|
Another year draws to a close. It has been an exciting year for the Vivre
Property sites. Pages view up over 100%. Visitors up 100%. 1st-for French
Property rated in the top 100,000 sites worldwide for all categories.
Featured in the Observer newspaper. Exclusive listings of rentals and
sales in Everything France magazine. Number 1 listings in Google, Yahoo
and Altavista. Great for us but equally good news for all our owners and
advertisers - in the form of more bookings.
We are already working on
new features for the web sites
- easier administration of adverts, the ability for you to make changes at
any time and a new availability feature - you will be able to update the
latest availability of your property. We do try that little bit harder...
Where better to advertise your Gites or French property or Service? Your advert working 365 days a year, every day, every hour for just
£25 per year. A big request- STILL!: We need articles for this newsletter!! |
We feature many properties on our web sites.
Although our descriptions are extensive, having your own web site
can really "sell" all the features of your property.
All you do is supply the text and photos. We
do the design, getting a domain name and web site hosting. Plus a link
from your property listing to your new web site!
Click for more
details
Sample site
|
|
I'll never forget the moment
my husband said 'I've had enough - how do you fancy living in Normandy - I
want to call it a day at 50'.
It was November, he was 49 at the top of his career as a Fleet Street
photographer, very highly thought of in the Newspaper Industry.
For 20 years we'd taken holidays in France, especially Normandy - our
style was always, get off the boat & see where we end up - staying in
mainly restaurants - (no drink driving!). Honfleur was one of our
favourite 'romantic' destinations. We also spent time mooching around
looking - just in case that perfect little house with sea views for
holidays was winking at us.
We even went as far as going into estate agents arrogantly asking why
nothing was available and why anything remotely with a sea view was at a
silly price - one agent summed it up for us in his heavily accented
beautiful English - "Monsieur, Madame, the French also like to look at the
sea!" We were quite put out as surely everyone including him knew that the
French know nothing and house prices are dirt cheap!!
So we go back to the 'big' announcement that dark November morning - I'd
my own business - but it took all of 2 split seconds to say YES.
So here we are in Normandy now owning 2 houses - do we regret it? A big
resounding NO, however, there's always a but…hindsight…we could have saved
on the money front and also the heartache front.
That 2 letter word always seems to creep in - IF.
We were lucky - our main home is the first house we looked at - absolutely
what we had described, South Westerly facing, had to be habitable, lots of
out buildings for cars, 5 acres for gardens, old building to be renovated,
not near a road.
We're actually in a huge old farmhouse with 15 acres, 2 barns bigger than
the house at right angles (thus an added bonus a glorious courtyard), and
our own private lane.
Now that is as far as Lady Luck takes us - the first house and it being
perfect! If fate hadn't have stepped in for us I know we would be still in
the UK carrying on with our "lives."
All the other houses that we were shown that "matched" our description
were an absolute joke….I am convinced we were shown these properties to
keep us busy so we didn't feel we'd wasted a trip. Quite frankly we
wouldn't have been able to take the time off to keep coming back to look.
Our other house (maison secondaire), is totally opposite to our main
residence, a modern seaside house right on the beach - this house took us
20 years to find -found by accident only since living here!
Now the reality….
We have had almost 2 years of hell -our home was habitable… along with
1000 plus mice, the rising damp hitting the falling damp and the dry rot
having its own floor show in the middle. Coupled with that a dodgy builder
who it turns out has a philosophy that if you have any money it was his
given right to relieve you of it!
It's not unique to behave the way we did - demanding builders to start
immediately and to be finished almost as quickly….that is why there are so
many dodgy builders here in France. We actually make their market for them
and the dreadful thing is - they are all BRITISH!
Court cases abound at the moment with British Builders getting their just
rewards, but too late for the unsuspecting folk that have handed them
their hard earned money.
Prices are rising in France - we are witnessing a property shortage also -
in the 2 years we have been here, now in our area it is a rarity to see
house that is derelict - the French have also got caught up in the home
improvement trend.
A lot of people do think that property prices are cheap in France - and
yes they are…BUT just because a former cowshed can be purchased for £5,000
it does not mean that it will automatically be given habitation status or
that it will only cost £10k to do up. The cost of building work in France
is more expensive than the UK - this is why we will help you assess - we
will be realistic about your budget and your dream.
I also mention shopping - we found it as one of the hardest things in
France - where to go - we all take it for granted in the UK for example -
B&Q for DIY - in your local French what you think are DIY shops you have
more chance of finding an incubator, electric fencing or the latest in
chicken feeders than finding a drill bit! The time and mileage we have
wasted in trying to find something - I would dread to calculate it!
Living in France certainly has it's ups - there is no way would I return
to the UK now. All my priorities have been turned on my head - I used to
live on Zantac, a bucket of wine a day and at least 20 fags a day! I don't
smoke now, what is zantac? we have red table wine with our lunch and
dinner for the sheer pleasure - not to escape stress and to purposely get
slightly squiffy.
I've NEVER worked so physically hard in my life - but I've never felt so
at peace. I can highly recommend this lifestyle….but do take advice!!
Tansy Forster
Tansy has put her experiences to work! She runs the successful
French-Property-Finders.com service. Take the strain out of buying a house
in France, save money and use her expert help to find your French Dream
Home -
www.French-Property-Finders.com
|
|
New properties
for sale this
month ....
We have partnered with many more agents in France so we are now featuring
properties from the Provence, Vendee, Auvergne, Limousin, Normandy. Some
new properties from our private advertisers are featured below from
our selection of 12 new properties:
  |
 |
£
|
95000
|
|
Normandy
|
|
3 bed roomed detached house and...
|
|
|
|
Euros
|
30000
|
|
Brittany
|
|
Elliant, Brittany...
|
New properties for rental this
month ....
plus many more rental properties on Europe-Property.org.
Advertising from just £25
per annum |
| Would you like to advertise here? Contact Howard on 07985 515844 or by email - click here to email me
Subscriptions | | Please send the newsletters onto any friends who might be interested. You may unsubscribe from the newsletter by going to the home page on
Gites-in-France, enter your email address in the subscription box and toggle the unsubscribe radio button and submit. Your email address will be removed from the distribution list. |
All material
©Gites-in-France 2002 |
|
