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We constantly add client’s
comments to our Happy Buyers page. Many of our previous buyers have
provided written references for us, and have freely given their
telephone numbers to us so that potential buyers may hear first hand
about our service. Please feel free to ask if you wish to take us up on
the latter. Here is what some of our buyers chose to say about the
totally Group:
"We felt that TotallyRiviera
listened to what we said we were looking for, which meant that when we
arrived we were presented with a selection of apartments that were all
of interest. The walk around town and the viewings were relaxed and we
were able to go at our own pace. Tristan showed us around, he was
attentive and friendly, we were at our ease very quickly.
"Once we saw our apartment we knew this was the one we wanted, from
then until now TotallyRiviera have been there to answer our questions, to
introduce us to a Financial Advisor and to Builders for the
refurbishment project. I absolutely recommend TotallyRiviera, they made it
so much easier for us than it would be without their local insight and
support."
Bill James and Karen Westaway, Henley
Property purchased on place du Palais
"We found your service super; the website is a class act.
"Your
friendly informal and very helpful assistance was most valuable,
including recommendations of mortgage brokers and rental agents.
"We would not hesitate to recommend you or indeed use to your services again ourselves."
Nick Davenport, Lake District
Property purchased on rue Benoit Bunico
"We found totallyRiviera
made trying to buy a flat in Nice a virtually painfree experience.
Tristan and Dennis gave us efficient, reliable, reassuring and friendly
service.
"They actually listened to what we had asked for and
gave us a well-organised day of property searching. And on a Saturday
too when you might have rather not been working. As well as all this
you have given, and are continuing to give, wonderful post-purchase
attention. We can't sing you praises highly enough. Thank you."
Elizabeth Brown, Surrey
Property purchased on rue Halevy
"It’s always been a dream of ours to buy a second home in the
South of France and now we have to keep reminding ourselves that it
isn’t a dream anymore and we really own one!!! I’m pretty sure that it
wouldn’t have happened, and definitely wouldn’t have gone so smoothly,
if we hadn’t have met Tristan and Dennis from Totally Nice. We were
quite sceptical at first when we randomly came across their website and
sent them an email. Our worries were completed unnecessary, they were
extremely helpful but not at all pushy, so we took our chances and
arranged to meet Tristan in the centre of Nice to start our property
search. From finding us somewhere to stay and organising our viewings,
through to nearly one year later, accompanying us at the signing of our
contract with the Notaire and advising us on the renovation work in our
lovely new apartment!
"We wouldn’t hesitate to recommend them,
they’ve been absolutely brilliant! It’s been the most exciting year
ever and we’ve loved every minute of it… Thanks guys!!"
Lucy Sainsbury and Stuart Bryant, London
Property purchased on rue du Pont Vieux
"I started to look for properties in Nice through Totally Riviera in
February, as being half French, I wanted to relocate to France. But
then I was promoted in my job in the UK and I decided to stay there.
But I could never quite put Nice totally out of my mind!
"On holiday in Nice in June, I idly scrolled through the list of
properties on the Totally Nice website on Tristan’s laptop. I spotted a
gorgeous little apartment for only €94,000! I pestered Tristan to show
me it. Once inside the flat, I fell in love with it right away. Though
it was up 5 flights of very steep stairs, the sun flooded in through
the big windows and there were stunning views of the colline and the
sea from the bedroom. I knew that it would make the perfect investment
and I just had to have it!
"Later on that day Tristan suggested I speak to Peter Brooke, a
mortgage advisor. Peter told me that he would be able to find me a
mortgage to suit my needs. The next day I was raring to go to the
estate agent and put in my offer. “Don’t you want to see the apartment
again?" asked Tristan. The answer was a resounding “No!” I had never
before been so sure that I was onto a good thing. So I put in my offer
of € 85,000. But I had to wait for an answer…
"I had to leave for the UK the next day, and as I was waiting for my
bags at Baggage Reclaim at Stansted, my mobile rang. It was Tristan.
“The vendor will accept €86,800!” I was over the moon and couldn’t stop
squealing. People stared, but I didn’t care! I’d gone away for a
holiday and came home with a property!
"Totally Riviera found me a notaire to handle my purchase. All I had to
do now was wait until the signing date! I signed the Acte Authentique
on the 13th September and at last the apartment was mine. But it wasn’t
all over just yet. I had just seven days in which to clean the
apartment, furnish it completely, get a plumber to make plumbing for a
washing machine and find a tenant! No mean feat but I managed it with a
little help from my friends!
"There have been many highs and lows to buying a property on the
French Riviera. When I found out that the plumber Tristan had
recommended could do the job the very next day, I was delighted. You
don’t get that in the UK! And when the tenant I’d found loved the house
almost as much as I did, and wanted to sign the rental contract the
very same day - that was a high! The worst low must have been being
told by the delivery men that the lovely bed I had ordered wouldn’t fit
up the 5 flights of stairs. Receiving the sorry news was made all the
worse by the fact that I had the world’s worst hangover and I could
barely move, let alone make a rational decision!
"I know I have been incredibly lucky with my property purchase, and
a lot of it has been down to Tristan and Dennis. Aside from being great
fun, they always know someone ‘who can’ and everyone they have
introduced me to has been more than helpful.
"Totally Nice totally made it happen for me… thank you so much guys!"
Iona Connor, London
Property purchased on Place du Gesu
“We
had been visiting Nice for 10 years and our dream was to buy a pied a
terre in the old town, but lack of time meant that we got no further
than looking in the estate agents windows until we found the
totallyNice website on Google and arranged to meet Tristan on our next
visit to view some properties.
“We did not find an apartment
first time, mainly because we had not quite decided on our budget and
priorities, but thanks to Tristan’s invaluable advice (and patience!)
we returned a couple of months later and saw a number of 'possibles'
including the apartment we eventually bought in a 17th century building
on rue Benoit Bunico.
“Again, Tristan helped us enormously in
negotiating with the seller, dealing with the Notaire and opening a
French bank account, all of which would have been much more stressful
without his contacts and local knowledge. He even advised us of the
best places to shop for inexpensive antiques! We completed in July and
are thrilled to have our own bolthole in such a great city.
“Tristan
and Dennis have become friends and continue to assist with anything
from finding local contractors to keeping an eye on the apartment when
we are away."
Carole and Kevin Keaney, Manchester
Property purchased on rue Benoit Bunico
"From our first meeting with Tristan we felt completely at ease
and in the company of someone extremely pleasant, helpful amd whom we
could trust. Our initial confidence was not misplaced. There was
no element of 'hard sell', nothing was pressed upon us, what we wanted
was what counted, and nothing was too much trouble.
"After we
had been shown numerous apartments we made our choice. But we were
innocents abroad, with scarcely a word of French between us. How were
we going to cope with the intricacies of buying in France, with its
different ways of proceeding, and its own niceties of legal
requirements?
"No problem! We were not alowed to flounder in
an ocean of foreign customs and demands. Tristan was always at hand,
and had the remarkable quality of making you feel that whatever
your enquiry, and however much you felt that you were wasting his time,
you were actually doing him a favour! He should bottle this ability and
market it.
"I don't know how many clients totallyNice has, but
Tristan makes you feel that you are the only one, and that his
reputation rests precariously in your hands. We are totally satisfied
with a company that is 'Totally Nice' in every sense."
Owen and Dilys Milton, Cardiff
Property purchased on rue de la Prefecture
"I live in Dubai in the Arab Emirates, and had been thinking of
investing in the South of France for about 18 months. It wasn't until I
spoke to totallyNice that things started to happen. I received email
updates on properties that the team thought might interest me and with
a list in my pocket I flew to Nice and purchased within three days.
"After my departure the totallyNice guys organised renovation work on the apartment. A great way to do business."
Stephen Marney, Dubai
Property purchased on rue du Marche
"The idea of buying a property in Nice can be so seductive. When
you think about it, it’s all about the food and the weather really,
isn’t it? Nice is just so damn…nice, and when there’s no reason not to
treat yourselves, why hold back? You talk it over, work out what you
can afford, then talk it over a lot more before convincing yourselves
that that perfect flat - minutes from the beach in one direction and
the best food you’ve ever eaten in the other – is only one quick visit
away.
"Problems begin though once you get on the Internet and
start wondering just how many estate agents there can be in one city.
Next, you find out how little information you can expect from any of
them. Emails remain answered. Your French isn’t good enough to ask all
the questions you want to on the phone, even if the agents want to give
you the answers. Before long, you’ve decided to cut to the chase, get
on that cheap flight and spend a day or two trawling the agencies to
nail the flat of your dreams.
"Then you wonder where you’re
going to start. You might pick an agent specialising in your preferred
area, but it’s all hit-and-miss really. You get precious little
information and far too many of the agents want to show you properties
just over your budget, hoping that a really smart one will hook you in.
The choices are bewildering, the stresses boil up and anxiety takes a
hold. Before long, you’re plodding the streets of Nice, stopping at
dozens of windows and spending hours arranging viewings of flats you’re
never going to buy, with an agent who doesn’t really understand what
you want.
"That is where the scourge of all spellcheckers,
totallyNice, comes in. Spend long enough on the Internet looking for
properties in Nice and you fall over them before long. Run by ex-pat
former journalists Tristan Rutherford and Dennis Broadfield, they offer
a package of support and communication that smoothes over more of the
inherent problems in property buying in Nice than you’d believe
possible. Unique amongst property agencies in Nice, they also don’t
charge a penny as their cut comes from the agents. It all seemed too
good to be true, but we couldn’t really see a downside.
"We
dealt with Tristan. We gave him an idea of what we wanted, our budget,
and the areas of Nice we were interested in. He did the legwork and
came up with a short list to match our spec, and an itinerary of
viewings to fit into a one-day visit. We went for two and filled the
second day with repeat viewings and honing down our final decision.
That was it, and with less stress than we had ever managed during
previous failed trips, we surely had our dream flat – a four bedroom
duplex smack in the middle of the old town with a statue or two of a
bishop for company and a view over a bustling square. Tristan handled
all the communication with the agents and we went home happy, waiting
for the legal bit to start up.
"A few days later, the building
society dropped a bombshell, relenting on previous assurances and
refusing our loan. It was back to square one. Badly disappointed, we
gave Tristan the bad news, and he told the agent. She was furious, but
he stayed cool and we started all over again with a different plan and
a much-reduced budget.
"Trip two introduced us to a new set of
properties, and we didn’t take long to choose a tiny studio this time –
four floors up with no lift, but a great view from its balcony. A
couple of months later, the Notaire eventually got our details right
and, after a short but delightful ceremony at her office, the flat was
ours. We found an English builder on the Internet and put him to work
on the refurbishment. Two or three more trips later, all the work was
done, and we had our own bolthole on the Riviera, with mortgage
payments we could afford without having to rent out the flat, something
we would have had to do with Plan A. Had it all been really that easy?
"In
truth, it was Tristan who made the whole thing much easier and a lot
less stressful and, on top of everything, it really hadn’t cost us a
penny. It made a big difference knowing there was someone on the ground
on our side that we could trust, and who took care of so many minor
problems. He’s more than earned the meal and the few beers we’ve shared
together over the past few months.
"At the end of the day,
it’s hard to imagine why anyone would choose not to use totallyNice
when buying, particularly in the old town, where they have near blanket
coverage. They knock off all the rough edges around acquiring a
property and they know the systems well. They’re very easy to deal with
and – most welcoming of all - don’t see you as some other punter to be
ripped off, unlike many businesses in Nice who can dive in all too
often.
"In fact, try as I might, I can’t think of a single
complaint. If you’re buying in Nice, it would seem foolish not to give
totallyNice a chance."
Peter and Sue Corbett, Liverpool
Property purchased on rue Rossetti
"The guys were brilliant from start to finish. Professional,
slick and genuinely nice people. As a Director of my own firm I'm
extremely busy and I could not have done this without Den and Tristan
helping with the organisation. They even went as far as to open a HSBC
account for me, hire a van and driver, and find me a translator for my
final signing in Grasse.
"I didn't find the exact place I was
looking for on the first visit from Liverpool as the area of the Old
Town didn't suit me. We changed the brief for the second visit and
looked more in the Bl Victor Hugo and Promenade areas where I found the
place I wanted."
Jo Winnard, Blackpool
Property purchased on boulevard Gambetta
"We
came upon totallyNice by chance - just by searching for properties to
buy on Google. I have to say I was slightly sceptical at first. I am
always nervous about people promising to do things for me that won't
cost me a penny!
"However, my scepticism was entirely
misplaced. Dennis and Tris took on board the detailed specification we
put together. We visited Nice for a weekend and they took us to see
eight properties, seven of which were absolutely on specification. We
really liked a couple of the apartments but thought one in particular
looked like a bargain so we decided to put in an offer straight away.
"And
this is where totallyNice really proved their worth because they
thought it looked like a bargain as well, but perhaps too good to be
true. They made some enquiries in the neighbourhood and found there had
been a big fire in the apartment and that the builder who had renovated
it afterwards was not prepared to guarantee the condition of the
property.
"Rather than taking their commission and running,
Dennis called us straight away and told us that his advice was not to
buy. We found his honesty very reassuring. We then put in an offer for
the other apartment we liked, which was accepted. totallyNice
recommended an excellent Notaire to work for us and the purchase went
through without a hitch.
"Since then they've also helped us
get insurance, hire vans, buy furniture, find a handyman to do odd jobs
and maintain the apartment for us and shown us where to buy the best
wine, cheese and charcuterie in Nice! The best thing is we know that if
we have a problem, Dennis and Tris are right there in Nice just a phone
call away and always willing to help and advise."
Ian and Kate Simpson, London
Property purchased on rue Marechal Joffre
The fall and rise of buying in Nice Old Town by Chris and David Wheater
Saturday 13 November 2004
We
spend a pleasant and interesting day with Tristan in the back streets
of the Old Town looking at 7 or 8 properties that fitted our brief but
weren't quite right. At five o'clock we sit disconsolately looking out
over the Baie des Anges reviewing what we have seen but deciding that
none of them was exactly what we were looking for. Tristan phones us to
say that he has the key to one of the properties we had planned to
visit on Monday. We agree to take a look. Before I even enter the
apartment my son, who went in first, exclaims 'This is it!'.
Sunday 14 November 2004
We
have a day off. Breakfast in France, morning coffee in Italy, lunch in
Monte Carlo and dinner back in France. Over dinner we decide that we
don't need to see any more properties but need a second look at the
last apartment we saw yesterday. We contact Tristan and tell him.
Monday 15 November 2004
A
second look at 'our' apartment and we decide to visit the Estate Agency
to make our offer. The agent says that there might be a problem because
the apartment is not really on the market yet!
The following week
Messages
between the agent, and Tristan and us. One of the vendors, one of the
partners of the couple who own the apartment, has agreed to sell but
the other is out of contact. After over a week of waiting they decide
not to sell! Tristan's comments are not repeatable and we feel
dreadful.
Tuesday 30 November 2004
A phone call from Tristan and the agent who tells us that the vendors have decided to accept our offer after all!
Friday 25 February 2005
Finally
visit the Notaire for the 'Acte Authentique' and get the keys to the
door. Our thanks to our new neighbour Tristan at totallyNice for all
his help and sympathy. We could not have done it without him.
David, Margaret, Chris, Becky and Tim Wheater, Rotherham (and Nice)
Property purchased on Rue Rossetti
"It
is not often in life that you can make a purchase that satisfies both
the heart and the head, but buying in Nice's Old Town has done both. I
now have my own slice of romantic Riviera life — all shuttered windows
and wonderful views — while still satisfying my need for a sound
property investment in an appreciating area.
"What made the
process all the better was the service and attention I received from
the totallyNice team. I was met by one of the Directors, Tristan
Rutherford, who proved to be both a great source of local information,
and an enjoyable guide. Tres bon all-round."
Michael Furniss, Staffordshire,
Property purchased on rue St Josephe
"We fell in love with Nice on our first trip in July 2004 and on
our return home began to look, initially out of curiosity, at
properties in the area on the Internet. It was while doing this that we
came across the totallyNice website, which we found extremely
informative. In a rash moment, we emailed an enquiry into the
likelihood of being able to find a property within our price range in
the Old Town.
"Tristan's reply was prompt, down to earth (we
couldn't really expect to find somewhere with a balcony for what we
could afford) and dangerously encouraging! We decided that we would
like to view some apartments (just to get a feel of what was on offer)
and Tristan arranged a Saturday viewing itinerary for us at short
notice in October. We had a wonderful day looking at different
properties which had been carefully matched to our criteria and at the
same time benefited from Tristan's "insiders' guide" to Nice.
"We
fell in love with a wonderful light and airy studio on the rue Droite
at first sight, and Tristan was happy to accommodate a second viewing
to confirm what we thought, even suggesting a third visit in the
evening when it was dark to see if we still felt the same. This we did
after enjoying a glass of wine with Tristan at a local bar.
"The
advice we received was sensible and at no time were we under any
pressure. In fact, Tristan was at pains to prevent us rushing into
anything before we had thought it over carefully – too late, however,
as we were completely hooked! As soon as we got home we emailed to ask
him to make an offer on our behalf and were thrilled to receive an
email back the following day to say that our offer had been accepted.
"During
the process of completing the purchase of the studio, Tristan was
unfailingly helpful, chasing up things in Nice on our behalf, offering
advice and answering the bizarre questions that kept occurring to us –
including 'there's no letterbox, how does the postman deliver the mail?
(The answer was surprising!) The moment when the initially very
tentative dream became a reality and we collected the keys to our
property was magical.
"If we had not come across totallyNice,
we are sure that our second home in Nice would have remained a fantasy.
We cannot recommend them highly enough. See you in Nice!"
Vincent and Angela Holt, Leeds
Property purchased on rue Droite
"I
have holidayed in the South of France for several years and I love old
Nice. Everything is on your doorstep from cafes to markets to beaches.
I was amazed at the cheap price of houses and apartments here, which
persuaded me to invest.
"When you go into a French estate
agents you often have to wait around, be shown tat, and they can't
answer your questions on rental incomes, mortgage repayments,
transferring money from abroad etc· The team at totallyNice could
answer these queries, and they got my specifications just right when I
told them what I was looking for. They even helped find me a mortgage,
insure my apartment, get rental guests in and help me knock a wall
down! As far as I'm aware, no one else offers this product on the Cote
d'Azur, let alone in Nice."
Constantine Azar, London
Property purchased on rue St Francois
"With
the UK housing boom over I looked abroad to invest. The Sunday papers
told me about totallyNice so I telephoned Dennis, one of the partners,
with my spec. They emailed back a list of properties within budget (and
none over budget as some agents do!) with details on each one, right
down to what was happening on each street.
"Being freelance, I
hope to work in London three days a week then commute on the cheap
easyJet flights. You can do the trip in a couple of hours if you have
access to Luton, Stansted or Gatwick. I also hope to rent my place and
swap it with family and friends who have second homes themselves."
Samantha Jacob, London
Property purchased on place Rossetti
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