nothing about to view properties which did not have enough bedrooms. I have also had an instance where a client with mobility difficulties arrived to view properties which, although they had chosen them were totally unsuitable and had I known about accessibility issues I could have steered them away from these properties.

However, at the same time try to keep the information required applicable to the property, renovation, locality etc. Remember estate agents are not the Citizens Advice Bureau, the Job Centre (yes, I have been asked to get jobs for clients!) or the DHSS (yes, I have been asked about what benefits people can claim for!). Asking us about job prospects and benefits are not in our field of expertise and you should be doing lots of your own background research to add to any information we provide. This is particularly true if you are planning a permanent move, and if that is the case I would encourage you to learn to speak French as well as you can, because the most ordinary, everyday things become very difficult when all you know how to do is order a coffee. It can be scary trying to speak French, but what’s the worst that can happen if you come out with the wrong words. My partner once asked a French couple showing us their house if the neighbour’s were gay instead of if they were friendly (his French has improved slightly since then)! No bolt’s of lightening, just quizzical expressions between the couple until he cottoned on and corrected himself.

The cost of making a visit to view properties is getting more and more expensive. Whilst, there is NO substitute for actually viewing a property, you can spend many years and a lot of money doing so, on top of the hours and hours spent trawling the internet. You can cut those visits down by doing proper research, asking the right questions, providing agents with a detailed profile and sometimes being prepared to compromise (unless you have an very big budget). Take time to get to know the area, moving there because of friends and family can be a costly mistake. If you decide you do not like it be aware that it can be a year or two before the property sells.

I will just add, that it is possible to find the house you want on your first visit, how will you know if its the right house for you?…..you’ll just know!