Where can you buy property in France for under £100k?
There are many wonderful parts of France where you can buy a home for less than £100k. From the Limousin to the Charente, Deux-Sèvres to Normandy, there really is a very large choice.
It was the Haute-Vienne – south of Limoges in the Limousin – that George Simpson and George Bailey-Haigh from Wales chose to look for a holiday home. The brief was “two bedrooms, old and quirky and with a decent-sized garden”.
The two Georges – who met via a dating site, their first meeting on a bench – got A Place in the Sun to help them in their quest – and Craig Rowe showed them some great properties for their £75k budget.
The property they loved suddenly sold during the filming, but viewers of the episode earlier this month will have learnt that the couple bought a property shortly afterwards.
How much does property cost in Haute-Vienne?
George B (as Craig dubbed him) says: “After the filming we stayed on, had a look at some more properties, then we came out again. The show really helped us hone what we wanted [not too huge a project].”
They found the right property in Sussac, a village known for its quiet rural charm but surrounded by scenery popular with tourists, from Lake Sussac (with its own sandy beach and café in summer), Mont Gargan for hiking and the charming medieval town of Eymoutiers.
The house had seven bedrooms, five bathrooms, a big yoga studio (it had been run as a yoga retreat by its British owners) and sat on two acres, including a Japanese bridge over a small river. It cost only £65k.
What should you budget for renovating a house in France?
Their estate agent (Carole Cusworth of Agence Newton) helped them find tradespeople to rewire the property and start upgrading it – there were no utilities at the outset as it had sat empty for four years.
George S, who used to be a railway guard, says that in the end they went big as “size matters” but cannot explain quite why they need seven bedrooms. “We might offer it as an overspill for guests when the B&B up the road gets full,” he says.
The couple have modernised the large kitchen (nearly) and reckon they might spend up to €50k on the whole property. “We could get away with spending much less, but we are doing it to a high standard,” he says. “If you buy a property that needs work, always allow more than you think to do it up.”
Can you still find cheap property in rural France?
The good news is that, two years later, you still can find (smaller) properties in Sussac for less than £70k – and not even dilapidated ones.
The couple loved the property’s oak beams, mosaic floors and oak floorboards. The yoga studio, entered through big double doors and overlooked by a mezzanine floor, is ‘rather like a nightclub’, says George B, a former chemist who admits they are not quite sure how they will use it – but is certain it won’t be yoga.
What is it like living in rural Haute-Vienne?
He says they love the property’s location. “It’s very rural, and in summer it’s so buzzy with the lake, but on 1 September it all closes down.”
In the process of moving from Wales to Lincolnshire, the retirees are busy and will work around their 90-day limit for trips to France.
George S says: “We don’t spend enough time in France – yet!”
Dreaming of your own bargain in France?
From charming rural cottages to large character homes with land, France still offers incredible value for money.
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