thinking about buying a property in France

rlw

A shed near the sea in Cornwall will be a lot less hassle.

mgaw

we live there already bit better than a shed as well

CabbageCat

Fretwired said:

CabbageCat said:

Plant a vineyard.

Buy one as a going concern ... surprisingly not that expensive and the tax is low. Lots of advice on this website concerning property in France.

https://www.frenchentree.com/living-in-france/real-life-stories/we-bought-a-vineyard/

Yeah, I've thought about it but vineyards in the area I would like to live in (Cote d'Or) are quite expensive. I've even looked at the courses they talk about in Plumpton - it's 15 minutes from my house. If I did it it would be hobby wine, not industry wine.

rlw

mgaw said:

we live there already bit better than a shed as well

..and you want a second home in France....?

BigMonka

dogload said:

Oh, whereabouts? My other half is from just outside Angouleme.

oh, whereabouts to you too @dogload ;
My grandparents had a place between Angouleme and Riberac - my aunt now owns it since they passed away. I spend many a happy time down there, particularly in my late teens with my now wife - the medieval fayre at Dignac was always a highlight of the summer!

boogieman

CabbageCat said:

boogieman said:

Property is still cheap round where he lives (near Limoges) and you get a lot for your money out in the sticks but the cost of living is surprisingly high..food prices are much more than here for instance. 

Land in Limousin is so cheap that you can happily buy somewhere with enough land to grow stuff on. That will reduce food prices. You can get a fixer-upper with a couple of hectares for five figures. Plant a vineyard.

They only have a small plot of land but they grow a lot of their own veg. They also have a few chickens. They're confirmed red meat eaters though and that definitely doesn't come cheap. 

Agreed on the cheap wine though and it's good stuff. Even the cheap local red is much better than a lot of the stuff we get over here. My mate reckons that they export all the really bad shite to the UK cos we don't know any better. 

dogload

@BigMonka Small world! The missus is from Magnac-sur-Touvre and still has relatives there, although her folks live on the other side of Angouleme at Nersac, which is where we stay when we visit. She also has grandparents who live down in Cancon - prune country. I have a feeling that we've been through Riberac a couple of times on our way down to Cancon to avoid Perigeux.

There are some beautiful places round there - I could definitely live over there. Even if it sometimes feels like you actually are stepping back in time! 

Guitar_Slinger

In Spain, depending where you are, it is wise to have health insurance as they will use every burocratic trick to not treat you. 

Wise to keep a property here, in case you get cancer or something.  That was advice from a work colleague who bought a place in France and watched his English neighbour get stuck there while seriously ill.

Richardj

We live roughly halfway between Bordeaux and Toulouse and a bit further South, our nearest town is Condom, in the heart of prune, sunflower and armagnac country. On a good day we can see the Pyrenees.  Our daughter went to school near Bergerac and my partner's parents had a house between Bergerac and Mussidan so we know the area well.

Particularly where we are I would have to question the quality of the food.  Our local supermarkets are definitely not up to the quality of Lidl in the UK,  I know this for a fact because I was in the UK last week. Butchers and epiceries (delis) are better but you pay for the quality.

You will be lucky to get a decent vineyard as it seems that the Chinese have been buying an awful lot of them.

57Deluxe

Calais' dirt cheap...

victorludorum

If you want to work in France you will need to speak the language. You won't have access to the health service unless you're working or you pay for it directly. Read up about the taxes too; that link that was posted above has loads of info.

octatonic

victorludorum said:

If you want to work in France you will need to speak the language. You won't have access to the health service unless you're working or you pay for it directly. Read up about the taxes too; that link that was posted above has loads of info.

Plus, loads of French people there and they hate you lot.
Tell them you are Canadian and you will have an easier time.

dogload

Richardj said:

We live roughly halfway between Bordeaux and Toulouse and a bit further South, our nearest town is Condom, in the heart of prune, sunflower and armagnac country. On a good day we can see the Pyrenees.  Our daughter went to school near Bergerac and my partner's parents had a house between Bergerac and Mussidan so we know the area well.

Particularly where we are I would have to question the quality of the food.  Our local supermarkets are definitely not up to the quality of Lidl in the UK,  I know this for a fact because I was in the UK last week. Butchers and epiceries (delis) are better but you pay for the quality.

You will be lucky to get a decent vineyard as it seems that the Chinese have been buying an awful lot of them.

Nice.

The last few years we've been having a week in a chalet in Lescun, which is an incredibly beautiful place (plus we have always managed to catch the cheese festival down in Etsaut, which is... interesting). The approach to The Pyrenees is amazing, through some marvellous country. I know Pau slightly and Oleron Ste-Marie... but Lourdes! It's got to be one of the weirdest places ever. It's like Catholic Disneyland. Do you do the booze run down to Portalet then?

I'm surprised that you find the supermarkets a bit crap though. I actually like shopping in the local Auchan in Angouleme, and there are loads of Lidl's springing up which have a much wider selection than we have (plus brilliant and cheap wine!). You're right though, the more 'artisanal' village boucheries and boulangeries are not the bargains they once were, although I do think that the variety and quality is superior to any of our local butchers in North Tyneside.