blog

Paris apartment hunter: Find the perfect family home

View from a balcony on Parisian buildings

Found!

Vincent and Camille live thousands of kilometers from Paris. But they want to buy an apartment there, to reunite children and grandchildren in the capital. After two years of inconclusive research, they turned to Gwénaëlle Benon, real estate hunter from the HOME SELECT network. From the first minutes exchanged on WhatsApp, the power went by! After a short month of visits, this remote collaboration, with the help of their daughter, took the form of a home in an unexpected neighborhood that was yet so perfect for them...

What was Vincent and Camille's real estate project?

Vincent and Camille live overseas, but are actively looking for a home in which to share their love for the capital with their family. As fulfilled parents and grandparents, they want to fully enjoy their daughter and grandchildren in a quiet, secure neighborhood, close to shops and green spaces.

Why do they call in an apartment hunter?

On the one hand, Vincent and Camille are struggling to find accommodation remotely, but cannot have the necessary reactivity in the Parisian real estate market. On the other hand, Nadia, although regularly on site, is also unable to make this much desired family purchase a reality. Tired of two years of fruitless research, the couple and their daughter decide to call on a Parisian real estate hunter.

How did they choose HOME SELECT real estate hunter?

After a quick search on the Internet, Vincent, Camille and Nadia decided to contact HOME SELECT. Seemingly serious, with excellent testimonies as a result, the network inspires confidence in them. Upon receiving their form, Jean Mascla entrusts the file to Gwénaëlle Benon, a specialist in the coveted sector and available to conduct the research effectively.

How is the real estate search organized?

Given the geographical distance with Vincent and Camille, exchanges with the HOME SELECT real estate hunter start by phone, via WhatsApp. Quickly, it was decided that Gwénaëlle would visit the properties with their daughter Nadia and send them the photos and videos in the process, so that they could participate actively in the research.

What were the initial criteria on the search mandate?

On the phone, through Nadia, Vincent and Camille draw up, for Gwénaëlle, the list of criteria relating to the property: they are looking for a 3-room apartment with 2 bedrooms, both bright and without vis-à-vis, in an old building. If they don't want a ground floor, they don't want to go beyond the 2nd floor either. Finally, they want a property located in a healthy condominium, with low expenses. In other words, they don't want to invest in an energy strainer! In terms of locations, the couple had a preference for the 14th arrondissement of Paris and ideally in Petit-Montrouge, which they know well. Our real estate hunter could also search for the 20th, 11th, 13th and 9th, but each time, in very specific neighborhoods. When these wishes were expressed, Gwénaëlle quickly became aware of the difficulty of this case: already, we must find a property that appeals to both the parents (who finance it) and the daughter (who visits him); then, Vincent's budget. and Camille remains extremely tight, given the desired surface and the location...

What is Gwénaëlle Benon's action plan? Once the search mandate is signed, our real estate hunter will:

- Interrogate the HOME SELECT software base allowing it to quickly scan the market; - Analyze the off-market properties offered to the network; - Send Vincent and Camille's research to all partners and agencies in the network; - Travel to agencies in coveted neighborhoods.

How did the first visits go?

After soliciting the HOME SELECT network and carefully examining the opportunities in the defined sectors, Gwénaëlle contacted her customers to orchestrate the first visits with Nadia. She managed to land two in the 14th arrondissement, their preferred location. Unfortunately, they immediately appeared to be too outdated, with too much work. Nadia then becomes aware of the reality of the market: their budget is definitely too short in this sector. The following week, our real estate hunter organizes a visit to an apartment located in the 20th arrondissement, near Gambetta. If the sector was on the research mandate, the environment is not suitable for Camille and Vincent.

How did Gwénaëlle Benon reorient research?

After having confronted Nadia with the reality of the Parisian real estate market, Gwénaëlle suggests that her clients integrate the 12th arrondissement into their research, more in line with their budget. Better still, near the Bois de Vincennes, they can benefit from both a green environment and a quiet shopping district. As no one knows, our hunter decided to show them the sector in photos and videos. Under the spell, they agree to consider it...

How did the apartment hunter find it?

Specialist in the 12th arrondissement, our hunter is scouring local real estate agencies. Among the neighborhood agencies she met, one of them informed her that they had a perfect property for her, but that they had just sold it... In order to put all her chances on her side and to have other property proposals, Gwénaëlle leaves them her contact details and the search criteria for her clients. Three days later, they call her back: the purchasers have withdrawn! Since the apartment ticks all the boxes, while being bigger and cheaper, she immediately plans a visit.

What does the apartment look like?

Near the Bois de Vincennes in the 12th arrondissement of Paris, the apartment is located on the 2nd floor without an elevator in a very beautiful 1910s Art Nouveau building with 13 other properties. With a separate kitchen, it has 3 rooms including two bedrooms for an area of more than 56 m², a cellar completes the property. The icing on the cake, it has two balconies offering a very nice view of the street lined with buildings with very Parisian architecture!

How did Vincent and Camille decide?

As of Monday, Nadia visits Gwénaëlle via WhatsApp video. She is immediately under the spell of this apartment. Our real estate hunter does not fail to make videos, which she sends to Vincent and Camille, but also to Nadia, to debrief quickly afterwards. The answer is not long in coming: they like good things a lot! Gwénaëlle dissects all the GA minutes on the condominium: nothing to report, except for minor works to come, but which remain light. After detailing the price per m² of apartments sold on the street, she also confirms the attractiveness of the proposed price. Not to mention that it is a few thousand euros less than their budget, while offering a much larger surface area. After reflection and consultation, the couple and their daughter decide to make an offer at the price because the visits have begun and the apartment is very coveted. A few days apart, Nadia, then Vincent and Camille come to Paris to confront their impression with reality. Always smiling at the end of the visits, Gwénaëlle takes the opportunity to introduce them to the neighborhood, in order to fully reassure them. It even goes so far as to tell them the addresses of the best food shops in the area! Now won, the rest of the acquisition procedure is carried out normally and remotely, through notaries. The support will continue until the signing of the authentic instrument. Following the handing over of the keys and after some refreshment work, Vincent, Camille and Nadia will be able to spend very beautiful moments with the family in their new Parisian home.

“A difficult challenge, but well done! ”

With the initial triptych of budget/surface/location, Gwénaëlle immediately understood the difficulty of finding Vincent and Camille. But she is not a woman who gives up easily. After helping them to understand the reality on the ground, she led them to a more accessible neighborhood, while meeting their fundamental criteria. In one month, the deal was over!

“Valuable support”

Buying is never easy, so doing it remotely is even more complicated. Therefore, professional support becomes very valuable — both for the research itself and for administrative and financial benefits.