Paris in July: The Parisian Agency

I am pretty picky when it comes to reality shows. Unless it is a foodie show, for example, Masterchef Australia, or occasionally a home or garden show (think Love it or List It or UK show Love Your Garden) it is very unusual for me to watch a reality TV show. I have never watched a Kardashian show and have no intention of doing so. I could continue to list off all the different types of reality shows I haven't watched but that would take forever.

Instead, let me get on with posting about a reality show which I have watched not one, but two series of over the last year or so.

The Parisian Agency, or L'Agence as it is known in France, is a reality show which features high end property, predominantly in Paris, although they do ocassionally venture further afield to the French countryside and other locations.

The show centres around family business, Kretz Family Real Estate. The company was started by Olivier and Sandrine Kretz, and now their three sons Martin, Valentin and Louis all work for them as well, based in the lounge room of their house in the Boulogne district of Paris. The youngest son, Raphael, is still at school but there is no doubt that joining the agency is in his future too. And then there is Majo, Sandrine's mother, who lives nearby and drops in and out. They seem to be an incredibly close family. I mean, you would have to be to be able to work together all day, every day and then still spend time family time together too. Which doesn't mean that there aren't moments of conflict between them.

At one point, Valentin says "we’re an ordinary family dedicated to extraordinary places and people". One half of that statement is definitely true. They definitely take us to extraordinary places, and we get to look at the houses through the eyes of the mega wealthy who can afford to pay the eye dropping prices that these houses sell for.

As to how ordinary they are? Well, that's debatable. At one point one of the clients is one of Valentin's close friends, and he talks about how he set his friend up with a French supermodel called Maud. Now, I am pretty ordinary, and I can assure you I am not friends with any supermodels, French or otherwise. The Kretz's have definitely done well for themselves, and enjoy travel and sports like kite surfing, skiing and more.

I really enjoy watching the family and the way they interact with each other. In the first series we watch Majo's adventures in seniors dating, and deal with the fall out when Martin announces that he is thinking about moving to Portugal because his architect wife has a work project there. In the second series there is drama as they decide to bring an outsider into the family firm for the first time.


As entertaining as it is to watch the Kretz family interact with each other, the reality is that the stars of this show are the luxurious apartments, houses, chateaus and more. The places are gorgeous, often with architecturally designed features, and sometimes with amazing views. And yet, for the extremely wealthy who are looking for a new home, often it isn't enough, so the team has to work hard to come up with ever more impressive options

To give you an idea of the types of locations that feature, here is a taste

and here's something a little more realistic

This show is totally Paris porn! Gorgeous houses, the sights of Paris and more!

I just had a thought. Maybe I should see if one of the Kretz family want to sell my small 3 bedroom 1970's house in the outer suburbs of Melbourne? Maybe that will help it sell quicker!