As I sit here, my neighbour who has a farm has just arrived on his tractor to cut our field where the grass has grown higher than my head!

Nice to Paris by LGV in just 3 hours 30 minutes – the dream that could become a reality in 2017.

Dear Trisha,

Thank you for providing such a great team in London and France. We are moving into our new home next month and cannot wait. Please congratulate your staff.

Regards, Mrs Atkins

Earlier this week, Ryanair commenced operating a new route from Birmingham to Biarritz Airports. A three times a week schedule, both outward and return, on Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday. I have just looked at the Ryanair website this morning and flights for next week can be found from £9.99 + taxes and charges.

On my way to an appointment on Saturday I went across a bridge which passes over the soon to be opened La Roche sur Yon southern bypass and, to my amazement, I could see below me thousands of people on bicycles, roller blades and skateboards.

Trisha,

Many thanks to the VEF team in helping to complete on our property in the Drome. Special thanks to Chris for his tireless support and dedication to getting the job done and also to Marie back at the ranch in helping with the paperwork.

There has never been a better time to buy in France and that’s not just due to property prices. Owning a home in France is really about a lifestyle change, about getting away from the hustle and bustle of a commercial world and living life to a different rhythm.

It’s the cheapest, the quickest and the most spectacular – the new east/west tramway will run along the Prom amidst the palm trees on the central reservation from Place Massena to Saint Augustin near the airport.

Having just spent a week in England, I must say it’s good to be back!

The Channel 4 programme « A Place in the Sun » are busy filming in the Charente at the moment, recognising that the region is a fantastic place to buy property to holiday in, to live in and to invest in.

Against a backdrop of falling property prices in the UK and Ireland let me move to clarify exactly what is happening to house prices in this area.

Dear Madam,

I think you should pat yourself on the back! What a service your company provides.

P.Thomas

It is estimated that 385,000 people chose to leave the UK last year, many of them to France. If you are considering moving abroad, or just thinking of buying a holiday home, where do you start and how do you go about it?

I was taking some friends around the Camargue last week. Having made our way through the windy lanes, past lagoons filled with flamingos and having marvelled at the beauty of the wild white horses, we continued onwards to our destination – the beach.

10 million passengers for the shortest tramway in France and 8% fewer motorists on the roads!

So says the cover of “L’EXPRESS” this morning. (L’EXPRESS is one of the most widely read weekly economy magazines in France). L’EXPRESS undertook a national survey, using independent sources of information and statistics to publish a 19 page article. Forty different criteria were used from employment, accommodation, education and culture to health, safety and climate.

Come rain or shine, it is always so easy to entertain children of all ages in Provence Var.

Dear Alan & Vincent

I've just heard from Juliet that the final deeds have been signed and that everything for the house in Brittany has been completed successfully.

I'd like to thank you for all your efforts on our behalf over the last few mont

The clients whom we have sent out to France in the past 4 weeks have been incredibly determined to find the right house to buy. 37% of them found the house they wanted on their first day of viewing with our partner offices, many more found it on their second day and 12 clients returned within the fortnight having left their specification with our partners, and guess what? They found the right house on their second visit.

Ruffec is a beautiful, quaint riverside market town in the north of the Charente, and is famous for plates of foie gras and cheese, both of which can be found in the many restaurants that abound the streets.

It’s 28 degrees, not a cloud in the sky, and sometimes we take for granted the fact that we really have the best of both worlds here in Provence Var.

We’ve had a house full of guests over the last week, all wanting to sample our French way of life and to enjoy all the attractions the area has to offer.

Hi Juliet

It's all worked out very well. Thanks very much for all your help over the last few months.

Looking forward to seeing you again in July - merci beaucoup!

Cheers, Matt

The gloom and doom continues. First is was the financial markets, then it was the euro, then the housing market, then the oil prices, then the food bills, now its heating costs and the threat of wide scale strikes. Is your life here worth living?

You can’t help but have favourite houses. Sometimes you build a relationship with a house. You almost make a promise to the house that you are going to find it the perfect owner.

“The UK is facing its most difficult economic challenge in two decades.” These were the words of Mervin King, the Bank of England Governor. Mr King went on to say that inflation was set to rise, while UK growth and house prices are likely to fall.

At under £80,000:
How about ref 320829 an idyllic 2 bedroom cottage with a pretty garden perfect for that escape to the country.

Your Web site is a real cut above other companies – congratulations.

Mrs Adams

Yesterday we looked at the "do it yourself" rental solution. Is there an easier way?

Living in the Limousin is about choosing a more relaxed way of life; far from the rat race, traffic and maddening hustle and bustle of modern day life. In fact it’s a great place to work, rest and play.

Dear Trisha,

I just wanted to let you know that the service I have received from your company throughout the whole process has been wonderful. Thank you so much.

Regards, Mrs Jameson

If you want to step outside the predictable, how about becoming an owner of a ruined castle in the beautiful South Auvergne, and for a mere 34,000 Euros?

You will need to decide how you are going to make your investment attractive to potential clients and who is going to market the property. I could write a small book about that. (Now there’s an idea…)

I was visiting our office in Uzes this morning and was surprised to hear a complaint that their houses are selling too fast!! Apparently amongst the houses they had prepared to show their clients this week 3 of them SOLD over the weekend. None of them sold to UK clients but the French have stepped up the action and are certainly back in the market in this region giving the overseas buyer a run for their money.

Facts and figures are released on a regular basis about the quality of life available in the varied departments of France. Most of these surveys are conducted by newspapers and magazines and one such survey in Express Magazine has placed the Vendée 3rd out of 96 departments. The survey took into account standard of living, healthcare, climate, local services plus the affordability of the housing stock.

One of my clients is about to complete his purchase of a fabulous new ski apartment in the family resort of La Joue du Loup. You might think that his timing is a little off, but in fact, the opposite is true. It’s PERFECT!

Dear Charlie,

Keep up the good work! You certainly managed to find our dream home for us and it only took one visit with VEF when we had been looking for properties with other agents for at least 4 years!

Jo Frajt

This year celebrates the tenth anniversary of the creation of the Périgord-Limousin Natural Park with a number of events throughout the year.

There are so many reasons that I love living in France, but probably the most important one for me is the real sense of community spirit that is so much a part of daily life here.

Last weekend saw the crowds gather in the evening along the banks of the river Gardon at the Pont du Gard.

The Charente is full of many beautiful, charming towns all with something different to offer. Here are 10 of our favourites:

We have just returned from France having put an offer in on our dream property – we are so excited! Thank you for getting us this far and we have every confidence that the whole process will be as smooth as possible.

Mr and Mrs Edwards

I was interested to read a recent article about the number of British people who have bought a house in France, have found that it has not supplied them with the lifestyle they were looking for and are now selling and returning home with their tail between their legs.

After having 9 members of my family over for a week-end bash last week-end, it was an ideal way to remind ourselves just how lucky we are living here in the Lot-et-Garonne. From the moment they arrived, it was oohing and ahhing all the way.

The latest figures from the Royal Institution of Chartered surveyors, RICS, show that in May there was a slight improvement in the number of surveyors seeing falls in property prices from 94.7% in April to 92.9% in May. Although this is a significantly depressed figure, it is the first improvement in ten months.

Where else in France is reachable by car from the UK for the weekend and can almost guarantee good weather? There aren’t many areas, in fact I think you will find there is only one area which matches this criteria – the Loire Valley.

In 2007 there was an increase in tourists visiting Provence Var and as the holiday season gets in to full swing this year we expect much of the same.

Hello Trisha,

We would just like to say how much we appreciated VEF as a company and the help given by Alan in the UK and Juliet in Brittany.

I am sure they got tired of our endless questions but both were very patient and supportive and made

The UK property market has slowed, dramatically. The main headline in the papers today is that UK property sales have slumped to a thirty year low! But, there is another side to the story, and one which we can easily forget, and that is that the rental market is flourishing!

Heading south from Uzes, in less than an hour, you reach the sea. But before you do so, you enter the Camargue – a land of mystery, intrigue and awe...

Trisha Mason, the managing director of VEF, has just written a very good article in the June edition of French Property News about several generations of the same family living and sharing a large property together in France.

Looking at a wide variety of properties in the Vendée often means I get an unexpected surprise.

From Henry IV, Leonardo da Vinci to Mick Jagger, the rich and famous have all lived here. Attracted by the micro-climate (long warm summers and short mild winters), the gastronomy and wine, the leisure pursuits in abundance, the cultural influences, famous sporting events such as the 24hr Le Mans, and of course the fantastic picturesque scenery, the Loire Valley welcomes each year thousands of tourists each one enjoying their two weeks of living like the kings of old.

The recent “credit crunch” has affected many of the property markets across the globe. It is now almost taken for granted that property prices are going to continue to fall throughout 2008 in the United States, United Kingdom and Spain. The question a lot of property investors are now asking is where is the best place to invest?

At this time of year ‘vide grenier’ notices are appearing everywhere from flyers tucked under the windscreen wipers on cars to posters on the outskirts of villages. Basically these are rural French versions of car boot sales when villagers literally do empty their attics and barns and set up stalls selling their goods.

I have just finished speaking to a member of your sales team and cannot believe the knowledge that he has about France and its properties! Thank you for his time and we will be booking our viewing trip next week.

A Brown

Pas de Calais: It’s real France, it’s real close and property prices are just half those of south east England.

With Ryanair opening a new route from Birmingham to Poitiers on the 17th June 2008, the Poitou-Charentes is becoming even more accessible to holiday makers and property owners.

Normally we don’t have anything nice to say about estate agents but, seeing as Chris has been extremely helpful (not to mention willing to put up with our constant taunting and mockery), we felt it only fair to write about the great service we’ve rec

It is the first time that a city outside of Spain has become the capital of Catalan culture and it is Perpignan that has the honour. The title was elected by the rectors of regional universities, previous winners being Banyoles 2004, Esparreguera 2005, Amposta 2006 and Lleida 2007. The planned celebrations include a variety of artistic activities from exhibitions, concerts and traditional fiestas.

This morning’s weekly market in Navarrenx was a glorious, colourful mix of fruit, vegetables and plants all beautifully displayed in the sunshine!

When beginning your search for a property in France, one of your main considerations should be access. Here in Provence Var, our office is located in the medieval hilltop village of Fayence. Fayence is only 45 minutes from Nice Cote d’Azur airport, 1 hour from Toulon St Tropez airport and 1 hour 30 minutes from Marseille airport.

Oil prices recently touched an all time high of $135 a barrel, which is over double the price it was this time last year. This increase in price was in line with OPEC’s, the oil producing cartel, prediction that the price of oil could continue rising to reach $200 a barrel! [1]

In a market where is has become increasingly difficult to find a genuine bargain property, I am pleased to share with you three such properties all for less than 100,000 euros.

Dear Abigail and Andrew

We would like to thank you so much for the professional and helpful way you have enabled us to buy our fantastic house in the Vendee.

From the initial telephone contact, through to the first meeting in your office and th

My sister Rebecca has just spent the half term holiday week on the Vendée coast with her three children, Georgia 11, Maddie 10 and Ted 6. I asked her to jot down her thoughts and observations from the perspective of a busy mum holidaying with three lively children - as if she didn’t have enough to think about! Here’s what she had to say.

...There was a land where children stayed as children for as long as possible. In this land, they were taught respect for others right from the start – but of course they were included in family life right from the beginning, so that helped. Children were welcomed in restaurants and in other “adult” spaces, so they felt important straight away, and rose to the occasion with admirable grace and good manners.

Sometimes it is hard not to feel downbeaten by all the bad news constantly fed to us from our newspapers, television screens and radios. However, when the going gets bad, the wise person holds onto their dreams and gets to France.

I came to the Auvergne quite by chance some years ago when I was travelling from eastern France to the Charente Maritime. Within 24 hours I had decided that this was where I wanted to make my home and 5 years on it is a decision I have never regretted.

We were very impressed by Tanya Bright, from the VEF Limousin South partner office, who we spent the day with last Wednesday, she was extremely helpful, and showed us lots of properties we liked, which was no mean feat considering how vague our initi

Having read inside out all of the recent press articles about the "fact" that the property market in Provence is in decline, and in some cases, has died an insalubrious death, you may be interested to read the truth from a property professional.

At the age of two, I can already see that my daughter is going to be bilingual very soon, and is already repeating lots of French words she already knows.

The financial landscape in Ireland has changed dramatically in the past 12 months; banks have reversed their policy of easy lending with both individual consumers and large corporations feeling the pinch as they struggle to raise funds and maintain cash flow.

To echo recent news articles written by other VEF partner offices, life in France is simply wonderful…

I guess we have all had times in our life when we cannot decide what the best way forward is. Well, for me, one of the biggest decisions I have ever made happened almost 8 years ago.

A couple of weeks ago I wrote about a number of properties whose prices had just been reduced here in the Languedoc Provence area. One in particular, a lovely stone built two bedroom farmhouse in a great location, came down from 337,834€ to 282,534€ (inc. all fees) and represented fantastic value. It was priced to sell, and is now sold, which is a pity for the clients who had been keen to see it on their trip out at the end of June.

As emphasised in previous articles, translation entails far more than the mere replacement of words in one language with those in another, but legal translators could be said to have an even more arduous task given the system-dependent nature of the terminology used and the social, cultural and historical concepts that lie behind that usage.

When I went to pay for my shopping at the small supermarket in Navarrenx last Saturday, the cashier pointed to a large vase of roses all individually cellophane wrapped and invited me to take one ‘gratuit’ to celebrate Mothers Day in France.

Dear Abigail and Andrew,

It was very nice to meet you and thanks again for giving us such an inspiring, educational and pleasant day.

Yours,

Ken

The Charente is rural and relaxed, where you can enjoy peace and tranquillity, whilst at the same time there is always something going on so that you can enjoy the culture and French spirit too.

One of the things that sustains me in my very busy life running the Auvergne partner office is the beauty of the landscape in this region.

Burgundy has much to offer beyond its association with world-famous wines. A combination of history, architecture, varied landscapes, good food and wine, and a relaxed lifestyle with the option of visiting lively towns, are what draw the region’s many visitors.

With spring in the air, summer just around the corner and the sun streaming from dawn to dusk, it is clear the property rental market in Provence Var is booming. And what better place to spend your holidays! Under one hour to Nice airport, stunning Provencal villages and the Cote d’Azur coastline.

As registered estate agents here in the Vendée on the west coast of France, we are always anxious to keep up to date with changes in legislation to ensure that our VEF clients are given sound advice at all stages of their buying process.

Now that the ski season is well and truly over we have found another leisure activity to keep us entertained at the weekends.

Dear Trisha,

First and foremost the service provided has been excellent but I think special mention should be made to recognise Marie Le Boursicaud who is not only wonderfully efficient and professional but she is an absolute delight to work with.

One of my vendors in Haute-Provence has just dropped the price of his property – by 220,000 Euros. Yes, a TWO HUNDRED AND TWENTY THOUSAND REDUCTION! That makes this French property something of a bargain, as long as you can afford it, of course!

The strong Euro, and downturn in the UK property market, has resulted in a 40% increase in the number of clients taking out Euro mortgages. We have found that a number of these clients have chosen to rent out their UK property, waiting for the market to turn, and used the rent to cover the mortgage repayments.

There are many reasons why people should and do by property in France - it is one of Europe’s most stable property markets, historically yielding steady capital growth for its investors and has emerged relatively unscathed from the recent global economic turndown.

To the northeast of Uzès is an area called the Cèze valley. The Cèze valley contains every shade of green imaginable. The intensity of the green varies as you look from the vineyards to the dense and verdant forested hills. Through the valley snakes the resplendent Cèze River. Entirely susceptible to the seasons, the Cèze can in one month appear lazy, clear and slow moving, and in another deep, dark and turbulent.

Here in the Vendée we are sourcing many different kinds of properties to suit a range of budgets for our clients. We have a good selection of the stone farmhouses, character cottages and coastal villas and apartments that are always popular.

Dear Daniel,

We were wonderfully well looked after by Andrew and Abigail Shippin in the Vendee office, and were shown and advised about properties exactly as required.

We are fully aware of and appreciate the VEF support that will be offered i

Uzès often casts a magical spell on market day. Visitors fall under its charm when greeted with a bustling Provencal market, an endless supply of street cafes and a backdrop of local bands and singers performing on the streets. As you get to know the area the villages of the Uzège invite you in and slowly open up their secrets. But what inhabitants and visitors truly fall for is the beautiful surrounding countryside with its rolling hills, clipped vineyards and orchards and its dramatic gorges.

The Auvergne region is probably best known for its stunning scenery and wide open spaces so it may come as a bit of a surprise that there is also plenty for those who prefer a more bustling lifestyle.

Far from it! Just recently I received a comment along the lines of “these estate agents are all the same.” Said in jest I must admit, but it did however make me think how we at VEF could be perceived.

It’s that time of year again! With the Cannes Film Festival and the Monaco Grand Prix in quick succession, Provence is the place to be. With Cannes only a 25 minute drive from our office and Monaco just over the hour, what better location could there be than Provence Var?

It just got easier to get to your new holiday home in the Hérault and the Minervois.

One of the things I thought I'd miss most when coming to live in France was the cinema. I'm not a movie buff but I'd always tried to keep up with the latest releases. So it was with great joy that I discovered the cinema in Uzès, "La Capitole".

Dear Trisha,

Juliet Harris in the Brittany office was extremely helpful and simply there at every turn to provide advice and guidance.

Our buying experience in France ran smoothly and we were confident in the knowledge that VEF had matters in

Sometimes we have to pinch ourselves to realise we’re not dreaming!