Moving to France?
I'm just wondering if anyone else has similar background and has made the move and what pitfalls they found
Thanks
David
Hi David,
I think many of the answers to your questions depend on what you want from your move to France - do you want to make friends with the local community or live in an area with many expats.. or both!
My wife & I moved here in Sept 2007 from the UK and found the arrival process to be nowhere like as daunting as people would have you believe. We were met with friendliness on all sides in shops, institutions, govt depts, artisans - everywhere.. But this is the south west (Bayonne to be specific) and people here are noted for their warmth.
We were looking to buy a property down here after holidaying in the region for 20 years but we'd not been here much in the off season. Our plan was to rent a gite initially to give us a base while we looked and also to take the pressure off the property search. You can find one via Gites de France (ask Google).
Which area? My wife (French) is fond of saying that good weather starts south of the Loire. We chose the SW and the Pays Basque in particular because it has everything we like.. coast, mountains, strong identity, 3 interesting towns (St Jean de Luz, Biarritz & Bayonne), close to the Spanish border (& San Sebastian, Bilbao), skiing, great food & wine, fishing, friendly people, sea food, access to Paris (4.5hrs on TGV or a quick flight from Biarritz airport), not as commercialised as the SE of France. Plus here it's still the
Old France - where the traditional values still apply. We weren't looking to live in an expat community either.
Type of property? Town houses in desirable coastal areas (eg Biarritz, St Jean de Luz) can be v pricy - factor in a garage and hold your breath.. Or you might want to consider an apartment..
Then location? Town, village or country? My ever-practical wife convinced me that living in town was the best option.. as opposed to a house with a pool in the country. Walk to the shops (as opposed to car for
everything), more possibility of making friends, more activities and finally, proximity to a hospital(!). Like you, we're both retired (60s) and it does make sense (even though it has the ring of doom to it!).
Once you've narrowed down your criteria, you can start looking. I spent hours on the internet in the UK looking at property just to try and get an idea of value & location. But in the end, you have to be here..
One thing that took me by surprise was the fee for the
Notaire (lawyer). Not that we had to pay them but I'd understood that the house price included the estate agency fees (here it's the buyer who pays - not the seller)
and the
Notaire's fees. I got the mother of all shocks when I sat down to sign the
Compromis de Vente and I saw this extra hefty fee for the
Notaire (it includes a tax) in there that I hadn't bargained for at all..
We've since joined a number of local activities - my wife goes to a gym and a painting class and I row at a local club 3 times a week. All of it great fun.
Regrets? Not one.. best thing we ever did. good luck with your plans.
P