Owning or buying a property around Grasse — Châteauneuf-Grasse, Opio, Valbonne, Le Bar-sur-Loup — comes with challenges that French buildings know well: rising damp in old stone walls, mould in renovated houses, cracks after dry summers, and disputes with local builders. Our Antibes-based cabinet helps English-speaking owners navigate all of this, with reports written in clear terms you can act on.
Stéphane Cassini is an independent building expert working independently for owners. He works for you only — not for insurers, not for builders, and he sells no products or works.
What we do for English-speaking clients
- Humidity & mould diagnosis — find the true cause (condensation, rising damp, infiltration), get a written report with the correct scope of works;
- Pre-sale / pre-purchase expert reports — essential around here: buyers’ surveyors (experts) flag humidity and cracks, and a proper independent report protects your price;
- Builder disputes — defective works, unfinished projects, invoices for poor quality: we build the technical case, and if needed we support you before the Tribunal judiciaire de Grasse;
- Insurance claims — water damage, drought-related cracking (cat-nat), under-evaluated claims: we challenge the insurer’s expert with measurements, not opinions.
How it works
Call us, describe the problem, and we visit within the week. You receive a written expert report within 48 hours of the visit: cause, severity, required works, indicative budget. Free quote before any mission — you know exactly where you stand.
Contact
📞 04 22 46 06 04 — English spoken. Address: 22 rue Vauban, 06600 Antibes, 25 minutes from Grasse. Or email through our contact page.
Why foreign owners call us more often than you’d think
Many English-speaking owners around Grasse spend winters abroad or let their houses. Empty, badly heated houses in this climate develop condensation mould within one or two seasons — and tenants or caretakers rarely report it in time. By the time you return, walls are stained, wardrobes smell, and a buyer’s surveyor turns the whole thing into a price negotiation. We diagnose what actually happened, in writing, so you can decide with facts instead of guesses.
The second classic situation: works carried out while you were away. A roof « repaired », a facade « treated », a damp course injected — invoices paid from abroad, results disappointing. We build the technical file (measurements, standards, comparative quotes) that turns a vague complaint into a claim a contractor or its insurer must answer.
Understanding the French buyer’s survey
When you sell, the buyer’s expert (diagnostiqueur or independent surveyor) flags humidity, cracks and mould in his report — and each mention becomes a negotiation lever. Sellers who anticipated with our own report keep control: the cause is identified, the works are costed, the file is clean. Sellers who improvised lose 5 to 15% on the price, or the buyer walks away. We prepare that file with you before the first viewing.
Practical questions from our English-speaking clients
Do you write reports in English?
The report itself is in French — French notaires, buyers’ experts and courts require it — but every report comes with a call (or meeting) in English where we walk you through each conclusion, and the executive summary of causes and works can be provided in English on request.
How fast can you visit?
Within the week anywhere in the pays de Grasse — Grasse, Châteauneuf-Grasse, Opio, Valbonne, Cabris, Spéracèdes, Le Bar-sur-Loup, Tourrettes-sur-Loup. Written report within 48 hours of the visit. Free quote first, no obligation.
Can you help with insurance after storm or drought damage?
Yes — that is a large part of our work. We measure, document and challenge the insurer’s expert when damages are under-evaluated, including drought cracking recognised as natural disaster (cat-nat) in the Var and Alpes-Maritimes.
Voir aussi notre diagnostic structurel dans les Alpes-Maritimes et notre page expert bâtiment Alpes-Maritimes.
Cassini Expertise
Expert du bâtiment indépendant — Antibes (06·83·13·40)
📅 Mis à jour le 24/09/2026 — Cassini Expertise, expert bâtiment indépendant (06·83·13·40).