Buying a property in the Limousin

[bunjies]

Has anyone bought a property in the Limousin area of France (specifically around Eymoutiers) and if so could they recommend an agent who helped them? We are looking to move to the area next Summer and are planning to visit at the end of February to view potential properties.

[FrenchKissUnderMistletoeGirl]

I come from the Limousin bunjies...... I'm afraid I cannot recommend an agent. Do you speak French? What do you plan to do over there? It's a beautiful area but quite 'old' IYSWIM, not the most dynamic. I suppose it depends what you're into.

[bunjies]

Hi Frenchkiss, we want to rent out gites by appealing to families who want to get away from it all! We visited in October and liked it so are hoping to go back in Feb to view some potential properties. I can speak rudimentary French but would obviously need to learn it better if we do actually make the move. What part of the Limousin do you come from?

[Nightynight]

What do you need the agent to do?

[gggimmesnowsnow]

Don't want to put you off, but was reading an article about gites the other day and saying how over saturated the market was and that it should never be seen as a reliable form of income. Have no idea whether that is true of Limosin, though. I know that there are cheap flights to Limoges.

[gggimmesnowsnow]

It looks that there are already a fair number of expats who have moved there.

[LucycatsGotTheTurkey]

ooh I could see myself living here!! not sure a trade in on a 3 bed semi in Manchester would cover it though!!

[FrenchKissUnderMistletoeGirl]

I come from a village called Uzerche near Brive, very pretty, the old town is gorgeous but totally underdeveloped, I always thought it had a lot of potential. There are quite a few expats there already. There have been attempts at things like english teashops and shops, which haven't done very well in Brive (looked very amateurish. Don't know about the gites market I'm afraid. It is a beautiful area though.

[bunjies]

The french entree website has become my bible over the last few months! The over-saturation of the gite market is something we are cautious of but are hoping our USP of appealing to like-minded families will be of help. I am starting to get a little worried about the numbers of British though . We were hoping an agent would be able to lead us through the process of buying properties in france (especially as we will be in England during most of the process).

[Nightynight]

bunjies,
buying a property in france is not that hard. There is loads of advice on Abbey National France's website. Your solicitor will do most of the work.
As you have probably gathered, I wouldnt bother with an agent, could over-complicate things!

You'll have to get to grips with French anyway, best start sooner rather than later. And ask on here if there is anything we can help you with.

[gggimmesnowsnow]

If you do use an agent - go through a french one that speaks english. they put the prices up for brits otherwise (brit agencies value high).

Hiya nightynight.

[Nightynight]

salut ggg!

[galaxy]

Good luck to you if you can make this work.

However, we have spent the best part of three years looking into moving to France with our two children and after much expense and research have come to the realisation that setting up and running gites or chambre d'hote will not give you the income you need to sustain even a basic lifestyle.

In February this year, we found the ideal business south of Limoges - in the tourist industry but not accomodation. However, after putting together business plans, and getting the truth out of the French owner we decided not to proceed.

We also took advice from several friends and other expats trying to make a living and the only ones that we found who were making enough to survive, were those without children.

I don't want to be negative, but unless you are fluent in French and close to an industrial area, where you may be lucky enough to find some form of work to support your business whilst you build it up, then do think very seriously and do your homework before you dive into this.

Good luck, whatever you decide to do.