PARIS Real Estate Finders (PREF)

About PREF

Who We Are and Why You Can Trust Our Judgment

Darrell Halverson has been in the real estate business in the United States for over thirty years and has invested in Parisian real estate since 1998. He is an experienced property manager and general contractor.

Stephanie Freedman is a lifetime Francophile and a fluent French speaker. She has guided Americans on tours of historic (and even pre-historic!) Paris for years and knows the neighborhoods of the city intimately. She practiced real estate and business law in the United States for 15 years and understands business transactions in France.

Stephanie has been a member of the conseil syndical (essentially, the building management committee) for two of the buildings in which we are owners. She is presently president of both committees. This has been an invaluable experience in understanding the relationship between the management company and owners, as well as giving us more complete knowledge about various construction and maintenance matters in Parisian buildings.

Darrell Halverson and Stephanie Freedman

Darrell and Stephanie are married and have broad experience in business, law and management. They have traveled extensively in France and Europe and have pragmatic skills in negotiation and property renovation.

What Makes PREF Unique

We believe we offer a unique service to parties seeking to buy an apartment in Paris. Traditional real estate agencies in Paris charge graduated fees that are eyebrow-raisers for most Anglophones. 5-10% of the sales price is typical and most commissions occur in the upper part of that range. In addition, most French agents are not accustomed to working with non-French speakers nor are they very attuned to what English speakers may be seeking. As in most countries, they represent the seller. Our business is unique in bridging that gap and in knowledgeably translating the market for you, the buyer.

How we Differ from French Realtors

"Being There First" ... Unlike French realtors who must sell you an apartment strictly from their very limited, in-house listings (regardless of what you may be seeking), PREF helps you refine your specifications and then matches you up with multiple properties that fit your criteria. Because we are positioned to access the broader marketplace electronically, we often learn of an apartment’s availability in the first minutes it becomes available rather than waiting for print media, which lag considerably. Having an early opportunity to buy a Paris apartment that meets your criteria is a powerful advantage in the current, highly competitive Parisian market.

"Buying The First" ... Frequently you, as our client, are the first or second party to see a property. This confers a tremendous advantage for you and, combined with our criteria-based approach, sometimes results in you buying the first apartment you see! Clients who follow our recommendation to "buy the first" often want — and we offer — the reassurance of them seeing additional properties so they can confirm for themselves that they are making the right choice.

To be "ready and able " to comfortably buy the first apartment you see, we urge you to do anything you can to enlarge your knowledge base before you search:

• Walk neighborhoods
• Study maps of areas as they relate to the transportation network
• Ride the buses or a Velib bicycle to observe neighborhoods
• Go out with real estate agents to see what they have on offer

We will always try to get you there first and, occasionally, suggest that you buy the first Paris apartment you see. Amazingly, more than 15% of our many clients have done this!