PARIS Real Estate Finders (PREF)

The first question we asked ourselves about PREF was did we really need them? We were impressed by the Web site and their experience but thought, we are 4 professionals (two lawyers and one accountant among us) and surely we can find an apartment in Paris ourselves? I mean who needs extra expense? We soon learned that as foreign buyers we desperately needed the help of PREF to purchase an apartment in the right area, at the right price. PREF's fee was a justified expense that actually saved us money in the end. We discovered, early on, after mailing a few French real estate agents that we needed an inside track. Basically, French estate agents can only show you property in their arrondissement, so unless you are absolutely sure of the area in which you need to buy you have to deal with multiple agents who can only do limited searches and at a pace that will drive you crazy! We also talked to some of PREF's previous clients who were very frank and honest about their experiences and highly recommended PREF. These clients were serious investors, who like us, thought they could go it alone, but ended up finding that for foreign investors, the Paris property market is full of complicated nuances, that even the best books did not explain.

So we instructed Darrell and Stephanie and gave them our search criteria: a large spacious one bedroom apartment, with real character (high ceilings, parquet floors, original fireplaces) and superb location (close to a recognizable Paris landmark) within our price range. A tall order indeed! However, we received prompt, proactive contact and several spreadsheets of listings fitting our criteria and price range. We then arranged to visit Paris for 3 days to begin the search. We arrived the night before and invited Darrell and Stephanie to dinner to discuss our requirements and ensure they were clear on our criteria, so as to avoid any waste of our time over the next few days. Darrell and Stephanie collected us at our hotel and announced that they had three apartments to show us before dinner. Stephanie said she had a feeling we might buy the second one. We did! We were in Paris for 4 hours and put in an offer on our dream apartment and it was accepted. We then go to dinner to celebrate and who is sitting next to us in the restaurant having dinner the seller of our dream apartment! How could we not recommend Darrell and Stephanie: they are consummate professionals who know their market, listen to their clients and their needs and are genuinely eager for you to make the right investment and excited for you when you do. We listened to their wise counsel and trusted them implicitly. (After you visit their apartment you know you are in safe hands!)

My advice to anyone buying in Paris is not to waste any more of your valuable time, instruct Darrell and Stephanie and let them do what they do best, help you buy a piece of Paris you can call your own. Believe me you will enjoy the process, we certainly did!

Good luck and may your search be a fruitful one!

Aine posted the following to the Askaboutmoney.com real estate blog site on 24 May, 2005

We just used Paris Real Estate Finders (PREF) to track down an investment apartment of our own in Paris and they were terrific. They electronically match buyer's exact criteria to the marketplace and show you the best of what falls out. We were very impressed with their ability to match our specific criteria and show us only properties that would be of real interest to us. I don't believe anyone else in Paris can do that.

In our case we bought the 2nd of three apartments they showed us and I believe saved us months of work in a very difficult market place. They were also extremely helpful in overcoming the reticence of the French seller to deal with non-residents. They are a completely friendly, professional and unique service that saved us months of painful looking in the very difficult and not-user-friendly Paris real estate market.

We recommend them highly.

Aine

Their story here soon.

"PREF's services were invaluable to us ... were it not for them, we would still be ruminating. Their knowledge of the property market, financial and bureaucratic steps, possible pitfalls, opportunities, and useful contacts was central to our success." Several pairs of shoes and many glasses of wine later, we are the happy owners of a beautiful, light-filled top-floor apartment in a fine art deco building in a neighborhood of Paris so agreeable and friendly it was a wrench leaving it to our tenants only two weeks after buying it. And this only a year after starting to ruminate over whether we might someday like to own a place in France.

How did it happen, when we live in far upstate New York and have to work around limited vacation time and budgets? Regretting being back in the office after an especially wonderful ten days in France in spring 2002, I idly typed "Paris Real Estate" into Google as I ate my lunch. Up popped Paris Real Estate Finders. Start of passionate affair, and also end of story. Darrell Halverson and Stephanie Freedman run a personal business so effective that you’re obsessed before you feel it coming on. Vague e-mails back and forth with all sorts of "what-ifs" and "how woulds" and "are-we-nuts" questions led to a meeting in New York City in November when a jet-lagged Darrell and Stephanie interviewed us as critically as we interviewed them, and we ended up having a terrific dinner together and setting dates for March when we’d go to Paris and pound the streets with them.

In the following months, they gave us guidance in opening a bank account, getting a mortgage pre-approved, using web resources to see what was available, and getting realistic about how our original budget would barely buy a chambre de service, let alone an apartment. Stephanie had expressed concern that our fluency in French might make their services unnecessary, but fluency in general French does not an informed property-buyer make. Their services were invaluable to us; we know that were it not for them, we would still be ruminating. Their knowledge of the property market, financial and bureaucratic steps, possible pitfalls, opportunities, and useful contacts (from lawyers and bankers to where the best street-finds are) was central to our success.

What have we appreciated most about working with this delightful couple? Their knowledge and expertise. Their enthusiasm. Their well-placed cautions. Their business sense. Their generosity. Meals shared in restaurants as we chewed over what we’d done each day in March, and where to go next. Excitement shared when we saw possible places. Misgivings shared when places didn’t live up to their descriptions.

Moments of humor shared about places we saw and people we met. Their intimate knowledge of Paris, and the fun of new discoveries made with them.

How thrilling when, the evening before we left Paris, we could invite them to dinner at our place, furnished and ready to live in. And if you’re lucky enough, you too might be the recipient of one of Darrell’s fine blue buckets, a gesture of generosity and friendship you will have to work with PREF to understand. If you’re going to embark on this wonderful, nerve-wracking, exhausting, heady adventure, we recommend that you do it with them.

Sitting here in our own Paris apartment on a sunny October morning, it is hard to believe that it is exactly one year ago today that we started our search with Darrell and Stephanie. We had met them a couple of months earlier and been impressed with the very special service they offered to help people search for their apartment which they would otherwise almost certainly not find and to help them through the intricacies and pitfalls of purchasing in a foreign land and foreign language.

Darrell and Stephanie concentrate on certain areas of Paris where they know quality and value can be found - real Paris. Darrell's search system is well tried and tested and they know whether a prospect is worth a look (time saving). Also, agents are usually not involved (money saving). Stephanie speaks fluent French and Darrell speaks fluent American. Stephanie talks to the vendor while Darrell casually gets out his tape measure and sizes up the pros (and cons!). At the end of a viewing, they are clear in their recommendations, which is important when there is often so much pressure and emotion involved.

We started with our sights set on the 2nd or 3rd arrondissement - at least we had removed the 6th from our system! This was on Tuesday and as we trudged round in the pouring rain, Darrell and Stephanie showed infinite patience as the apartments rarely failed to disappoint. But this was certainly an essential learning process as we carried out our post-mortem, squeezed into a local bar for a beer or coffee whilst summoning up the energy for the next sortie.

They then spotted an advertisement for an apartment in the 9th, close to where they live. This was in a building and area they knew and rated highly. We agreed to have a quick look to build up our increasing knowledge base (and to humor them!) and an appointment was booked for that day. We had lunch locally in the beautiful Avenue Trudaine and turned up for the viewing on a dismal, rain soaked, ghastly afternoon. With hindsight, this was definitely the best way to see a prospective purchase. If you still like it, then it has to be good - and we loved it on first sight!

We left, discussed and agreed to make an offer, but we had more to learn. You can be first in the queue, offer the asking price but you still may not be successful. Again, Stephanie's knowledge and experience proved invaluable here - our offer was accepted. It seemed like a lifetime since our search started in earnest, but in fact it was only Friday of the same week!

We look south across Paris from our 5th floor apartment over the trees to Opera Garnier, Les Invalides, the Musee d'Orsay. Our one regret? No Eiffel Tower (but we can see the sweeping laser beam at night, so that will have to do). Would we recommend using Darrell and Stephanie? Bien sur (i.e. yes). They can save you time, they can save you money, they can save you disappointment. Above all, they can find the hidden gems of Paris and you can have a great time doing it - even in the rain.

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Paris – a garret of one’s own, wouldn’t it be nice – 5 hours door to door from London, a different culture, a wonderful city.

How DID we get from a vague romantic notion at the beginning of June to taking possession of a Montmartre apartment at the end of November? There is no way we could have foreseen it happening so quickly and I know it wouldn’t have without Darrell and Stephanie at PREF. Once we found them – a fortuitous link on an Internet trawl through estate-agents and ad-sites, everything became more concrete, possible and realistic.

They sent us information on the state of the Paris market, spreadsheets of what was available that matched our brief, pointed us to other sources of information, and we met in mid-July. What was obvious from the start was their delight in Paris and their unbounded enthusiasm for other people to join them.

As they said, "You’re not just buying an apartment, you’re buying a life-style." They generously spent a morning showing us round their neighbourhood and some of the apartment they manage, all the while talking us through the practicalities of the process.

While viewing apartments is a great way to see inside a city – it’s fascinating seeing how people live – and we needed to get our heads around the Paris market – size and cost - we had little interest in working our way through every apartment for sale in Paris. Although in all we only say 10 apartments – 7 of them through PREF – we felt up-to-speed with market information, we had quickly worked out our criteria as to geographical area, size etc with advice from Darrell & Stephanie and felt ready to make the decision when we saw the apartment that they found for us. It was still quite a shock when the vendor said yes there and then to our offer – they do things differently in France! None of the horse-trading process that happens in the UK.

They constantly view apartments and have a real ability to match client and place. We have bought a one-bedroom in Montmartre, with a view to Sacre Coeur – it’s a great neighbourhood with loads of life and charm. Our apartment will be rented out part of the time and since they also have rental experience they had great practical suggestions as to what best suited the rental market.

Between them they cover all the bases –now that we’ve found a place Stephanie is shepherding us through the legal process – finding us a notaire and simultaneously translating through the signing of the promesse de vente, and Darrell with his D-I-Y skills is advising us on renovations and connecting us with craftsmen.

While always efficient and professional, they are also warm interesting people with whom it is a pleasure to spend time . It’s not an anonymous dispassionate process - they are wonderfully supportive when the butterflies hit and they genuinely seem to love working with people whose dreams they help to make reality. It has been a pleasure!

It was very interesting for PREF to work with an "intuition" buyer who looked at a ton of apartments before settling on what she wanted.

Exhilarating…enlightening…exhausting: These are just a few words that describe my search for a Paris apartment. For several years I’ve dreamed of owing my own little pied-à-terre in the City of Light. I found Darrell and Stephanie on one of my countless Internet "power-searches" on Paris apartments, and I met them for the first time when I came to Paris in August 2002 to research the real estate market. It soon became very clear that if I was serious about this undertaking, I couldn’t do it without Darrell and Stephanie.

Now, don’t get me wrong: I really don’t mind running all over Paris day after day, scanning countless listings displayed in the windows of real estate agencies. And I kind of enjoy spending my evenings poring over Parisian real estate Web sites for un studio ou deux pièces. But that’s where the fun stops. Sometimes, the apartments I wanted to see were already sold – perhaps by another real estate firm – or they weren’t actually on the market yet! Other times, my calls wouldn’t be returned.

Darrell and Stephanie proved indispensable for getting me in to see apartments and maximizing my chances in a competitive situation. In fact, I witnessed firsthand how well Stephanie put sellers at ease and how skillfully she handled a variety of situations to my benefit. This is especially important when doing business within another culture! And I had a much better sense of the true value of the apartments I visited and their amenities due to Darrell’s insights and numerous Excel spreadsheets. Moreover, Darrell and Stephanie’s mortgage and banking contacts were especially helpful, because these financial institutions are much more welcoming to foreigners who have local references.

As I write this, I’m preparing to leave for Paris in a few days to renovate and furnish my new apartment. I’m so excited! Everyone I tell is both amazed and impressed that I had the courage and determination to do this. When they ask me how I did it, I begin by saying, "Well, there’s this American couple I know in Paris…."

I have never owned any real-estate before purchasing my Paris apartment. While still pondering the idea of doing it in Paris, I ran into Paris Real Estate Finders during a nightly Internet roaming. As I see it, a major factor in making a large investment is a good source of information for research. In an unfamiliar area as Paris was to me, Stephanie and Darrell turned to be an indispensable and never-ending source of relevant and reliable knowledge. From basic general concepts of real-estate to specific details in any related subject - they were my oracles. Doing it on my own would have been possible only after at least one year of living and researching in Paris and an intensive study of French (which I still speak quite poorly).

If you decide to go at it, don't expect a picnic. As a hyperactive Israeli workaholic, the French people sometimes seemed to me as being on a never-ending vacation (when they're not on strike or on holidays), they function on weird hours, their offices are never open when you're at their doorstep. The work and material are expensive and habitation laws are complex and never cease to change. On the other hand, the real-estate business in Paris is the craziest and most frenetic market I have ever seen. Decisions of major importance are made in seconds and moderate consideration may lead to an immediate loss of opportunities. Coping with all that on your own may easily drive you, frustrated and exhausted, back to your home country.

I can't say Stephanie and Darrell's fee is low but if you make your calculations right you'll find out that you may spend double on trying to do it all by yourself. A lot of renovation work is still ahead of me while I write these paragraphs but with the professional aid of the entrepreneurs I met through PREF I hope to fulfill the dream of owning a piece of Paris.

An apartment in Paris! It has been the dream of two lifetimes to live in Paris, my own reverie continuing a dream begun by my father when he had an opportunity to be in Paris before the war as an exchange student at the Sorbonne. Though my dad had had several opportunities to visit France during his lifetime, he was never able to actually realize that dream of putting down roots in the place that had become my family’s favorite foreign country. How to account for the fascination that one country has for not just our family but for a legendary stream of Americans seeking something that, though constantly discussed, perhaps still remains unidentifiable . My own desire to live in France developed instantaneously during my first trip to Paris, a house exchange which enabled me to spend 3 months in the City of Light. Subsequent vacations always seemed to find me again, in Paris, much to the consternation of friends who never seemed to understand why I didn’t want to also visit the other capitals of Europe. It’s not that I didn’t want to spend time elsewhere, it somehow always seemed to be that no matter how long you stayed in Paris you could never get enough of it. The obvious solution would be to figure out a way to stay permanently; to finally realize a dream of two generations. An apartment in the City of Light; a dream come true.

As my retirement began to be a possibility on the horizon I decided to research the idea of buying an apartment in Paris. My partner, Jacquelyn, loved the concept of having a pied à terre in Europe and I, of course, knew that Paris had to be the place. I purused web sites, read some books, and during one vacation trip to Paris considered making appointments with real estate agents to look at some apartments, but my courage failed me. French friends said, "never mind the real estate agents, the best place to look is Particulier à Particulier!" (the for-sale-by-owner list). A feeling of dread ensued. Trying to buy property without professional help would be difficult enough in the States; the idea of doing it solo in a foreign country left me feeling that I was destined to end up in a hopeless muddle. Enter Darrell and Stephanie. One fateful day while I was engaged in what had, by now, become a weekend addiction, looking at Paris websites, I happened upon Parisrealestatefinders.com. Was this going to be the answer to a prayer? I filled out the query and received an immediate response with apartment listings, an interactive spreadsheet which enabled me to compute the Notaire’s fees, and market studies giving the average price per arrondissement, with trends over the past few years, all delivered with a warm and friendly message that made me not only want to do business with these wonderful people, but to also look forward to knowing them. Jacquelyn and I decided that we were going to love knowing Darrell and Stephanie.

I decided to begin the apartment search during a trip which I had planned for Paris during the fall of 2002. I would take a month off from my job in the States, and Jacquelyn, en route to a conference in Austria, would meet me in Paris for the last week of my sojourn. Stephanie and Darrell were kind enough to grant me an interview the afternoon of my arrival, enabling me to optimize my time in Paris for the great apartment adventure. Any doubts that I might have had, which I hadn’t, about their ability to take care of business, would have been dispelled from the moment of our first meeting. While I was still chatting with Darrell, filling him in on some more of my personal story, Stephanie was already on the phone setting up appointments for us to visit apartments. By the time I left their apartment we had three appointments set up for the next day. Throughout that first week we visited close to a dozen apartments; I never even had a chance to recover from jet lag!

We more or less followed the same routine at each apartment visit. Stephanie would chat with the owner, charming pertinent information out of him or her, including why the apartment was being sold, while Darrell scrutinized the physical condition of both the apartment and the building. Notes were made about the electricity, plumbing, water heater, co-property association, history of ownership, condition of the interior and exterior, direction of the window exposure, amount of renovation needed, presence or absence of storage space, and amount paid for building charges and utilities. I also made my own notes, and my favorite moment came when we would gather at a café after one of our visits and go over our notes, discussing the pros and cons and most significantly, considering whether or not the asking price was justified. I had expressed an interest in seeing apartments in several arrondissements, which meant that we often also discussed neighborhood issues. Stephanie and Darrell know Paris like the back of their hand, and even though I had some knowledge of the city, I really appreciated the fact that they introduced me to the potential of areas I might not have considered. They also reminded me that it doesn’t hurt to consider a property from the viewpoint of a vacation rental for those times when I might not be at home and might want to rent my place on a short-term basis.

It took a good week and a half to go through all of the places we had culled from the edition of Particulier à Particulier which had come out the week that I arrived. By the time we were preparing to visit the last apartment on the list I had seen a dizzying number of apartments, and while not exactly discouraged that I had yet to find "the apartment" I was nevertheless starting to really appreciate that endurance was going to be the main ingredient on the road ahead. During a lull in between appointments I had also decided to break down and look at some places with real estate agents. With one exception the agents I talked to were singularly unhelpful. In addition to seeming to want to take me to the kind of apartment I had expressly stated I was not interested in, when I did finally get to see something that sounded like what I wanted on paper, it invariably turned out not to be quite exactly the way it had been represented on the spec sheet. The experience only made me appreciate more my site visits with Darrell and Stephanie.

My big breakthrough came on day 11 of my search; a choice apartment in Montmartre had been listed since the week before but the owner had been out of town, and I got to be the lucky person to view it upon his return to Paris. I was almost speechless with excitement; I had found something with all of the features I had been looking for in a neighborhood that I wanted to be in. It seemed too good to be true! We made a beeline for the café on the corner and almost before any discussion ensued I announced that I wanted to buy it. Stephanie raced across the street to the nearest phone booth to call the owner, hoping that we could go back right away and make the offer, but he had stepped out. We finally decided to go home and wait until he could be reached; needless to say, he called me back the minute I got in the door, and after calling Stephanie, I jumped back on the metro and headed back to Montmartre from the 12th arrondissement where I was staying, to meet Darrell and Stephanie again, back at the apartment. Though I won’t say I wasn’t experiencing some anxiety about whether or not our offer would be accepted, whether or not the owner had had another interested party, etc. I think I also knew, deep in my bones, that it was all going to work out. My instincts proved true; the owner, who was very charming, graciously accepted our offer and agreed to all of our requests, including leaving the appliances. The dream had begun to take shape.

And the best was yet to come. I was now facing what was threatening to be a nightmare of endless trips to the bank and labyrinthine red tape at the Notaire’s office. Stephanie and Darrell smoothed the way, even letting me fax a request to transfer funds from their home when the bank suddenly closed in the middle of the day due to a plumbing catastrophe in the bank building. Thanks to Stephanie’s legal proficiency, signing the Promesse de Vente at the Notaire’s office turned out to be a pleasurable and informative experience, and, getting together with the apartment owners afterwards for a drink at a nearby café turned the whole affair into a congenial gathering of friends. The work of Paris Real Estate Finders, however, was not over. They agreed to not only take care of the final signing for me, as I would be back in the States when my apartment transaction closed, but also offered to set up my insurance, utilities, the arrangements for the building charges and even to assist with overseeing the interior renovation!

Things took a decidedly festive turn during my last week in Paris with the arrival of Jacquelyn, who, though not minding having missed being a part of the apartment search frenzy was very ready to help celebrate having found the apartment. The week of getting together with friends culminated with a wonderful dinner with Darrell and Stephanie who deserve an award for having created a business which not only provides excellent service but which also delivers a product which can best be described as "the apartment of your dreams in the City of Light". Thank you, Stephanie and Darrell, for helping to make a dream come true!

Now that the dust has settled and we are the proud--no, make that ecstatic--owners of a Paris apartment, Rebecca and I want to thank you for the many ways that you helped us in the purchase of that apartment. We know that we could have never pulled it off without your professional assistance. We found you to be incredibly knowledgeable about Paris real estate values, locations, and opportunities. Your fluent knowledge of French language, laws, and rules and regulations turned an intimidating experience into one that actually was fun (well, at times). Your honesty and persistence had several salutary effects: we got exactly the kind of apartment we wanted, we had realistic expectations of the purchase process, and that process took place pretty much on time and as expected (despite several last minute, unexpected events). In other words you prepared us well and then ably assisted in the process. Moreover, we would not shy away from repeating the experience again. Anyway, you are both terrific people and skilled professionals. We will recommend your services to any friends looking for a Paris Apartment.

Our first conversation with Darrell and Stephanie went something like this:

Us:"Uh, yeah, we'd like an apartment in Paris, and we understand you guys help people with that sort of thing."
Darrell and Stephanie:"Sure, we do that. What type of place are you looking for?"
Us: One that doesn't cost us any money because we don't really have any. Is that going to slow the process down at all?
Darrell and Stephanie: "We'll see what we can find."

It wasn't quite that bad, but we're certain that nobody came to PREF with the kind of budget limitation we were throwing down. We just wanted anything - no matter how small - that would allow us to hang out in Paris every few months, maybe rent a few weeks a year and encourage our friends and family to travel into Europe cheaply and easily.

It turns out that we got more apartment than we ever really expected. We're proof that Darrell and Stephanie will work within a tight budget. It took us more than a year to raise the funds for our tiny piece of Paris, but PREF stuck with us. And as soon as we were ready, they sprung into action.

Amazingly, this dynamic duo found us what we regard as a complete bargain. We paid about 110,000E for our studio, which has a large living area, fully equipped kitchen and private courtyard in a great building. The sales price was actually UNDER our budget. Yes, you read that correctly: Our buyer’s representatives came in under budget. Shouldn't there be some sort of award for that?

We trust Darrell and Stephanie —so much that we didn't even see the apartment in person until the day we signed the final documents. They sent us digital photos and their opinions of the place. We took a leap of faith and signed the power of attorney. And when we stood in the space for the first time, it was even better than we had imagined.

The apartment did require more cosmetic love than we anticipated, but we asked for a fixer. There was about a week of rather painful and tiring plaster rehabilitation in the living area, which had been covered with poorly-adhered yet tenuous wallpaper. After the walls were smooth and several bottles of champagne had been consumed, there was still another week of crown moulding, base moulding, painting, sanding and more -- none of which would have been possible without Darrell's advice and tools. The guy might as well serve as a consultant for Castorama (a French version of Home Depot).

Let's face it, without Darrell we might have never figured out that "sous couche" is primer or that "satin" paint is what we would call semi-gloss. Darrell's tutorials on French plaster were also invaluable.

Stephanie's gift is her command of French and ability to navigate the mysterious world of French business. We only caught glimpses of her finest work, which often happens behind the scenes. For example, our loan officer sent us an email saying a certain financing plan was impossible. Within a day or so, we had an email saying it would be done. Pure Stephanie. Regarding another request, our loan officer wrote "We have made an exception for you as you were introduced by Mrs. Freedman." Stephanie has an uncanny ability to persuade people to do things that will benefit her clients.

We would not have achieved our dream as quickly and efficiently without Paris Real Estate Finders. We truly consider their fee a bargain for the service received.

ONE YEAR+ TESTIMONIAL:.

More than one year has passed since we purchased our tiny piece of Paris with the help of Darrell and Stephanie at Paris Real Estate Finders.

Buying our Paris apartment was the best crazy decision we ever made. Plus, our apartment is the best (and coolest) investment property we have ever purchased.

So, for the uninitiated out there, here are some thoughts about the first year, along with a few suggestions:

1. All the advice Darrell and Stephanie gave us was dead-on correct. Good thing we listened.
2. Expect to feel oodles of pride and joy about your apartment while developing oodles of grey hair.
3. We love the neighborhood more every trip.
4. We don't love France Telecom and their amazingly detailed method of billing you for everything that involves picking up the phone.
5. We still don't understand French billing cycles. Five months, then one month, then two months...whatever. Just pay when the bill arrives.
6. Never purchase an apartment too far from Castorama.
7. If you don't know what Castorama is, find out.
8. Our property manager is the best thing that ever happened to our apartment.
9. Thanks God Darrell and Stephanie recommended our property manager. (See item No. 1)
10. If you don't speak French, learn fast.
11. Embrace the fact that your Paris home might be next door to a tattoo parlor. Ours is.
12. Try not to cry when the scary French collection agency letter arrives about an unpaid insurance bill for 60 Euro you never got in the first place.
13. Try not to kill anyone when the insurance bill arrives a few days after the collections letter.
14. Try not to be depressed that you still can't speak French on the telephone.
15. Feel utterly confident that Darrell and Stephanie will be saving you more money and headaches than you can possibly imagine.
16. Still, there will be a lot of money and headaches required when purchasing your apartment. BYOT - Bring your own Tylenol. Or Prozac. Or Valium.
17. Control freaks and worriers should sign up for therapy BEFORE searching for and buying the apartment, not after.
18. Enjoy saying, "We own an apartment in Paris."
19. Try not to gloat.

We just welcomed in 2004 in our Paris apartment. We spent New Year's Eve in a local restaurant, looking back to a hectic week in August when Darrell and Stephanie helped us find the place. It was a great end to a most eventful year.

We had booked a week in their Douai apartment and arranged to meet up to discuss how they could help us. We decided we would take the plunge and sign an agreement with PREF to help us find an apartment. We were a little uncomfortable with having to pay a significant proportion of the fee up-front (what if PREF were unable to find suitable apartments?), however, once we had decided that we definitely wanted to buy, it seemed a small risk to take.

We really need not have worried. We met Darrell and Stephanie and spent some time discussing just what we were looking for and working out a short-list of properties to view. Stephanie suggested a couple of walks we should take around a couple of areas she thought might be suitable.

This was a great success, we found some parts of Paris we wouldn't otherwise have visited and got a much better feel for what we were looking for.

Things moved very quickly, we looked at 5 properties over the next couple of days. We ended up buying the fourth apartment we looked at, signing the promesse de vente on the Thursday.

Working with Darrell and Stephanie removed much of the stress of buying property. We knew that they were constantly looking for good value properties in Paris and had an excellent feel for the market value. They quickly got a feel for the sort of thing we were looking for and were able to ensure we didn't waste time looking at unsuitable properties.

Having someone that really knew the area intimately was invaluable in finding the neighborhoods that had the right feel for us. They also took us to properties we would not otherwise have visited, including the apartment we ended up buying. We had sat across the road from the apartment having a drink whilst waiting for the vendor without realizing that this would be the one.

The property was being renovated when we looked at it. I really liked the apartment, my wife had a harder time picturing how it might be once the workmen had left. We went for lunch nearby and discussed what to do. The more time we spent in the neighborhood the more we liked it and in the end it was a very easy decision to make an offer on the apartment.

Stephanie was particularly helpful, coming with us to the notaire's, acting as translator and explaining exactly how property sales are made in France. She also put us in touch with people to help us out with a mortgage, bank account and kitchen renovation.

Things moved very quickly during that week and we did wonder a little if we had been too impetuous. We couldn't wait to be back in Paris to complete the sale and see the apartment again.

We need not have worried, the apartment is a real pleasure to visit and each time we go there we like it more and more.

Regarding apartments —the French real estate system is not at all like the one in the US, and working within it to find and purchase an apartment is much more difficult than would be the case for a similar situation in the US. The principal difficulty is the lack of multiple listing service. In the great majority of cases each agency is concerned solely with its own listings. Even agencies in the same group —for example, Century 21 —are independent, and don't work with one another.

So you can find and work with a realtor, and build a relationship, and then find that what it comes down to is they can't help much beyond the properties that are listed with them....

A second problem is the various good faith and hidden defect protections we take for granted in the US exist —if at all —in a much attenuated form in France. It's "caveat emptor" (let the buyer beware) with a vengeance! I found my first apartment after a search that spanned several month-long visits to Paris, and involved a whole lot of walking around, looking and listening, and dead ends. Finding the second, which I purchased several years after the first, was a little easier —I had my "network" in place, and learned about it just as it was coming onto the market.

As it happens, some friends of mine in Paris —an American couple who have lived there for several years —have in the last year or so helped several of their friends find apartments in Paris, and have, of late, taken this on as a sort of sideline business. They're very savvy, and can really help in separating the wheat from the chaff, and cutting through the BS and red tape. So you might find it worth-while to get in touch with them.

One final suggestion is that while I personally have found a "central location" to be the kiss of death so far as apartments and true neighborhood life is concerned (it's great if you like exhaust fumes, noise, and hanging out with tourists) getting a place outside of Paris may be going too far in the other direction.

[Mark K. owns two rental properties on Montmartre in Paris and can be reached at: mk@alink.net]

Doug and I were traveling to Africa with greater frequency, and often passed through Paris en route. As Doug had business in Paris over Thanksgiving, 2003, we decided to rent an apartment to house ourselves, my daughter Lauren, and Doug's aunt, who was joining us to help with Lauren. It was then that we decided to buy an apartment in Paris as a long-term investment and a stopover point, hoping that we could cover the mortgage by renting out the apartment. I did significant research on the internet, and quickly landed with Darrell and Stephanie, who, it turned out, were visiting friends in Portland, Oregon (where we live) at the very moment I was e-mailing them, and were able to come by to meet me. Serendipity!

We signed on with them, and told them that we only had one week to find the perfect Paris apt. We knew what we wanted (a light, airy, rentable 3-BR apt. in a good neighborhood), and we knew we would be quick to make a decision if we found the right place.

They told us that we probably had to either adjust our price or our space requirements. But we knew that if we were in Paris, we had friends and family that were sure to come visit, so the third bedroom was nonnegotiable. After visiting several disastrous and not-quite-right apts. After looking in various quartiers, Darrell and Stephanie suggested that we look at the apt of another client of theirs, who might consider selling. Ultimately, this apt. on Montmartre (the Amelie neighborhood) almost perfectly fit our needs, so Darrell and Stephanie set up the deal - This was an apt. that wasn't even on the market! As we were in no rush to move in, we could wait until the current apartment lease was over, which will be August, 2004.

Very importantly, before we came to Paris, Darrell and Stephanie got us through the maze of connections and paperwork required to both get a French mortgage approved and open a banking account while we were in Paris in November. This was invaluable.

We are very pleased with our experience, and would recommend PREF to anyone.

The idea to buy an apartment was born during the 2003 heat wave in Paris where we stopped for two days on the way from Montpelier to London. At that time we were to get married in 10 months and the idea was to make a wedding present to ourselves - our first big project together. Initial attempts to communicate with local estate agents were not very successful: only 2 agents replied to our calls and e-mails and we saw altogether two apartments that were not exactly suitable for human habitation. It was clearly a "sellers' market". [Our idea went into hibernation until February].

During one of the frustrating Internet searches Julia came across PREF. With no personal referrals and no independent sources of information on them we approached PREF with a lot of caution and minimum expectation. Our experience proved us wrong. When we met with Stephanie and Darrell in their charming flat just few minutes away from metro Blanche we immediately felt at ease. Their personalities, manners, knowledge of the market, way of communicating their ideas and the apartment itself made us feel welcome. During the following two months of the search and two months of closing we came to appreciate their professionalism and reliability.

Darrell's succinct real estate data tables packed with information on newly available flats allowed us to cut down on the number of trips to Paris. In two visits we have seen 4 apartments and settled our eyes on the one that we really liked. Then Stephanie took over the entire negotiation and closing process where among other more trivial negotiation and closing items Stephanie helped us to deal with an unexpected request of the seller to increase the offer price and, later, to move the closing date.

Although PREF services could have seemed rather steep when we started our search. By the time we got the keys to our "honeymoon" flat in Paris we felt that they have earned every "penny" of it and more! We keep in touch with stephanie and Darrell and find their advice on Parisian real estate related matters as useful as ever.

After a fleeting visit to Paris over Christmas I began to consider buying an apartment there. No other major European city offered the same cultural wealth, central location (frequent direct flights from the US etc.) while still being somewhat affordable. I knew that attempting to buy a property on my own would be almost impossible. I speak terrible French, do not know the city and most of all I had zero vacation time to search. My aunt in Ireland generously offered to go looking for me but even that did not eliminate the most practical barriers. So I started looking for someone in Paris that could help and fortunately found Darrell and Stephanie.

After many, many pestering emails I established that the whole thing was viable. Darrell and Stephanie were extremely generous with their time, information and patience even before we agreed to work together. They recognized the difficulties in remote buying but finally agreed to show my aunt, in place of me, a limited number of properties. If things didn’t work out they were willing to pause the search and resume it once I was available to go to Paris myself.

One week prior to her first trip they suddenly let us know that they had found the perfect place for me. I had given them a huge, seemingly impossible, list of requirements to meet but they found a property. Most importantly, they had carefully listened to what I was looking for and constantly kept an eye out for new listings that matched my criteria. Given the brisk nature of the market in Paris I had to make a decision almost immediately. The apartment was only on the market a day and there was a lot of interest in it (multiple offers were subsequently made but mine was the first). Darrell and Stephanie had sent lots of digital photos which were invaluable but I couldn't bring myself to commit to it - we hadn't even begun looking and the arrondissement wasn't the top of my list. I asked my aunt to fly over to see the apartment which she willingly did. She agreed that it was what I was looking for but felt uncomfortable given the fact she had nothing to compare it to.

Already anticipating this Darrell and Stephanie had quickly set up viewings of other apartments that, given the short notice, they could show. Having satisfied this doubt we happily agreed to move forward. I was lucky that my hesitation had not cost me the apartment. If I was to go through it all again with Darrell and Stephanie I would simply put my full thrust in their judgment. It's not in their interest to find a client something they don't want. Their business is small and almost a hobby. They want you to be happy because that's what makes them happy doing what they do. By the way don't assume that because they are small you will get less attention or that they are somehow less motivated. Darrell and Stephanie are the two most efficient, honest, hard working people you will ever be lucky enough to work with. They are also extremely nice people.

So now I am looking forward to some day seeing my apartment and actually meeting Darrell and Stephanie face to face!

Unless you have a real estate license in France, (maybe even if you do) it would be a mistake to buy property without Stephanie and Darrell at PREF! Not only were they incredibly knowledgeable and extremely hard working but they made the process fun. If you have not bought property in Paris before there is a lot to learn, even if you are very experienced in other markets including major cities. Things work very differently there and it is especially challenging for a foreign buyer to do well. After we found my ideal apartment Darrell and Stephanie followed up on the details and did all the little things that ensure the process goes smoothly. This included being the point person for the different French parties and even interceding with some less-than-customer-centric organizations there to get problems fixed before they derail your closing. I am sure that without them I would not have had such great success getting my place in Paris.

Kris was featured in the program "Moving To Paris" that was aired on House & Garden TV in December, 2004.

Imagine if you will.... taking an 11 hour flight from San Francisco to Heathrow and managing to miss your flight connection to Charles De Gaulle/Paris.. With the clock ticking away on a valuable "apartment shopping Saturday" you write off the cost of the London to Paris flight and then rush via train into central London. You jump into a crosstown taxi taking you from Paddington to Waterloo station asking the driver to run every red light he can, and hop on the next Eurostar train to Paris. After a quick taxi ride from Agree du Nord you arrive at Darrell and Stephanie's apartment, meeting them face to face for the first time.... and aside from saying a quick hello being told "IF YOU NEED TO GO TO THE BATHROOM DO SO NOW BECAUSE WE NEED TO LEAVE IMMEDIATELY!".

So began one of the longest days of my life, and I might add one of the most rewarding as well (one must put their wedding day and the birth of their two children first of course). I landed on Darrell and Stephanie's doorstep exhausted, with bags in hand. Yet within 5 minutes I was speed walking with the both of them while at the same time receiving a data download on what apartments we were about to visit. Why such a rush? Simply put the three best days in which to see the most of any given week's new apartment listings in Paris are Thursday through Saturday, and I could not afford to miss the only one of those three days I had built into my schedule for that week.

Now who would know such a silly thing? Darrell and Stephanie know. This is why I chose to hire them, as have many others before me. The two make quite a team. Here you have two Americans living in Paris one a retired physician, the other a retired attorney. That's quite a bit of brain power and combined they work seamlessly in order to provide me, the interested buyer from another country, a way to purchase real estate in central Paris while at the same time paying less than I would had I used a French Realtor. Excuse me but this model sounds like a win-win. I thank Google for finding their service, Paris Real Estate Finders.

Is there a downside to all of this? Of course you are buying property in an ancient (by American standards) city. Property in Paris has it charms and challenges. You cannot expect the luxury that suburban America provides you. On the other hand you will get more for your money than you would get in Manhattan...it all depends upon your perspective and expectations. For me the idea of owning in Paris is priceless. Regardless, if you succeed with their help, as I have, you will LOVE your piece of Paris and never regret the decision. Let's face it...there is only one Paris on this earth.

Am I really an interest rate expert? Well I do work for a very large Financial Institution, and tracking rates is a large part of my job. Of course if I knew the future of interest rates I would be rich! Consider these current beliefs about European rates: It is common knowledge that short term rates in Europe are less volatile than those in the US. The reason is that the EC is dealing with more economic challenges than the US (many nations, higher unemployment, recession in Italy, politics..etc)and as a result is more motivated to keep short term rates consistently low in an effort to stimulate economic activity. What this means is that you should feel comfortable financing your purchase with an ARM and have less of a concern that your monthly mortgage payment might rise significantly during the life of your loan. Of course you do have the option of locking in reasonable fixed rates if you choose (rate will be slightly higher and you will have a prepayment penalty, unlike and ARM which has no penalty).

One more piece of advice. Do yourself a favor and use the bank the Darrell and Stephanie recommend to get your mortgage (BPI). I tried an alternate institution and nearly lost my property in the process. In the end I used BPI successfully and will be forever grateful to them.

Thank you Darrell and Stephanie for your assistance, patience, and ongoing advice. Your service is invaluable.

Jeff Horn/San Francisco, California

Experience with PREF.

So... You think you are smart? You think you are persevering? You think you have read enough books and talked to enough people about how to purchase property in France? You think you can speak French 'good enough'? You think you can invest/find the time to figure out 'the system' for purchasing property in Paris? You think you don't need PREF's help.

Well, you are wrong. .

Ok, you may be smart, persevering and fluent in French... we don't know each other, I can't assume. BUT on everything else, you ARE wrong. I know this because I was once like you. It's Ok... I was wrong too. The purchase of property in Paris is similar to New York in the sense that you need to be at the right place, at the right time, with the right people, saying the right things, wearing the right clothes, smiling the right way, with the right amount of money available immediately...and NO second guessing. If you are all those things... then maybe, just maybe, you can get the type of property that you are looking for. It is hard to put yourself in that situation in Paris. The decision to buy here is simply too important and too time consuming to not go in with someone 'in your corner'. It really doesn't matter how hard you work at it. In my opinion, you will need Darrell's and Stephanie's help to do it right.

I did great with PREF. .

I found exactly what I wanted, for a competitive (versus the market) price, in the exact area I wanted to live. After looking on my own for months, I can confirm I would have never done that well on my own. They also handled many of the 'nuances' that inevitably unfold. Nuances that, if done alone, would have sent me home pulling my hair out. It is also quite comforting to be able to ask someone (even jokingly) why my lender needs to know when the last time I had surgery was. Or why I need my family to write a letter stating that I am an American (despite having provided my original U.S. birth certificate, my U.S. passport, and all my U.S. assets).

Yes, purchasing a property in Paris is exciting, emotional, frustrating and complex. It's worth the ride, but I would suggest to anyone considering this adventure, work with PREF. They will pay for themselves many times over, especially when considering the alternative realtor fees.

I wish you luck and good hunting.

"I had come across Darrell and Stephanie's web page in 2003 while browsing French real estate sites. I remembered thinking they were the kind of people I would hire 'if' we ever got around to buying a pied-a-terre in Paris. We had briefly flirted with the idea when my younger brother, Pierre, had lived in Paris earlier. Fast forward to May 2004. My brother had moved back to Paris and asked if we still were interested in buying an apartment in Paris, hint, hint, and that if we did he'd be happy to rent from us.

I sent D&S an email asking if they thought they could help us out. We lived in Korea and were too busy to go to Paris that summer, but my brother could assist in the apt. search. Could this be done? D&S said they could help us, but we should keep in mind that the real estate market slowed considerably in the summer.

As it turned out, the slow summer season gave us a chance to do all the paperwork necessary to get a bank account (which as others have said, is an escargot-paced process) and arrange to get 'pre-approved' by a mortgage specialist introduced to us by Stephanie. It was important to us to know what our borrowing range could extend to and that a French bank would consider us for a loan since our location was 'unusual'. D&S provided us with all the introductions we needed, which probably saved us a lot of time.

When September came around, we were all set to begin searching in earnest. We had been in Paris several years ago for our honeymoon and had fallen in love with the 18th arrondissement and Haussmannian buildings. At first, wanting to limit our budget, these seemed beyond our means, and we briefly looked at more modern buildings in arrondissements that were less to our liking. The first apartments we were interested in were flawed in someway - poor location or wrong type building. The more we thought about it though, the more we realized that Stephanie and Darrell were right: we'd have to fork out a bit more if we were going to be happy with our purchase. We also realized that would only be happy with the 18th and an ancient building. We pushed our mortgage amount to the maximum and scraped together more money for a down payment.

Since my brother is fluent in French, he and Darrell went by themselves to look at apartments. Stephanie didn't want to 'overwhelm' the owners. Apparently, French owners selling 'particulier-a-particulier' are wary of agents and anyone that even seems to be acting in an 'agent-like function'. My brother brought along a digital camera and kept us updated by emails. Pierre told me he was impressed with all the little details that Darrell paid attention to, and appreciated his easy-going manner. My husband and I felt completely confident that Pierre was well looked after and getting great advice.

With a more focused search, it didn't take long for them to find the apartment we ended up buying. It seems Darrell had a knack for 'reading between the lines' when it comes to apt. listings. They were one of the first to see 'the' apart. It had all the features we had listed as 'must have': charming, calm, bright, not too much work needed for Pierre to move in, 18th arrondissement, etc… Pierre sent me the photos the next morning and gave me his impressions and Darrell's over the phone. My husband and I both agreed it was just what we were looking for. We gave the go ahead and made an offer.

At this point, Stephanie's strong suit (acting as assistant negotiator and power of attorney on our behalf) kicked in. Everything was taken care of promptly, and very professionally. She signed the 'promesse de vente' on our behalf, and the rest was taken care of via emails and a few phone calls.

There is no way we would have been able to purchase this apartment without the assistance of Darrell and Stephanie. Darrell's eagle eye for spotting good listings and structural defects and Stephanie's knowledge of the process and system cleared the way. As I tell my friends, the money we saved by having everything done from the comfort of our own home easily paid for their fee. Next time we go to Paris, we can simply enjoy ourselves and stay with Pierre (and save even more money!)."

It's been nearly a year since we finalized the purchase of our Paris apartment, six months since a repairman's sledgehammer came flying through the bedroom wall, five months since our first renter checked in, and just a week since our last stay in the City of Light. We think it's time to put our thoughts to paper.

Several years ago, on a visit to Paris, we passed the window of a real estate office and noticed an abundance of seemingly inexpensive apartments. How could we lose? That was the beginning of learning that we had a lot to learn. Things like how a room the size of the average American broom closet could be considered an apartment in Paris. Or how an apartment advertised as "needing a little freshening up" could mean the entire electrical system wouldn't meet the fire code.

We stumbled across Paris Real Estate finders on the internet and thought what an intriguing idea it was that a couple of Americans had made a new career for themselves helping others find a home in Paris. We received a quick and encouraging reply after filling in the online form, and met Darrell and Stephanie on our next trip to Paris. We're still not sure who interviewed whom! We really appreciated that Darrell and Stephanie seemed to be interested in limiting their clients to those who are realistic and who will benefit from PREF's guidance.

We put our purchase on hold for a year due to a major renovation at home. When we called PREF again, we learned that Darrell and Stephanie had already committed to another client during our planned stay in Paris. Darrell generously offered to sort through some of the real estate ads that might meet our criteria and send them to us before our trip. With infinitely more confidence in our French skills than we had ourselves, he and Stephanie suggested that we make some appointments on our own and call them if we found something we liked. Even though they were busy with other clients and we had not yet signed a contract with them, both Darrell and Stephanie were generous with their advice.

We spent days calling apartment owners, visiting real estate agents, setting up visits, wondering why the owners and realtors didn't show up for the appointments, and marveling at our apparent misunderstanding of common French terms like charme, grande and parfait etat. With a good measure of self-satisfaction, we survived the ordeal, found an apartment we liked in just eight days, and set up an appointment with Darrell and Stephanie to begin the purchase. They grilled us mercilessly over a glass of wine and agreed to go with us the following morning to make an offer. After the visit, Darrell and Stephanie said simply, "It's not a bad apartment, but we could find you something a lot nicer." We accepted their challenge, and with a somewhat burst bubble, headed to the airport for our flight home.

We agreed that Darrell and Stephanie should look at apartments in our absence and email us photographs of those they liked. We originally planned to catch a last-minute flight to see a recommended apartment in person, but we quickly realized that the market for a really good apartment at a decent price moves so quickly that there would be no way of getting to Paris before a French buyer snapped it up. In what could have been a wildly irresponsible decision to entrust such an important and personal task to a couple that we barely knew, we asked Darrell and Stephanie if they would be willing to make an offer on an apartment even if we had only seen photographs. We were probably more comfortable with this plan than were they, because Darrell and Stephanie are committed to finding the "right" apartment, even when that may mean encouraging clients to reconsider their initial desires and restrictions. They take their job seriously and are anxious to deliver good results.

Even with this arrangement, we missed out on three apartments because of the speed of the market. We spent hours combing the online real estate ads, sometimes forwarding interesting finds to Darrell and other times checking out his recommendations. About a month after beginning the search, they found the apartment we now call home.

We expected that the search would be the difficult part, but the financing, legal and renovation issues were far thornier. Fortunately, PREF willingly shared banking contacts, acted with our power of attorney, and kick-started the kitchen and bathroom renovations. We cannot overemphasize the importance of PREF's guidance through this part of the process.

We visited the apartment for the first time several weeks after the purchase was completed. Armed only with a faint idea of our desired "look", a list of building supply and hardware stores, and Darrell's complete description of the essential differences between French and American paint, we launched the "do it yourself" phase of our adventure.

Notice that we use the word "adventure". It was, in every way, an adventure. A luggage cart became our best friend as we made innumerable trips to the giant Castorama hardware store and aimlessly wandered the labyrinthine aisles of the BHV sous-sol searching for obscure pieces of hardware whose French names we didn't know. In just seventeen days, we managed to remove carpeting; patch walls; paint; hang window treatments (be sure to ask Darrell about pitons); shop for furniture, accessories and small appliances; and install internet and cable TV. We even managed to plant geraniums in our balcony window boxes.

The experience was at once exhausting and exhilarating. We held up under the withering glares of commuters as we carried a 9'x12' Persian rug onto the Métro. When we got on a particularly crowded Métro train with an Art Deco cocktail table from one of our favorite antique stores, we placed it right at the knees of a seated passenger, calmly turned toward him and asked if he'd like a cocktail. A bit of humor was useful to dispel an otherwise tense situation-a skill that came in handy on many occasions.

Buying an apartment without seeing it in person, much less in a foreign country, is not for the faint of heart. There were many surprises, some pleasant and some not, but the biggest surprise was learning just how resourceful we could be in meeting a completely unfamiliar set of challenges with the help of two new friends.

After our short stay at our apartment last week, we can truly say that we have a "home" in Paris. It is comfortable, intimate, and convenient. Oh.and did we mention that we have a view of the tip of the Eiffel Tower.

Thank you, Darrell and Stephanie, for helping us achieve our dream!

It all began on a trip to Paris. On an overcast, gray day, while strolling down a thoroughly unremarkable Paris street somewhere in the 9th arrondissement (a street that by any other city standard would be considered absolutely stunning), a single thought arose, "Life is quite nice wherever you are, but right here it is especially good." I couldn't get it out of my mind. One thing led to another and here is living proof of how a single random thought can change your life.

If you are reading this, then you, too, must be experiencing random thoughts of your own, and feeling that nagging combination of wistfulness, curiosity and apprehension, as well as thinking "what if?" or "I wonder how?" Or maybe your mind is made up and now it is time to jump the hurdle of "How the heck to I do this?".

Here are a few suggestions.

1. Contact Darrell and Stephani.

   Note that this is the first item on the list. In order to achieve that castle-in-the-air dream of owning a Paris apartment, you need to build a staircase from the ground to reach it. Darrell and Stephanie will provide that stable foundation in which to build, with their exhaustive knowledge, experience, vast network of contacts, and tremendous goodwill. They will give you an entirely realistic assessment of what is out there and what you can expect given your own requirements and situation. They are also very nice people. If you are not convinced, read the other testimonials.

2. About that idea of buying in the Marais (or Latin Quarter or St. Germain).

   Gently put that idea aside for now. Be open to other options. But…but…but…you are thinking…that's what I want. Unless you are a recent lottery winner you will probably end up like me, viewing a cramped apartment in a rather depressing part of the Marais with a spiral staircase so narrow that body parts got stuck trying to climb it and with living quarters so small the owner used her washing machine as a nightstand. This is a true story. On the other hand, it did give me plenty of creative ideas on using an open dishwasher as an easy chair with a footstool made out of a microwave oven.

3. Walk.

   Paris is filled with wonderful little neighborhoods completely off the tourist grid. Each day, Darrell and Stephanie would say "Take a look at rue Poncelet, or Batignolles, or the charming pedestrian street in the 14th arrondissement." Grab a good map and go. You won't regret it. You never know when you might turn an unexpected corner and fall madly in love. I set one foot inside the Parc de Monceau (never heard of it? Neither had I) and knew that this is where it was at for me. Besides, now I have a full roster of fabulous "undiscovered" little neighborhoods to tell friends about.

4. The pace is frantic. Then it is not. Then it is. Then it is not.

   I dashed around the first few days seeing at least 6 apartments, ended up putting a bid on the first one I saw and thought everything was all wrapped up neat and tidy in less than 4 stomach-churning days. Then the deal fell apart. But by then all of Paris had shut down for a one-day national holiday, which in reality meant that the entire real estate market decided to leave town on Wednesday and didn't return until the following Tuesday. After more searching, Darrell and Stephanie got me the first appointment to see an apartment and boom, we were off to the races again, putting in an offer within 10 minutes, completing the mortgage paperwork and signing the promesse de vente in the space of a couple days. Then I went home and waited three months for the closing. Learn to work in spurts and spend all free hours walking the city and over-researching which patisserie makes the best chocolate eclair.

5. Bring a lot of seemingly odd paperwork with you.

   Darrell and Stephanie will provide an excellent list of what is needed - all sorts of proof of who you are, what you are, and where you came from. The mortgage company might ask your height. The bank will want an old electricity bill. They may also want proof that you were born by demanding to see birth certificate. The fact that you are standing there breathing will be considered only partial (and highly dubious) evidence.

6. Courage.

   Remember to have fun in the process; to buy an apartment in Paris is to launch yourself into an adventure.

7. Are you still reading? Go back and do step #1.

J'ai rencontré Duane et Lise par l'intermediaire de Madame Freedman qui m'avait contacté suite à la mise en vente de mon appartement. J'ai tout de suite été séduit par le contact simple et naturel de Madame Freedman ainsi que par son serieux. Par la suite, Duane et Lise sont venus avec elle pour visiter l'appartement qui semblait correspondre exactement à leur recherche. Le choix de Madame Freedman etait très juste et tout est allé très simplement ensuite et sans probleme aucun. Afin de rassurer ses clients, Madame Freedman a souhaité prendre le notaire avec qui elle traite habituellement, ce qui ma paru très naturel.

Duane et Lise sont mainenant installé dans l'appartement dont il revait à Paris et peuvent compter sur moi s'ils ont besoin d'aide sur Paris. Tous mes remerciements vont à Stephanie Freedman pour le serieux avec lequel elle a mené cette transaction.
Thierry.

I met Duane and Lise via Madame Freedman who had contacted me when I put up my apartment for sale. I was immediately touched by Madame Freedman's direct and natural style as well as by her professional approach. Following her visit, Duane and Lise came with her to the apartment, which appeared to be exactly what they were looking for. Madame Freedman's choice for them was just what they wanted and our transaction proceeded very simply and without any problems. To assure that her clients were protected legally, Madame Freedman had them represented by the notaire with whom she regularly works, which seemed totally appropriate to me.

Duane and Lise are now owners of the apartment of their dreams in Paris and can count on me if they need help of any sort here. All my thanks to Stephanie Freedman for the professional way in which she handled our transaction.
Thierry Gregoi.

Lise and Duane's Buyer Testimonial:..

Dreams can become reality, but only with commitment, good fortune and with a little help from your friends.

As Jimmy Buffett once said in a song "he went to Paris looking for answers to questions that bothered him so" and so did I in 1969. I have now forgotten the questions and I doubt that I found any answers, but I did fall deeply in love with Paris. From that time forward I vowed that some day I would move to Paris; going so far as to reply in a 1974 job interview when asked where I saw myself in 25 years (he meant professionally) I answered Paris--I did not get the job.

My commitment to live in Paris was always there, but it took the good fortune of marrying a wonderful and beautiful woman who supported my dream and made the dream hers as well. Oh, and did I say she has some money of her own. The next part is where the help of my friends comes in. We met with Darrell and Stephanie in August of 2005 when they were visiting friends in Oregon. We immediately knew that they were the kind of people we wanted to work with. Up to that point I could not figure out how to make the dream come true, my inability to speak French being only one of the problems. They filled in the blanks with information and offers of assistance so that Lise and I knew by the end of our August meeting that we could make it happen with their help.

The actual process was very easy, especially because Darrell and Stephanie knew what we wanted better than we did. They had helped us pre-qualify for a loan with a French bank and they found our place before we arrived. I am further convinced that the connection Stephanie made with our seller M. Gregoire was instrumental in making it all happen.

I am confident in saying that we could not have purchased our Paris home without them. We are still relying on them to help us when we get stuck which happens when we least expect it. For instance, when we met with a window man to discuss replacing a bookcase with a new window; we were so pleased with our communication skills only to be told later by Stephanie that we had ordered mirrors for the bookcase and not windows. Without them I may have achieved my dream at some point, but in hindsight I am not certain how or when.

After a trip to Paris and much musing about what it would be like to own an apartment there and whether it would be a good investment, an article in the New York Times prompted us to contact Stephanie and Darrell. A few months later we were on our way to Paris to look at apartments, still not sure whether we would actually go through with it.

Upon our arrival in Paris, Lauren helped orient us to the Paris real estate market. (Darrell and Stephanie were on vacation during the first days of our stay.) She took us to apartments in various neighborhoods and encouraged us to walk through different neighborhoods so that we could narrow the focus of our search. We immediately felt comfortable with Lauren - it was fun to spend time with her, and she really understood our questions and concerns. By the end of the week, when Darrell and Stephanie had returned, we narrowed our selection to three possible apartments.

Darrell, Stephanie and Lauren were great at highlighting the pros and cons of each in terms of neighborhood, whether the apartment would make a good investment, whether it would rent well, and generally helping us feel that we weren't doing something crazy. With Darrell and Stephanie providing advice and moral support, we made an offer on the last apartment we saw - the night before we were flying back to the U.S. - and it was accepted on the spot. The sellers, a charming French couple with a young baby who were moving to a larger apartment, sealed the deal with a great bottle of Bordeaux, which we shared while chatting in their living room. So different from real estate transactions in the U.S. in which you often never meet the sellers.

Once the offer was accepted, Stephanie handled everything that needed to be done up through the closing. She was always very professional and responsive. E-mail communication was easy. We also had a very positive experience with the mortgage lender they referred us to, who we met while we were in Paris and then who handled everything easily by email. With the references to banks, the notaire, and so forth that Darrell and Stephanie provide, and the assistance on the ground from Stephanie, all of the post-offer business proceeded smoothly and with a relatively little amount of effort on our part. Stephanie even negotiated with the sellers for us to purchase appliances, light fixtures and curtains at a very reasonable rate (these things are not included in the purchase in France).

We are now looking forward to furnishing and spending time in our apartment, and working with Lauren to rent it.