Stream It Or Skip It: ‘The Parisian Agency: Exclusive Properties’ On Netflix, A Reality Series Where A Family Of Realtors Sell High-End Properties In Paris And Europe

The Parisian Agency: Exclusive Properties (original title: L’Agence) is a reality series about the Kretz family, who runs a real estate agency out of their massive Paris-area home, selling luxury properties to high-roller clients. This new Netflix series will show the Kretzes showing properties not only in and around Paris but in other amazing spots around Europe.

THE PARISIAN AGENCY: EXCLUSIVE PROPERTIES: STREAM IT OR SKIP IT?

Opening Shot: Classic scenes of Paris. A graphic says “WELCOME TO PARIS” in huge letters.

The Gist:  Co-founders Olivia and Sandrine Kretz have brought their three adult sons — 31-year-old Martin, 29-year-old Valentin and 25-year-old Louis — on board to the agency one at a time. A fourth son, 16-year-old Raphael, is still in school but jokes that the family talks so much about real estate that he could join the agency and be up to speed immediately.

It’s obviously a different professional atmosphere, where the brothers joke around with each other, and set up their 87-year-old grandmother Majo on a senior dating site. But the properties are no joke.

One client, Lisa, is the CEO of her own lingerie company. When Sandrine meets with her, Lisa specifies that she wants to find a new home and office space at the same time. She prefers older houses because of their charm. Her budget? A mere 8 million euros. When Valentin shows her a modern home, accessible by a boat up the Seine, she likes its luxury touches (a retractable pool!) but hates how cold it is. A 19th-century mansion is more of a match, despite the “masculine” main bathroom, but she still needs to find office space and Sandrine has another client sniffing around.

But as extraordinary the apartments and homes they sell in Paris are, Olivier and his sons drive 50 km outside of town to tour a castle that has a redesigned interior, thanks to its owner, a famous designer. This is a “big whale” listing that comes along only every few years, and Martin and Olivier are eager to get the listing — and its massive potential commission.

What Shows Will It Remind You Of? Selling Sunset but in Paris, without the major controversies or sex talk (It’s rated TV-G).

Our Take: The Parisian Agency: Exclusive Properties will give a warm and fuzzy feeling to anyone who love reality real estate shows like the aforementioned Selling Sunset or Bravo’s Million Dollar Listing. It’s shot like those shows, have the same dance-pop soundtracks, and revel in situations that may or may not be actually real.

One thing we appreciate is that the Kretz agency is real, and they way they work together looks easygoing and natural. While this is a loosey-goosey office, it sure as heck isn’t the same situation as, say, Jeff Lewis has set up in Flipping Out, where anyone who comes to work for him should be ready for inappropriate conversation at any second. No, this is a family, and they act like a family.

Valentin, for instance, has taken a surrogate parenting role with Raphael, who is 14 years younger than he is. “His grades are my grades,” he says. That kind of closeness is something that you like to see on reality shows, because it’s genuine, not something thrown together by producers. Can it be less eventful than strangers yelling at each other? Sometimes. But you never know when family strife is exposed for the cameras to see. And the highlight reel of the upcoming season shows up that there will be family strife.

The properties are the types that you look at and fantasize about walking through, much less living in. The expansive drone shots and other views of Paris and area just make us want to go back and rent out some lovely flat as an Airbnb.

Sex and Skin: Besides real estate porn? Nothing.

Parting Shot: Despite having to disappoint Lisa, the fact that the mansion sold prompts Valentin to bang the gong they hit whenever they have a sale. Sandrine mentions that all commissions are split amongst the family in an effort to make the office a cooperative environment.

Sleeper Star: Majo, without a doubt. She’s willing to shave ten years off her age on her dating profile, and doesn’t seem all that disappointed when her profile doesn’t get any hits.

Most Pilot-y Line: This is true of any reality show in another language: You don’t realize how much faster natural language is than scripted language until you have to follow subtitles on a foreign-language reality show.

Our Call: STREAM IT. The Parisian Agency: Exclusive Properties is a pleasant-enough diversion, especially given how appealing the Kretz family is and the beautiful properties they show.

Joel Keller (@joelkeller) writes about food, entertainment, parenting and tech, but he doesn’t kid himself: he’s a TV junkie. His writing has appeared in the New York Times, Slate, Salon, RollingStone.com, VanityFair.com, Fast Company and elsewhere.

Stream The Parisian Agency: Exclusive Properties On Netflix