Finding Your French Home: How an International Buyer’s Agent Is Changing the Game in Toulouse

After experiencing the confusion and stress of buying property in France herself, Lianna Blazquez turned that experience into a business dedicated to helping international clients navigate both property purchases and rental searches. 

Anyone who has tried to buy property in France as a foreigner will recognise the feeling: unfamiliar paperwork, agents and agencies failing to respond, homes selling quickly, and the sense of navigating a system built for those who already understand it. For international buyers—and for those relocating who first need to find a rental property—in Toulouse and the surrounding suburbs, Lianna Blazquez and her company, International Property Hunter, aim to make that process considerably easier. 

Founded in 2017, International Property Hunter is a boutique buyer’s agency dedicated to providing a highly personalised service for international clients. Whether clients are searching for a home to purchase or a rental property as they settle into life in France, Lianna draws on her experience of living in eight countries across four continents to guide them through the process. 

“I have genuinely walked in my clients’ shoes,” she says. “That is not a phrase I use lightly.” 

Lianna is trilingual in English, French and Spanish, holds a BA from the University of Southampton and a Master’s in European Business from Toulouse Business School, and is a licensed, insured member of the Fédération des Chasseurs Immobiliers (FCI), France’s professional body for buyer’s agents. 

That accreditation is more than a professional credential; it also highlights an important distinction for international buyers. Alongside licensed buyer’s agents, there are relocation consultants and independent property search services that help clients navigate the French market. While many offer valuable practical support, they do not all operate under the same legal framework or carry the same professional responsibilities as a licensed chasseur immobilier. Licensed buyer’s agents are authorised to act as intermediaries on behalf of purchasers, hold professional insurance and are typically remunerated only when a transaction is successfully completed. For overseas buyers, understanding that distinction can provide valuable reassurance when choosing who to trust with one of the biggest financial decisions of their lives. 

One of the defining features of International Property Hunter is that Lianna works exclusively for buyers and tenants. Unlike traditional estate agents, whose primary responsibility is to the seller (or landlords), a buyer’s agent represents only the purchaser’s interests throughout the transaction. Although she may occasionally assist with a sale in exceptional circumstances, her business is firmly focused on helping buyers secure the right property at the right price.

Her service covers the entire buying journey, from refining a client’s search criteria through to the final signing at the notaire. Clients work with one point of contact throughout, reducing the risk of misunderstandings and ensuring continuity during what can be a lengthy process. In addition to property purchases, the agency also assists clients with rental property searches. 

Technology also plays an important role. Lianna uses professional market intelligence and industry databases to analyse listing prices, completed sales, time on the market, and neighbourhood trends across Toulouse and its surrounding suburbs. This detailed insight, combined with her experience, allows her to assess whether a property is accurately priced and identify opportunities for negotiation that may not be apparent to individual buyers. 

"Unlike the US, there's no centralised property listing system in France," says Lianna. "The simplest way I can describe my role is that I become the centralised system for my clients, bringing together the data, market knowledge, and local insights they simply wouldn’t have access to." 

That information can make a significant difference during negotiations. By identifying properties that are overpriced relative to local market conditions, she says she has helped clients negotiate savings ranging from €5,000 to more than €100,000. Clients may also gain access to off-market opportunities through her professional network and the FCI platform, opening up properties that never appear on the major public property portals. 

However, Lianna believes that market knowledge is only one part of the service. Buying a home abroad can be emotionally demanding, particularly for those unfamiliar with the French system. Most of her clients are purchasing in France for the first time, with many relocating from the United States and other countries overseas. 

The average property search takes around four months from the initial consultation to completion. During that time, buyers often face difficult decisions, negotiations and administrative procedures in a second language. Providing guidance through those moments, she says, is just as important as identifying suitable properties. 

For buyers who do not require a full search service, International Property Hunter also offers hourly consultations covering property valuations, negotiation strategy, investment analysis and practical support after completion, including renovation planning, utility set-up and banking guidance. 

As increasing numbers of international buyers continue to discover Toulouse and the wider Haute-Garonne region, specialist buyer representation is becoming a more familiar part of the French property landscape. For those navigating the market from abroad, having an adviser on the ground whose sole responsibility is to represent the purchaser offers an alternative to the traditional buying process—and, for many, a more straightforward route to finding a home.

This article was written and provided by International Property Hunter