A family of four living in a three-room flat in the 14th arrondissement was looking for a house with a garden in the southern suburbs, between Antony and Bourg-la-Reine. Marie Esmieu-Fournel, property hunter at Home Select, found a 95 sqm townhouse with a 120 sqm garden in Antony and negotiated it down from 602,000 euros to 565,000 euros, a saving of 37,000 euros (6.2%), in 8 weeks.
Mission overview
- Property hunter: Marie Esmieu-Fournel, property hunter at Home Select
- Area: Antony, Bourg-la-Reine, Sceaux, southern Hauts-de-Seine
- Property type: Townhouse, 95 sqm, 120 sqm garden, 3 bedrooms
- Initial budget: 620,000 euros
- Asking price: 602,000 euros
- Negotiated price: 565,000 euros
- Negotiation: minus 6.2% (37,000 euros)
- Search duration: 8 weeks
- Buyer profile: Couple with two children (ages 4 and 7), homeowners in the 14th
The project
Claire and David, who owned a 62 sqm three-room flat on rue d’Alésia, had decided to leave Paris. With two boys at an age where they need to run about, the lack of outdoor space had become unbearable. Their non-negotiable criterion: a garden, even a modest one.
The search area covered the southern suburbs served by the RER B, the line linking them to their respective offices (Denfert-Rochereau for her, Châtelet for him). Antony, Bourg-la-Reine and Sceaux ticked every box: quality of life, transport links and good schools.
The budget of 620,000 euros combined the estimated net proceeds from the sale of their Paris flat (340,000 euros) and a top-up mortgage. They wanted the sale and the purchase synchronised, to avoid a bridge loan.
The search strategy
Marie Esmieu-Fournel first mapped the three communes to pin down the neighbourhoods that genuinely matched the brief. In Antony, the area between the RER station and the Parc de Sceaux held the most sought-after houses, and the most expensive. The Fontaine-Michalon neighbourhood, less well known but just as practical, ran 10 to 15% cheaper.
In Bourg-la-Reine, she focused on the streets west of avenue du Général-Leclerc, quieter than the centre. In Sceaux, the budget was too tight for a family house in the town centre.
Marie drew on her local network: area notaries, who see estate sales before the agencies do; independent agencies in Antony and Bourg-la-Reine; and concierges who know which owners are thinking of selling.
The property found
In the seventh week, a 95 sqm townhouse came up in Fontaine-Michalon. A 1930s rubble-stone house over two floors: on the ground floor a 25 sqm living room, a 10 sqm kitchen opening onto the garden, and a WC; upstairs, three bedrooms of 14, 12 and 10 sqm, a bathroom with a double basin, and a 5 sqm landing that doubled as a study.
The 120 sqm south-west-facing garden was the property’s main draw. The house also had a garage and a cellar. The Antony RER B station was 12 minutes on foot, the primary school 400 metres away.
Two notes of caution: the roof needed checking (last redone in 2008), the kitchen a full refit, and the energy rating was D, which loft insulation could improve.
The negotiation
The asking price of 602,000 euros worked out at 6,337 euros per sqm, a little high for Fontaine-Michalon. Marie Esmieu-Fournel built her case on three points: a DVF comparison of recent local sales (averaging 5,900 euros per sqm), the state of the roof (a survey and possible partial repair quoted at 8,000 to 12,000 euros), and the kitchen refit (estimated at 15,000 euros).
A first offer at 550,000 euros was rejected. The seller accepted the second, at 565,000 euros, on condition of confirmed financing within 10 days. Marie had prepared the file in advance, and the mortgage agreement came through in 8 days. The preliminary contract was signed at the Antony notary’s office.
Alongside this, Marie handled the sale of the 14th arrondissement flat through Home Select’s Offre Duo service. It found a buyer in three weeks, letting the couple lift the sale condition without a bridge loan.
What this mission illustrates
A property hunter fills the local knowledge gap. Claire and David knew nothing of Antony beyond the RER station. Marie Esmieu-Fournel pointed them to a neighbourhood they would never have considered, and one that suited their daily life perfectly. For a Parisian buying in Île-de-France, that local knowledge is decisive.
Coordinating a sale and a purchase secures the whole operation. Through the Offre Duo service, the sale of the Paris flat and the house purchase were synchronised. No bridge loan, no double rent, no anxious gap. That counts for a great deal when you are changing the way you live.
The notary network opens doors to off-market property. This house was not yet with an agency when Marie found it through a local notary. Estate sales and confidential listings often pass through notaries’ offices before reaching the portals, a channel only someone on the ground can tap.
Considering leaving Paris for the southern suburbs? Contact Marie Esmieu-Fournel at Home Select for a targeted search between Antony, Bourg-la-Reine and Sceaux.
Frequently asked questions
What is the average price of a house in Antony in 2026?
In 2026, the average price of a house in Antony ranges between 5,500 and 7,500 euros per sqm depending on the neighbourhood, the plot size and the condition of the property. A house of 90 to 110 sqm with a garden sells for between 520,000 and 750,000 euros. The most sought-after areas (proximity to the RER B, town centre) are the most expensive.
How long does it take to buy a house in the southern suburbs of Paris?
With a property hunter, the average search duration for a house in the southern suburbs is 6 to 10 weeks. Without support, Parisian buyers discovering the suburban market often take 4 to 8 months, mainly because they do not know the micro-neighbourhoods and overvalue certain areas at the expense of others that may be better suited.
Do you need a property hunter to buy in the suburbs when you live in Paris?
This is precisely the scenario where a property hunter provides the most value. A Parisian searching in the suburbs generally does not know the micro-neighbourhoods, the quiet streets, the noisy roads, the schools or the current urban development projects. The property hunter has this ground-level knowledge and helps avoid costly location mistakes.
