A broker can charge you a fee even if you don’t get a loan

Times are tough for real estate brokers. The rise in credit rates sealed the purchasing power households that are less likely to pick up their phone or go through the door of these intermediaries. Some have gone out of business, others would use practices that are a priori illegal to survive: charging fees without informing their customers. The accusation is brought by the UFC Que Choisir and targets brokers from the Meilleurtaux network. «For the past few months, customers have been presented with invoices between 1,000 and 3,500 euros even though they have not yet taken out a loan.“says the consumer association.

Contacted by Le Figaro, Meilleurtaux denies the information. «To date, we have not received any complaint relating to fees invoiced to the client when the latter did not obtain his loan.says Guillaume Autier, president of the brokerage network, who adds: “Our brokers are prohibited from charging fees if the loan file has not been validated.” However, an internal audit was launched to ensure that no errors were made. «If this is the case, the injured borrowers will be reimbursed and we will take the necessary internal measures.adds Guillaume Autier.

On the other hand, Meilleurtaux assumes having used a technique “legal and assumedto allow credit applications to be validated. It is a question of splitting the broker’s fees in two, otherwise the file was blocked by the rate of wear (maximum rate beyond which a bank cannot grant a loan, editor’s note). Thus, the commission of brokers is divided, “with the consent of the borrower« , between the costs of « finding research » (finding the bank that agrees to grant a loan) which weigh between 1% and 2% of the amount financed, and « advice » costs (helping borrowers in particular to find solutions to unblock a file). «Again, the fees are only payable if the loan is validated“, insists Guillaume Autier.

Consulting fees are legal

«The advice costs do not enter into the calculation of the overall credit rate, unlike the costs of research in financing, they do not come to increase the debt ratio of the borrowers“, specifies Caroline Arnould, president of the Professional Association of credit intermediaries and general manager of the broker Cafpi who affirms that “in 99% of cases, brokers only charge “finding research” fees», consulting fees are extremely rare.Meilleurtaux also recognizes that brokers could charge fees to clients who only asked them for advice, without them considering applying for a mortgage.

What the law says? Are these practices legal? The law is formal:It is prohibited for any natural or legal person who assists, directly or indirectly, in obtaining or granting a loan of money, to collect a representative sum of commissions, before the effective payment of the loaned funds.», provides for article L519-6 of the Monetary and Financial Code. But there is a derogation from this article, provided for by this same code: “By way of derogation from Article L519-6, intermediaries in banking transactions and payment services may receive remuneration from their client» (article L519-6-1 of the Monetary and Financial Code which is a transposition of a European directive of February 4, 2014). Implied without the loan file being validated. But on one condition: the broker must “provide an independent consulting service« . In other words, he must carry out this mission without having been commissioned by a bank.