How we take a house into our care
Five stages, from the initial diagnostic to the annual review. A written method, applicable to any villa on the Bay, and verifiable item by item.
A method is only worth something if it is written down, applied identically to every house, and verifiable by the client. Here is ours.
I. The estate diagnostic
Everything begins with a survey that looks nothing like an estate agent's visit.
We inspect the roof at close range, by drone or from the roof space depending on the building, locate and photograph every service run, record the age of each item of equipment from its data plate, measure moisture at the sensitive points, and inspect the grounds, trees included.
Three documents are delivered within fifteen days.
The vulnerability audit. A reasoned inventory of the villa's weak points — exposure, openings, services, outbuildings, surroundings — ranked by probability and cost of occurrence. Fourteen to twenty-two pages.
The cost of inaction. A costed projection of what unstructured management leads to at three, five and ten years: depreciation, likely claims, premium loadings, loss of resale value. Six pages, with charts.
The stewardship checklist. The annual preventive maintenance calendar, the local suppliers on record, the arrival and closing-up protocols. A working document, meant to be used — including by someone other than us.
The diagnostic is free and carries no obligation. It remains yours whether or not we work together.
II. The stewardship protocol
From the diagnostic, we write the protocol specific to your house.
It sets the frequency and content of visits, the checklist used at each one, the thresholds triggering an exceptional visit — wind above 80 km/h, a forecast freeze, a technical alert — the calendar of seasonal work, the firms retained for each trade, and the spending limit you delegate to us in an emergency.
The document is signed. It can be amended at any time. It is the reference against which our work can be judged.
III. Monitoring
It rests on two legs, which do not cover the same ground.
Visits. Documented, time-stamped, illustrated. They cover what is visible and what deteriorates slowly: the fabric of the building, damp traces, vegetation, the grounds, how the equipment is behaving. A proper inspection of a 200 m² villa takes between forty-five minutes and an hour and a half.
Sensors. Leak, temperature, opening, mains power, and where appropriate water flow analysis. They cover what happens suddenly and what cannot be seen.
We filter alerts before passing them on. A well-tuned system produces few signals; a badly tuned one produces dozens, none of which is read after three months. We grade every signal at one of three levels, and you are called only for the third — after action has been taken, not before.
IV. Coordination
The least glamorous part of the work, and the most time-consuming.
We obtain the quotes, set them against each other on identical scope, put a reasoned recommendation to you, open the door on the day, stay where our presence is useful, sign off the work, note any reservations, and file the invoice and warranty in your record.
We take no commission on the works coordinated under your subscription. A renovation overseen under a separate written mandate is the only case where our fee attaches to a project, and it is then fixed when the mandate is signed.
V. The annual review
Once a year, a written document takes stock.
What was done during the year and what it cost. How the property's condition has moved, item by item, against the previous year. The works to expect over five years, with orders of magnitude and dates. The state of the documentary record. And, where relevant, our recommendations.
It is the document you will hand to a buyer, a notary or your children. It is designed for that.
What you receive, and when
| Document | Frequency |
|---|---|
| Illustrated visit report | Every visit |
| Technical indicator summary | Monthly |
| Intervention report | With every job |
| Summary report | Quarterly or monthly by tier |
| Annual estate review | Annually |
| Full technical record | Kept current |
Where to start
With the diagnostic. It costs nothing, takes ninety seconds to request, and gives you a costed reading of your property's condition even if you then decide to manage it yourself.
Frequently asked questions
How long does the estate diagnostic take?
The site survey takes one to two hours for a typical villa. The three documents — vulnerability audit, cost of inaction, stewardship checklist — are delivered within fifteen days. The diagnostic is free and carries no obligation.
How often does Maison Aubier visit a property?
It depends on the tier and the property's exposure: from monthly to weekly, with additional visits triggered by a threshold — wind above 80 km/h, a forecast freeze, a technical alert. The frequency is set in writing in the stewardship protocol.
What does a visit report contain?
The date and time of the visit, the completed checklist point by point, dated photographs of what was inspected, any faults found with their severity, and the action taken or recommended. It is filed in the property's record.
Does Maison Aubier act without the owner's approval?
Only within a spending limit set in writing in the protocol, and only for protective action to prevent damage worsening. Beyond that, your approval is required. You are informed of every action taken, without exception.
What happens to the technical record if the contract ends?
It is handed over in full, in usable form. The record documents your property, not our service: it belongs to you and is meant to follow you, including to another provider or into a sale.