Hello Everyone! :)
I ve just try for the last 3 weeks to rent a little flat in the middle of Paris for my Australian family who preferred ask me to do it.
I was happy to help, what a TERRIBLE EXPERIENCE!!
Ok, if don%26#39;t want to have the same DISAPPOINTMENT that i had, read me:
At first, be prepared that french people living in big town are at 90% : not polite (* don%26#39;t have to be proven), selfish (*1 i can proove that)...and always complaining or negative...
If you think i m myself negative, just remember that the french way to talk is naturraly not very diplomatic and already you ll feel less frustrated after contacts with frenchies!
Anyway if you manage to see the 10% left you ll realize that we are also nice, good laugher and %26quot;really good provider food people%26quot;! ;)
The %26quot;agences immobilières%26quot; (= private offices who look after building, organise rentals and sometime organise as well short rental for holidays) don%26#39;t give too much informations!
They often infortunatly just want you to sign the contract and receive the paiement!!
Be aware that when the paiement is done, you%26#39;ll get (at 99%) nothing from them again if the law don%26#39;t oblige them to!
SO, FIRST thing twice and pay them only when all your questions have been answered to!
SECOND: BE ADVISE!!!!IMPORTANT!!!
In France, lots of %26quot;bad%26quot; attitude are registrated every year and more with strangers (a little bit everywhere in the commerce) but not a lot of people are punished because french law is very very long, so nobody even try if they don%26#39;t have money to through away!!!
THE BETTER WAY is for you to avoid the justice thing and to keep you safe before anything happen, that%26#39;s better and that what we all try to do (the French advised ones!)
- If you can understand french or want to try google translator, just look on google.fr for:
%26quot;Guide pratique des locations de vacances%26quot;
(the Fnaim give all the good advice)
(Like its name shows, its the guide of the rental for holidays) All the tricks to know are inside!
If you don%26#39;t bother, just know that your %26quot;CONTRACT de LOCATION%26quot; (official document you ll sign meanwhile you pay part of the holiday rent) must have a part called: %26quot;DESCRIPTIF de la location%26quot;
who explain where is the rental, the quality of the bed, the furnitures, the area...the access time to go to the beach, the train station...etc...if the cleaning is included inside the price...and all the rules of the rent.
Is that is not included in your document, just ASK for it!
THEY MUST DO IT!
Often (the bad one) just protect themself and don%26#39;t care about the client.
(Your contract has got to be in english, that%26#39;s normal for the french to have a full translation of the french one, please, only sign the english one!)
KNOW THAT if they are serious, you won%26#39;t have to ask them, it will be normally included inside the contract!
In place, if you have a %26quot;sh..%26quot; quality bed or bad flat in comparaison of what they made you pay for (not at all what you saw on photo), tell them by phone immediatly or when you enter with them in the appartment!
If they don%26#39;t do anything about it, send them a letter with a proof of it (special %26quot;lettre recommandé avec accusé de réception) by law in the first 3 days with all the details of what is not good and not identical with your %26quot;contract descriptif%26quot;!
Your letter can be in english, don%26#39;t worry, just write everything you are not happy about, even the small details!
Even if you don%26#39;t go in court, they will know that you protect yourself about it and they should be really annoyed and move their bum to be arranging the problem!
After that, if you really want, there is association free for the comsumer %26quot;association de consommateur%26quot;...but that would be long...
THE BETTER and EASY WAY is to be sure, before you sign the contract and pay, that the descriptif is clear about all little details and included in the contract form!!
If they do it without you asking for it, they know that they should be serious about the next parts!!! ;)
For MORE french rules/informations:
-They normally can%26#39;t ask more than 25 ou 30% of the rent when you sign the contract. (Often they ask 50%! So they do all to be safe themselves!!!)
-By law you don%26#39;t have to take an insurance for the days you are in the rental place but some agence ask you to take one! (The owner have an insurance for it all normally)
BE careful, if they ask for it in the contract, they could refuse you to get in if you don%26#39;t one!
They generally to take an insurance through them (they will enjoy that...and/but that the easy way for you as well!...)
Or you can take it on your own. (= take the proof with you the day you come in the rental place, in case they ask for it!)
--)Be sure to read well your contract about that and to be clear with them before you go there, so everything will be fine.
-Payment through paypal, when you pay, will keep a trace.... that could be helpfull?!
In any way, pay nothing if you didn%26#39;t receive your contract with the descriptif at your name, at the good date and the amount you are going to pay written clearly on it! (stupid, i know but be sure of that after you looked at all, don%26#39;t forget the basics!)
That%26#39;s all! ;)
GOOD HOLIDAY to you!!!
French food is excellent, enjoy:
-The cheese: camenbert, cantal, tome de savoie, fromage de chèvre...etc
-the win...
-the %26quot;charcuterie%26quot;: pâté, mousse, saucisson (hard one), foie gras (if you have some money to spend)...etc
-cakes and breads %26quot;baguette moulée%26quot; or %26quot;baguette tradition%26quot;!...
Enjoy! :)
Hope that i helped someone :)
florence
*1: My sister, 7 months pregnant, going to work, had a low blood pressure and falled on the train station in the morning (Chatelet les halles, just middle of PAris). All the people looked at her from around! Only one old man came to help her before the ambulance arrived!! Incredible insn%26#39;t it?!
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%26quot;If you think i m myself negative, just remember that the french way to talk is naturraly not very diplomatic %26quot;
And during all that time I thought French was for centuries the language of diplomacy !
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Your post is so funny..
It is too bad your relatives trusted you to help them , it sounds like they would have had MUCH better luck reading this forum regularily and looking into some of the highly recommended agencies that rent apartments for holidays.. many posters here only rent apartments and are very happy with results they have had.. I guess you just were not informed enough to choose a good agency.. I live in a tourist city ,, and I do not know everything about it either,, of course one doesn%26#39;t if one has a home.
Next time suggest they do read more here.
That is a shame about your sister, it is the same in many big cities,, people are not sure what the problem is, is she tricking them, ( pick pocket) is she on drugs,, that is what some may think,, it is a sad fact of life in a big city.. I hope she is taking some time off work to rest, that is the only and best solution for her.
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Thanks Florence, that was a really interesting read!
I%26#39;ve just booked an apartment in Paris and was intrigued by your saying that insurance is not compulsory... One of the agencies I considered said that it was. I%26#39;ve ended up renting privately and asked about the need for the insurance mentioned in the contract - the owner said that the public liability part of my travel insurance would be fine to cover any eventuality. The fine print in my policy seems to agree, which is good!
halwimsey
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... I vented all my anger in my big first post! :)
...and i m happy if it can be usefull to someone...
...or make laugh/smile some others....
:)
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Thank you for this informative post!
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