France: Soft Power vs Hard Power

Climate marchers in Washington, DC. (byFlicker/Hector Emanuel, FOR Survival Media)

Wow. Imagine that the U.S. of A. is no longer the super power we all understood it to be and France took it’s place? It’s almost unthinkable, but according to a recent article in The Local, that’s what’s happening!

“America no longer first as Macron’s France ranked world’s top ‘soft power” “America is no longer first as Macron’s France ranked world’s top ‘soft power in an annual report that measures a nation’s global influence, knocking Donald Trump’s United States off the top spot.” The focus of the report is to “rank countries on their ability to influence other countries through appeal and attraction rather than the ‘hard power’ of military or economic coercion.”

(Download the entire report by Soft Power 30.) 

This fascinates me because of my feelings about isolationism vs globalization. The more the U.S. isolates itself from the rest of the world, the less powerful and influential it becomes. This is already manifesting before our very eyes. The decision by Donald Trump to pull out of the Paris Climate Accord is a perfect example as leaders, scientists and tech giants across the U.S. not only condemned the decision, but U.S. states, cities, and businesses have already refused to accept the decision and have vowed to participate in protecting the planet, regardless.

The point I’d like to make is about the future of real estate values on both sides of the big pond. Property values go up when demand is high and inventory is low. As the U.S becomes less attractive on the world stage and France becomes more attractive to industries of the present as well as the future, France, in addition to benefitting from the Brexit decision, creating the same situation for the U.K., property values will rise. We are already seeing it here in France.

If I were one to vote for my pocketbook (but am not), I would certainly have voted for a Brexit or a Donald Trump, as decisions like these are sending Americans and American industries to “greener pastures.” And in the process, property-owners in France will benefit from their investments. These aren’t political statements with which you can argue. They are simply my opinions based on the facts, not “fake news” or “alternative facts,” whether they be mine or the Soft Power 30 report’s.

Soft Power country comparisons

This is a time to diversify and hedge your bets. Make an investment in Euros. If you love France, do it in France. We’re here to help you. I just arrived in Nice, and will be writing from here for the next five weeks, with the exception of August 10th when I will be formally on vacation — it’s one of the two weeks a year we don’t publish French Property Insider. The Fall is a great time of year to be looking at properties to purchase in France — and we can help you anywhere in the country you like, but specialize in Paris and the Riviera.

Here’s what we offer:

Property Consultation and Relocation Services

Many people don’t have the time nor the resources to look for their own little piece of France, especially if they’re located in the States or other foreign country. Our office offers the resources that will help you find the perfect property and save you valuable time, as well as provide very important guidance to insure you make the right purchase.

We’re equipped to assist you with every aspect of investing and relocating…from determining your goals and needs, to helping you locate the property, to setting up your contract-signing, getting a mortgage, helping you set up utilities or do a renovation and then rent the property on a short or long term basis.

Our team in France can perform a comprehensive search that saves you time, effort and money. With nearly 4,000 rental agencies in Paris alone, finding a property can be a difficult task without a Multiple Listing Service (MLS), which doesn’t exist in France. To find a property on your own would require visits to dozens of agencies and mining through hundreds of listings in one neighborhood alone. Our team will do all this for you and call upon the valuable relationships we’ve built over the years to ferret out the finest properties.

Initial Consultation: It all begins with a one-on-one consultation, by phone or in person, in which we work with you to determine your objectives and parameters for an investment in France. The cost of the consultation applies toward a Search Fee.

Property Search: Our team in France is your resource to help you find the property that meets your needs and desires. After the initial consultation, we turn to our team in France to search, source and screen the properties based on the parameters we’ve defined together. We schedule and accompany you on site visits in Paris and Nice. Clients seeking properties outside Paris can request that we accompany them at the expense of the client for accommodations, travel and meals. As part of the service, we provide a detailed analysis of the properties, including price, price relative to market valuations, real estate and property taxes, monthly charges, property descriptions and photos. We can also arrange meetings with professionals who may be called in to assist in the purchase decision.

Property Purchase: It doesn’t end here…once we’ve found the property of your dreams, we act as a “liaison” and manage the entire process through to closing. We schedule the meetings with the Notaire who prepares and ensures the validity of all documents. A member of the team may accompany you. We schedule the signing of the preliminary purchase agreement (Compromis de Vente or Promesse de Vente). Note that at this time you must provide a deposit of 10% held in escrow by the Notaire. French law gives you a period of 10 days to reconsider your decision. Should you decide to withdraw from the purchase, your deposit is refunded.) There is a two-to-three month period till closing. On the day of closing, the Notaire will retain the deed of sale on the property and then it is registered with the Bureau des Hypothèques. At this time, no other person has any rights to this property. Notairial taxes and fees of approximately 7% are paid at the time of closing.

Fees: Relocation Consultation and Search Fee is non-refundable and based on the budget of the property. The final “Finder’s Fee” consists of a commission based on the final total purchase price.

Get started now! For more information, to schedule a consultation or to request our contracts, email: [email protected].

A bientôt!

Adrian Leeds
The Adrian Leeds Group

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P.S. Don’t forget to set your DVR for another episode of House Hunters International. Re-airing of “Perturbed in Paris,” August 10. See us in action as we assist yet another client in finding their perfect property! Details available on our HHI page