The resale market returned to growth in 2025, with 940,000 transactions recorded compared to 845,000 in 2024, an 11% increase according to the report from the FNAIM, which anticipates between 960,000 and 980,000 sales for 2026. While the federation still describes this recovery as "fragile," it is mechanically putting pressure back on sales teams within networks, following several years where the market slowdown had masked certain organizational inefficiencies.
Here are the 3 trends reshaping appointment scheduling in this context, and what they mean in practical terms for agency and broker networks.
Trend #1: The virtual tour is becoming a qualification filter, not a marketing tool
For a long time, virtual tours were sold as a premium feature for high-end listings. That is no longer the case. According to an analysis by the Journal du Net citing Grand View Research data, the penetration of virtual tours in French real estate listings has doubled since 2021, rising from approximately 8% to 15-20% depending on the segment, with production costs halved over five years, making them accessible for almost all standard residential listings rather than just luxury properties.
The real change is not in the listing's visibility, but in its effect on the organization of physical viewings. French agencies equipped with this technology for over two years have observed a 25 to 35% reduction in the number of physical viewings, with no loss in final conversion—and for good reason: their conversion rate per physical viewing has risen from approximately 15-20% to 30-40%, according to the same source. A buyer who has already navigated a property virtually arrives at the viewing with a clear understanding; curiosity-driven viewings are disappearing, and those that remain are conducted with prospects who are truly decided.
What this implies for a network in practical terms:
- A physical viewing that becomes a high-probability conversion appointment, rather than just a slot in a calendar;
- A need to coordinate the transition from digital (virtual tour, property sheet) to appointment booking, without friction or re-entry;
- An agent who arrives at the viewing with the context of the property already reviewed, rather than discovering it at the same time as the client.
Trend #2: A market regaining volume is putting pressure back on appointment organization
After three years of decline, the existing property market grew by 11% in 2025 to reach 940,000 transactions, with further growth expected in 2026 according to the FNAIM. This recovery, however fragile, is changing the operational landscape for networks: more listings to manage, more viewing requests to qualify, and more time slots to coordinate between agents, all without teams necessarily having grown at the same pace.
In a slow market, an ad-hoc approach to scheduling (phone calls, back-and-forth emails, paper calendars, or shared spreadsheets) might go unnoticed. In a recovering market, it becomes a visible point of friction: misassigned appointments, overlapping time slots between agents in the same office, and prospects dropping off due to a lack of quick response.
What this means in practical terms for a network:
- Appointment scheduling that remains seamless even as request volumes rise, without needing to hire at the same rate;
- Automatic assignment of the right agent based on geographic area or specialty, rather than manual distribution;
- Consolidated visibility into the activity of each branch for multi-site networks, rather than managing each office individually.
Trend #3: Qualifying before visiting is becoming the norm, not the exception
The third trend follows directly from the first two: with buyers better informed upfront (Trend #1) and teams under higher demand (Trend #2), qualifying needs at the time of booking has become a prerequisite rather than an optional refinement. Property type, budget, and geographic area—collecting these criteria as soon as a slot is booked allows the agent to arrive at the viewing with the right context rather than discovering it on-site.
This is also where a significant portion of the appointment show-up rate is determined. An appointment booked without prior qualification or automated reminders is more prone to no-shows—an area where networks that have digitized and automated their follow-ups are seeing a reduction in no-show rates of up to 80%.
What this means in practical terms for a network:
- An appointment booking form that captures useful criteria (property type, budget, area) rather than just a simple contact request;
- Automated email and SMS reminders to ensure prospect attendance;
- A process that works just as well for in-person viewings as it does for video consultations.
In summary
These three trends have one thing in common: they all rely on a network's ability to orchestrate appointment scheduling at scale, across branches, agents, and available properties, with the same high standards for qualification everywhere. This is precisely the area where we support real estate networks, from social landlords to transaction agencies.
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