Frequently Asked Questions

Who are ahouseinbrittany.com?
We are a small family business, just happening also to have our own house in Brittany. Because we had a few unexpected and potentially unpleasant experiences en-route to buying our own dream home...we thought we would like to help people make fewer mistakes!
We have met a number of companies on the Brittany & Normandy side, who are all like-minded in their enthusiasm, fully accredited with the French authorities with whom we form a team to offer properties across Southern Normandy and all of Brittany peninsula...read more

What do www.ahouseinbrittany.com do?
Our role is to show you, on our websites, the type of property available from our agents in as many as ten micro regions of Brittany, from the sophisticated Honfleur, Deauville & Lisieux in Normandy to the chic Concarneau & Benodet on Brittany's South Finistere Coast- from Guingamp and the resorts of Brittany's Cotes d'Armor coast...Lannion, St, Quay Portrieux, Binic & St Brieuc to Dinard, Dinan & St Malo and. Recently we have also added Ille et Vilaine and the north of the Loire Atlantique to our portfolio. If you see the house on our site that takes your fancy we can introduce you to the agent who can show you it and any of the other houses on their own portfolios. The market moves fast and therefore changes rapidly. We don't show all of the properties here...the web would explode!

How much does the service cost?
We make no charges on you, the buyer, before you buy. Some UK agents do and we think that is wrong.The price you see in the description panel is the price you pay...nothing more unless otherwise stated. The all inclusive price includes agency fees and Notaire's fees - which in turn include all of the taxes applied to property transfer and even, in most cases, the local community charges (taxe fonciere & taxe d'habitation) for the first year. But these questions should asked of the local agent during your viewing. We paid no such taxes for the first year or so - because our house was designated as a ruin...no facilities - no taxes until such times as improvements and habitability is established.

Who pays AHIB for doing it?
Well, indirectly the purchaser of any property pays...but we receive a commission from our agents throughout Brittany & Normandy only when you sign the acte finale on the property. And your house does NOT cost you more because of our involvement. Our ability to offer properties via our widening Brittany network allows you to effectively scour the market.

Who arranges the Ferry trip?
Well this is your bit...You do. There are two ways to go about buying a house via ahouseinbrittany in association with our officially registered Brittany based immobiliers.

1. If any of the houses on the site appeal to you (be patient...we are adding new ones as quickly as we can) and you are ready to travel and view contact us giving us the reference. We'll check availability and get back to you and arrange for you to meet the Immobilier during your time in Brittany - You'll then have an opportunity to view the property of your choice and any others that you may have seen on file whilst over there.

2. You may be thinking of visiting Brittany on a viewing trip. If so why not supply us with your travel dates...your address, telephone and e-mail address as well as your buying criteria:- Property type:- farmhouse, longeré, village-house, chateau, manoir, apartment...Location:- rural, hamlet, village, town. Condition:- For complete Renovation, Habitable but a project, Finished. and the Immobilier will use your search criteria to pick houses to present for your consideration on arrival at their offices.

What about services to the property?
Who makes sure that telephone, water and electric are turned on...installed?
Well, 'turned on' (if they exist at the property) is relatively simple. Our agents regard the process of telephoning the major utilities suppliers:- EDF, EGF (Electricity & Gas), France Telecom and SAUR (Water) and registering you as customers as the finishing touch to an excellent service to make sure that you are switched on.

Something more complicated?
Things such as septic tank instalation and building works? Dependent on where you buy - we have good working relationships with a number of reliable sources for fosse septique planning, permission & instalation & building works, Our building contacts will always, also, submit applications for works to the local Mairie on your behalf