Michael Darius

Hi all, I've been seriously searching for property in Brittany and trying to contact the agents for listings through sites like Green-Acres and French-property.com but have not gotten any responses back. I try to sound interested, be polite and not sound scammy. I ask in French, of course, though my language skills still require me to DeepL some things. What am I doing wrong? Is this par for the course in France or should I be changing my approach? Thank you.

Listen Very Carefully

They will not reply nor give details out until you have visited them in person and signed a contract with them stating that you will pay their fees should they find you the house that you want to buy. It is the buyer that pays the fees involved so this is the only way that french estate agents can be sure of getting paid. As an aside make sure you understand what fees are included in the price advertised and get an approx break down if you are not sure

Michael Darius

This is definitely a different style of agent than I'm used to. Thanks for the tips. What if I live in Canada and can't visit each locality every time I want to inquire about an interesting property - like to get a floor plan or just ask about the address? What would you recommend doing in that case?

dmu

Can you come over and rent for a month or two in one or several towns? You could browse in local estate agents, read the ads in local papers, at the same time as getting a feel for the various locations. Proximity to a farmyard, factory, military area, nightclub, etc..., and poor internet, lack of medical facilities, etc... wouldn't be mentioned in any listings. You could also enquire at the different Mairies what future urban planning is in the pipeline, to avoid disappointment/frustration later.
HTH

Moses2013

No idea about France, but even in Catalonia/Spain it's pretty common that estate agents now won't give any information due to data protection. You now have to arrange a viewing and then they give you the exact address which is annoying if you just want to find out something in advance. Sometimes you can find the exact address through research on street view, but if they aren't replying at all maybe it's your email address?
If you have have ca as an email they might think it's spam. Then of course the properties might be sold already and just not updated online, so some estate agents just can't be bothered replying.

Annetje

Have you tried ringing them ?

Assanah

Telling them that you are coming to Brittany soon (give them dates) to view properties might work.

Jack_Russells4ever

Many European estate agents cannot be bothered to return telephone calls, respond to emails etc etc. Unless you turn up on their door and get lucky to catch them in the office you will be frustrated. IF you have friends in France ask them for a recommendation of an agent they have experience with. Just know many estate agents are less than forthcoming with pertinent information, especially negative information. Good Luck.

Annetje

I don't believe going through international estate agents like Green Acres is the right way to go.

Go to leboncoin or logic immo or seloger and check out the houses for sale.
If there is a house you are interested in, you can find the telephone number of the local estate agent who has that property on the book.
Beware, the same house can be for sale with different agents and different prices so check that on all the sites I mentioned.
Just ring the local estate agent.

Also, unless it is a new property, there will rarely be a floorplan available and the agents will not give the address unless you go and visit the house.
Wit a bit of patience one can try to find the house on google earth.