In this newsletter

2021-spring

Spring edition 2021 image-1

Spring edition 2021

In this edition, our spotlight shifts slightly and refocuses on the Limousin and the area around the city of Limoges. Rural Limousin is a landscape of rolling countryside and agriculture contrasted with an upland forested area and dissected by many river valleys. Tranquillity, open space and freedom all spring to mind as you tour this charming region that has played such an important part in France’s long and often dramatic history.

We meet a Dutch couple who decided to take the leap and emigrate to France and the local area; we explore the old Roman city of Limoges, now perhaps best known for its porcelain pottery; we visit a renovated farmhouse with a lot more potential for someone who is looking for a future income stream, and we take a trip into the kitchen to make one of the famous desserts that adorn the region’s tables.

Welcome to the Spring edition of ‘For You’
At last, a feeling of optimism is spreading across much of Europe after a whole year in and out of lockdown; country governments and local authorities are announcing their plans to ease restrictions and the vaccination programme gains momentum.

But with this optimism comes a realism that this terrible virus will not just go away and that some of the things we have all had to do (and stop doing) will remain for the foreseeable future.
Personal health and the safety of others will remain embedded in both our social and working lives.

Travelling will continue to be an issue, and although border and airport testing will help to control the spread of the many COVID variants, it is unlikely to be one hundred per cent effective.
Working from home will become more generally accepted within Western economies as the new way of doing business.

Despite these changes to our lives, many new opportunities will also arise.

People are genuinely reviewing the need to be based in sprawling cities and tightly packed urban environments, and with a growing theme of ‘work from anywhere, the chance to live in a rural setting with uninterrupted views becomes feasible, especially when internet/broadband coverage is universal.

This perhaps goes some way to explaining why even during the tightest of restrictions, people have still bought their dream home in France.

House sales have been strong during the last 12 months both for primary and secondary homes. It is our experience that there is more buying interest now than there is current housing stock available to sell. As a result, we have seen further heat in the market with rural house prices showing a double-digit rise during 2020.

By using digital technology and near real-time ‘walkthroughs,’ we have enabled clients to get a feel for a property without having to visit and made it possible for them to purchase without sitting in front of a French Notaire. While others have decided to visit, returning home to sit out their quarantine period but with the knowledge and warm feeling that they have seen and bought their house in France.

Life is different in France: a treasured cultural heritage, a dramatic history spanning the millennia, varying and breathtaking panoramic landscapes, world-renowned culinary skills, an outstanding selection of wines, a nation of friendly people and a spirit of community all go into creating a heady mix that is hard to resist.

We love France and so do our clients, and despite everything going on in this crazy world, now remains a great time to make your dreams come true… and we are here to help.

Keep safe and be well.