Starting the Paris Apartment Search
The Paris apartment rental process can be overwhelming. There are so many apartment web sites and agencies out there, yet there’s so little information available for those in the U.S. who have to plunk down cash for an apartment sight unseen. Here are some things you need to know about a Paris apartment search.
As I mentioned in my Renting an Apartment in Paris post, you can either rent through an agency (many of whom charge an agency fee or “finder’s fee” that can be anywhere from 30%-100% of one month’s rent), or you can rent directly from the owner of the apartment and avoid agency fees completely. There are pros and cons to each approach.
What you get in exchange for the agency fee is (a) the convenience of the agency locating and booking the apartment for you (which you could theoretically manage on your own), (b) the assurance that the apartment and the owners are legitimate, (There are exceptions to every rule, but a vetted listing on a reputable agency’s site has much less risk of being a scam than a random Craigslist ad), (c) the service of someone who can communicate with the owner on your behalf if you don’t speak French and they don’t speak English, and (d) an intermediary who can field complaints during your stay or move you to another apartment if needed (although not all agencies take responsibility for this. Some back out of the process completely once they’ve connected you with the owner).
If you work directly with an owner, the biggest downside is that you are responsible for vetting the owner of each apartment you’re considering yourself to make sure they’re legit, and I’m not really sure how you do that other than through word-of-mouth referrals. Owner-direct sites like VRBO make no guarantees about their apartment listings. The upside is that you would avoid agency fees by renting direct from an owner, and you can save that dough for a little Paris shopping. For owner-direct apartments, which will not charge you an agency fee, search sites like VRBO.com (Vacation Rentals By Owner), Flipkey.com (owned by TripAdvisor.com), homeaway.com, and homelidays.com
If you’ve decided to use an agency to find an apartment in Paris, the easiest approach is to first decide who to rent from and then narrow down the apartment you want from within their inventory.
How to Quickly Narrow Down Your Paris Apartment Agency Choices
I’m going to let you in on something I had to figure out on my own. Most Paris apartment agencies are geared toward short-term vacation renters. Why? Because there are more of them, and because they’re more profitable. The rent that a vacationer pays for a week is what a long-term renter would pay for a whole month.
Some agencies rent on both a long-term and short-term basis, while others are short-term only. Some short-term agencies have a maximum stay and won’t even rent to you if you want to stay a month or longer. Narrow down your search to agencies that specialize in long-term rentals. Look for owners and agencies who quote prices by the month, not by the week or by the night. If you want to live in Paris, you can rule out the following agencies, as they specialize only in short-term apartment rentals: Paris Perfect, Perfectly Paris, Paris Vacation Apartments, Paris Interiors, Haven in Paris, Parisian Flat, Vacation in Paris, Paris Rent Aparts.
What does the Paris Apartment Agency Actually Do? Middleman vs. Manager
Some agencies, like Paristay, do nothing more than list the apartment and connect renters with owners. In this case, you might see the same apartment listed on several agencies’ sites, which can make it difficult to determine the apartment’s true availability. Other agencies, like Centre Paris, actually manage the apartments that they list on behalf of the owners. In this case, the apartment is listed only on that agency’s site, and they would be the primary conact in case of any problems. And in other instances, the owner has only one apartment and runs his/her own web site to rent it out.
All Paris Apartment Agencies Are Not Created Equal
Some agencies have better site search capabilities, better photos, or larger inventories than others. Some sites are a pain to search. Some agencies accept more payment options or have more flexible payment terms than others. Some specialize in certain Paris neighborhoods. Some have newer or nicer apartments than others. Some agencies are budget-minded, some are luxury, and some are in-between. Some agencies you’ll find are based in the U.S., which makes communication and processing transactions easier, but can make it difficult for you to contact anyone locally in case of a problem at the apartment. The same goes for agencies based in Switzerland, the UK, Italy, and anywhere outside of France. Start paying attention to these things as you look at agency sites, and you’ll soon settle on a handful that are best suited to meet your needs.
In a future post, we’ll explore specific ways to do background checks on the various apartment agencies and get Paris apartment referrals, and I’ll share with you my specific criteria for selecting an agency and an apartment.
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