Hello everyone, I will be moving to Montpellier on September 1st. With the help of a friend, I have been able to secure a place for the first 3 months I will be there, but I am looking for a long-term furnished rental after.

Has anyone used a rental agent they can recommend, who perhaps also speaks English? I am not familiar with the different neighborhoods (yet!) and could definitely use the help in trying to sort out my next landing spot. When I moved to Malta, I was fortunate enough to be introduced to an agent known to a friend. With his help, I was able to find something I liked even in a very tight market.

I will be coming to visit Montpellier in the second half of July and am hoping to meet with at least one agent at that time to discuss some options.

Your referral and assistance are greatly appreciated! Thank you.

Relocation specialists Renestance - French Lifestyle Dream - Renestance are headquartered in Montpellier (actually, in Lattes, a suburb). They are not a real estate agency, but the owner is a registered real estate agent. Their business model includes all types of services for english speaking clients wishing to relocate to France, specifically to the Occitanie region. We used them to help put together a scouting trip, do a property search to find our apartment in Nîmes, help with our visa application, our carte vitale application, our driver license exchange, referral to a french tutor, as well as hand holding through utility and phone/internet setup.

 

Just be aware that a relocation agent (which it sounds like this relocation specialist is) will cost considerably more than a rental agent. You may or may not need or want that level of assistance. In general, with a rental agent, you pay the agency fee for any property you wind up leasing that was shown to you by the agent/agency (and you are generally notified of the amount of the agency fee for each property before you are shown it).

 

You are absolutely correct. Renestance is a relocation agency that offers much more, and costs more, than a rental agent. That said, they do customize their services to your needs. You can engage them for a full "package", services "à la carte", or even an an hourly rate. They definitely cost more as you are buying their expertise in helping (primarily British and US) foreigners through both the property/rental search and acquisition and through the administrative processes needed to transition to your french community.

 

Thank you, both. Yes, I am aware of Renestance and have looked at their website. As I am trying to keep the costs of this move as reasonable as possible, I am hoping to just find a real estate agent who can help me find a long-term lease, and deal with everything else myself. I like to work with people who are recommended because at least then I know they have done a good job with others.

 

One other thing to know about rental agents here in France is that they aren't the hand-holding type you find in many English-speaking countries (particularly the US). It can be next to impossible to get one to "look for you" and it isn't normally possible to engage a rental agent via email before your arrival. They just don't seem to work that way. Definitely start looking at whatever listings you can find online so that you can determine the going rents for particular areas and sizes of flats - but until you can walk into the agency and/or take an appointment to see a few places, you're unlikely to get much information out of them.

It's based on the fee system here - before any agent will show you a place, they will have you sign a paper stating you agree to pay the fee for that apartment if you rent it. It's not uncommon for a flat to be shown by more than one agent - and if you let a second agent show you the same flat, you'll be on the hook for both agents' fees if that's the flat you want.

 

Thanks, Bev. Yes, I am coming to visit for the last two weeks of July and hoping to meet with at least one agent at that time in person. This is why I am trying to find someone now, so I can book an appointment with them for that time. And thank you for the warning regarding more than one agent showing the same flat. Something to definitely watch out for!