28 French Property News August 2019 http://www.completefrance.com
tipped as retirement paradises. In northern
France, Brittany triumphs, thanks to the
Channel citadel of St-Malo and the medieval
town of Vannes on the Gulf of Morbihan.
When it comes to cities, Nantes regularly
tops quality-of-life rankings thanks to its green
credentials, dynamic cultural scene and
location two hours from Paris and an hour
from the Atlantic coast. Breton capital Rennes
and medieval château city Angers are also
prized for their quality of life and friendly
ambiance, while Montpellier in Hérault enjoys
300 days of sunshine a year. Strasbourg in
Alsace has stunning architecture, beautiful
urban parks and a European vibe, and Dijon
and Nice have excellent transport connections.
Settling in
At French Property News, we regularly hear
from readers who have been touched by the
warmth and generosity of their French
neighbours. But don’t be downhearted if you
are slow to make friends, even if you are an
outgoing person. In French culture, people
tend to bond slowly but surely rather than
instantly over free-flowing drinks and shared
secrets. Life tends to be more family-focused
than in the UK, so you might find your French
friends reluctant to book a babysitter and join
you on a night on the town.
What Brits sometimes take to be a Gallic
brusqueness or aloofness can just as easily be
understood as refreshing honesty and a respect
for your privacy once you have spent some time
in France. Be patient and persistent and you
are sure to be rewarded with loyal friends.
Buying locally and taking part in your
commune’s gatherings will help. Even if you
come to France only for holidays, there is
nothing to stop you having a stand at the
annual vide grenier (car boot sale) for example
or attending concerts. Anyone can attend local
council meetings and any inhabitant can be
elected as a member of the conseil municipal.
Many parts of France have expat support
groups or an association that fosters cross-
cultural ties and if your dream destination
doesn’t have such a group, you could always set
one up yourself. Many towns have a branch of
Accueil Ville Française (avf.asso.fr), a network
of groups to help newcomers settle in.
Facebook has become an invaluable way to find
ultra-local online communities and nationwide
ones such as our own Living in France group.
Annette is a marketing consultant for
Renestance, an organisation that helps English
speakers move and settle in the Languedoc-
Roussillon area. “How I wish they had existed
11 years ago – it would have saved me a lot of
heartache!” she says. As well as running her
business lafranglaiseweb.com, Annette is admin
of a Languedoc drawing and painting group,
part of the Urban Sketchers community. And in
2011, she founded a business networking
group, now called the J2 CoNetwork,
connecting homeworkers like herself, especially
English speakers. “It helped enormously in
helping me connect to other people in similar
circumstances,” says Annette. “Some of the
loveliest relationships I’ve developed since
being here stem from those initial gatherings.”Buying an apartment
If you decide to buy a home in an apartment
block or holiday village, you are likely to come
across the French system of co-ownership
called ‘copropriété’. Unlike in the UK, there is no
landlord that owns the whole block of flats and
from whom you lease your apartment. Instead,
you are the absolute proprietor of your flat or
chalet and also own a percentage of the
common areas, such as stairwells, entrances
and driveways. Along with the other owners,
you are jointly responsible for the day-to-day
management and safety of these common
areas, which you do by appointing and paying
a managing agent (le syndic), often a local
property agent.
What if you only have a tiny studio while€170,000: Beautiful end of terrace house in the Lot-
et-Garonne bastide of Bourgougnague, within walking
distance of all amenities and only 11 minutes’ drive from
the expat hub of Eymet; tastefully renovated, it has two
double bedrooms, shower room with toilet, recent double-
glazing, loft space and a workshop in a walled low-
maintenance garden with parking (beauxvillages.com)
€36,000: Bijou cottage in old Confolens, a riverside
Charentais town with a new hospital, 40 minutes from
Limoges airport; available furnished, the house is on
mains drainage and is partly double-glazed, with one
bedroom and the possibility of creating another in the
cellar; the open-plan living space has lovely features
including an old stone sink (actous.fr)€113,000: A cute two-bed townhouse with
independent one-bed apartment (currently rented out
for €300/month) in the heart of Mansle, a Charentais
town 20 minutes from the TGV station at Angoulême; the
house has a small south-facing garden; the apartment
has a courtyard and there’s also a detached garden on
the banks of the River Charente (charente-immobilier.com)Small houses
If you live alone, you are
not alone – households
in France, as in the UK,
have been getting smaller
for decades
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