A New Year Epiphany

Once Christmas is over in France, the shelves of every boulangerie are suddenly full of a very distinctive flat pastry and marzipan cake, usually sold with a paper crown known as the Galette des Rois (cake of the Kings.) New Year celebrations here are almost bigger and more important than Christmas. The celebration starts at the end of December when people start wishing each other Bonne Année or Happy New Year and ends on the 6^th January, or epiphany.

A Galette des Rois in the croustade shop in Saint Girons

As ever in France, any celebration is an excuse for fine food and wine and New Year is no exception with oysters, foie gras and champagne making up part of the meal of many families. Like Christmas, New Year celebrations tend to focus around a big family meal on New Year’s Eve known as le Réveillon, finishing with the Galette des Rois.

This cake is actually eaten right through January and comes with its own very specific traditions. Each is baked with a hidden charm inside known as la fêve which was originally a bean (hence the name) and is now a small china figure which children often collect. The cake is cut into pieces and the youngest child at the meal has to sit under the table and call out the name of each person to receive the next slice of cake. Whoever finds the charm hidden inside is given the paper crown to wear and becomes King or Queen for the day.

One of the many nice things about living abroad is that we can pick and choose our traditions from home or abroad, according to which appeal. So consumerism, piles of plastic toys and Christmas decorations in November are out while family time, mince pies, crackers, walks in the snow and the Galette des Rois are definitely in.

Wishing  you a very Bonne Année

Wishing for a very French Christmas

In the past I have spent Christmas in various countries and the way different cultures celebrate at this time of year seems to be very indicative of their priorities. So when we moved to France, I was fascinated to see what the focus of the celebration would be here. Of course, it should have been obvious – the focus is on food and eating but also on spending time en famille; all traditions which we are very happy to take on in our house.

Christmas trees decorate the streets of St Lizier

Having lived in France for seven years now though, I realise that what I enjoy most about Christmas here is that the French have not yet completely sold out to the commercial, shopping fest that has become the norm in many countries, maybe because people just do not have the money (and do not spend money they don’t have which is why France has come through the current financial crisis so much better than many countries.) 

Presents are, of course, part of the celebrations but almost as a secondary element to the culinary highlight of the Christmas meal which takes place on Christmas Eve. Moreover, Christmas decorations generally don’t go up until two weeks before the day and, here in the Ariège, the local communes organize hundreds of Christmas trees to be placed at intervals along the streets, often decorated by the local school children.

Snowy Christmas walk

Even better for us, because we are so close to the mountains, we are pretty much guaranteed a white Christmas – at least within a short drive. So either on Christmas Eve or on Boxing Day, we pile into the car with the rest of the family who generally join us in France and go up to our favourite snowy plateau for a walk, some sledging and some mulled wine and mince pies from the picnic basket (mince pies is a British tradition that we cling to but one that our French neighbours just don’t get!)

Mince pies in the Pyrenees!

Somehow the French manage to take the best bits of Christmas, discard the stress and overspending and just focus on eating, drinking and enjoying time en famille. As so often is the case, it leaves us realizing that our French friends and neighbours here have their priorities right.

Wishing you a very happy Christmas à la français.

Sunshine, not snow in the foothills of the Pyrenees

Often when I tell people that we live in the foothills of the Pyrenees, they tend to assume that we are snowbound for much of the winter. Generally they are amazed to discover that, despite the fact that our village is less than 50 kilometres from the nearest ski resort, we actually get snow only a few days a year and often winter temperatures here are much higher than those in the UK.

Winter nights and early mornings are cold and we wouldn’t be without our wood burner but we are a long way south here so the sun has real warmth in it. Winter afternoons in the sun can often reach 17 or 18 degrees (which was the case today) and we regularly sit outside to drink our coffee or enjoy lunch in the sun in February – a phenomenon I don’t ever remember experiencing in England. Snow may be causing havoc in the UK right now but here in the lee of the mountains, we are enjoying the protective Foehn effect (click this link to read the scientific explanation http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Foehn_wind) which means warm air and sunny days.

Snow on Mont Valier - sunshine in the valleys

What’s more, rainy winter days aren’t miserable and vaguely depressing when you live in the foothills of the mountains because we know that, while it may be raining on us, fresh snow will be falling up in the mountains with all the promise of a fabulous day skiing, sledging or snowshoeing in the sun in the days to follow.

For me this is a perfect winter location; we have sunshine and warmth on a daily basis with chilly nights providing the perfect excuse to snuggle in front of the fire with a hot chocolate.  Meanwhile, everywhere we look there is snow sparkling on the mountains with sledging, skiing and fabulous snowy walks whenever we want. The foothills of the Pyrenees truly are a winter wonderland.

Toulouse to Paris in three hours by TGV

Theatre du Capitole, Toulouse

After years of planning and negotiation, the French government has finally approved the extension of the high speed TGV service between Toulouse, Bordeaux and Paris. This will reduce the journey time between Toulouse and Paris significantly, putting Toulouse within three hours of the capital.

The plan, as it stands at the moment, is for the high speed line to be operational by 2020 with the ultimate aim of linking the Atlantic coast to the Mediterranean with a high speed rail system and also to create a high speed line to Madrid and Lisbon. You can find further information and detailed plans of the route on the Grands Projets du Sud-Ouest website:  http://www.gpso.fr/cartes.html

I for one am certainly looking forward to a few long weekends in Paris – although I am hoping that I won’t have to wait ten years until my next visit. In the meantime, there are over 30 flights per day from Toulouse to Paris operated by Air France or Easyjet to both Orly and Charles de Gaulle taking around one hour. The Capital is not so far from the foothills as it may seem.

The Ariège records the largest house price increase in France so far in 2010

The Association of Notaires in France has just released the latest report into the state of the French housing market. The figures seem to confirm the resurgence in property sales reported by the FNAIM (French estate agents association) earlier this month.

They report a significant increase in sales to between 700,000 and 750,000 for 2010, compared to 2009 when sales were below 600,000.

House Sales in France 2001/10

Source: Insee

Much of this increase in sales is likely to be down to the current historically low interest rates in France which now average around 3% (although it is possible to find even lower.) This has meant a reduction in average monthly mortgage payments of around 12.5%.

As far as house prices are concerned, the Ariège region, which has historically had a very stable (and incredibly good value) property market, has recorded one of the largest increases in property prices during the year:

‘.... in some departments, such as Creuse, Haut Loire and Ariège, house prices have risen on average by over 15%.’

This is borne out by my local agents in Saint Girons who say that, after a very quiet market in 2009, buyers are back and property has started to move again with a corresponding increase in prices. Not quite a property rush but things are looking up and this is actually great news for buyers and sellers alike as some interesting properties are now appearing on the market, especially old farms with outbuildings or village houses, both of which are generally high on the property wish list of people looking for homes in this area.

So why are sales and prices increasing here in the Ariège? Well I can only put it down to the fact that house buyers coming to France are now much more conscious of getting value for money, which is why they are being drawn to this region. Buyers are daring to cast their nets wider (as the map below illustrates) and have discovered what amazing value the houses are in the Ariège. Which just goes to show that yesterday’s backwater is tomorrow’s hotspot and, while property here is still very affordable, it will not always necessarily remain so.

The following map shows the average percentage change in prices within each department up to June 2010.

House Prices 2009/10

Source: Notaires de France

How much is a view worth?

For me one of the greatest pleasures of living here in the foothills is opening my shutters each morning and looking out over the mountains, especially at this time of year when the first snow on the highest peaks is bright white against the blue sky and the leaves are a hundred shades of orange.

For most people who buy a house in this area, it is the view of the mountains which is one of the greatest attractions; it is what makes this region special and different to say living in Surrey. And, most of us really want a view of those mountains from our house here – even if it is just a glimpse from the upstairs window. There is something quite magical and uplifting about mountains and their constantly changing panorama; and who wouldn’t want to incorporate a bit of magic into their life?

But this has got me thinking – how much is a view worth in terms of property prices? I thought I would try to find out – at least for this region. There is no published research – I guess it is a hard concept on which to put a figure - but a quick visit to a few of my local agents came up with a pretty conclusive result that a view of the mountains (a proper view, not just a glimpse) from the house and garden adds at least 50% to a property. What’s more, all the agents here say that a house with a view of the mountains, however distant, will usually sell twice as quickly as one without.

Having looked at many houses in this region, both with and without a view, I don’t think this is unreasonable. In my opinion, a mountain view is worth every penny, even if it means compromising on the size or condition of the house. Both of these can be changed but, in most cases, it is very difficult to create a view where one doesn’t exist. It may be a well-worn property cliché but location really is everything and even more so when it comes to buying a house here in the foothills.

Real places, real houses, real people beat the internet hands down any day

I have been having an interesting discussion recently with a potential client who believes that, thanks to the internet, he can search for his dream house just as easily from his home in England as I can here on the ground in sunny France and therefore cannot really see why he needs me.

My argument is that the internet is actually a very limited tool when it comes to house hunting and should definitely be used as just one of many ‘weapons’ in the armoury. I bet there are not many people out there who have seen a house in the Ariège or Haute Garonne advertised on line, managed to visit and found it exactly as they had expected or hoped.

In my experience, all those hours trawling property sites on the internet so often turn out to be a waste of time as, more often than not, the houses shown are no longer available (sometimes they never were) or are pictured carefully cropped so as to hide the enormous pylon in the foreground. Estate agents descriptions only contain the most basic facts, so it is impossible to tell what a house is really like - let alone whether it’s located near a noisy road, railway line or sewage farm. 

Pretty house - but why is it so tightly cropped...?

Moreover, many of the estate agencies in this region do not even have a website – part of the old fashioned charm of France can also be frustrating and you really do have to visit each agency to find out what they have on their books. Notaires also sometimes have some real gems that are only ever advertised locally, which is often also the case with private sales in the region. Many more houses are sold privately in France than in the UK and the only way to discover these is to be on the spot as lots of French people privately selling houses in this region, do not have access to the internet so will rely on petits annonces (private ads) and local boards to sell their houses.
The problem is that it usually takes a potential client a few wasted, expensive trips and frustrating viewings of completely unsuitable properties before they begin to understand my argument and actually begin to see the benefit of using a property finder. Anyway, having had the ‘finding a house on the internet – or not’ discussion a few times this week, I decided to test my theory and get out and about.

For me too, it is far too easy to sit in front of my computer and think I am doing a thorough job but I likewise need reminding that there is life outside of cyberspace - and my job after all is about knowing my region; both the good bits and the bad. So I turned off the computer and phone and went out to ‘faire un tour’  of the villages and countryside which make up my beautiful corner of France, looking out for those all important ‘a vendre’ signs and talking to local people. What’s more, it is such a pleasure to drive around this stunning area – there is nothing like fresh, mountain air to invigorate and clear the head and nothing like chatting to the eminently grounded local people here to realize that the world won’t stop if I am away from my computer or telephone for an afternoon.

The views are spectacular here in the foothills at any time of year but, right now, with all the trees beginning to turn thousands of shades of orange and red, they are simply breathtaking. I headed out south of Saint Girons towards the Pyrenees, through Moulis and Castillon en Couserans and then into the stunning Vallée du Biros and the pretty and very special village of Sentein; a truly uplifting tour that I can recommend to anyone who is feeling in any way stressed or overloaded.

Sentein

I arrived back at my office with new energy and enthusiasm for this very beautiful part of South West France as well as with a small list of interesting houses which I had noticed for sale that were certainly not nor ever would be advertised on the internet. I also came back with renewed certainty that the only way to find the real gems of houses in the very best locations, is to get out and do my research the good, old-fashioned way. The internet is undoubtedly a fantastic invention but, at the end of the day, nothing can match local knowledge and simply being here on the ground. 

La Chemin de la Liberté- a tough walk to freedom

Every year a group of hikers from all over the world meet up in the lovely town of Saint Girons, the capital of the Couserans region of the Ariège, in order to hike over the Pyrenees into Spain.  But this is no gentle ramble; it is four days of serious hiking and tough conditions; this year it was the heat that caused problems, with temperatures reaching 37 degrees but fog, rain and snow are not unknown.

The group, most of whom do not know each other, meet at the vieux pont in the centre of Saint Girons, loaded with heavy backpacks. This is a challenge even for the fittest but it is, nevertheless, a walk in the park compared to the experience of the many hundreds of men and women who took this route during the Second World War. And this is why most of the group are here; many had relations who escaped the Nazis by using this route and they have come to commemorate the bravery of these soldiers and resistance fighters and of the local, mountain people who led them safely along the route and provided them with shelter and food. 

There were a number of escape routes through France during World War Two but the Comete Line, the Pat O'Leary Line and the Marie Claire Line were the most famous. One of the O'Leary networks went through central France to Agen & Toulouse then to the central Pyrenees to the starting point of "Le Chemin de la Liberté" in St Girons. The high mountain route into Spain was carefully chosen as it avoided all official checkpoints. Between 1940 & 1944, there were 33,000 successful escapes along the entire length of the Pyrenean chain and 782 escaped over the mountain peaks of the Ariège. During the war several escape trails were established near St Girons and other towns and villages surrounding it like Foix, Tarascon, Aulus-Les-Bains, Massat, Castillon, Seix & Sentein all had invisible mountain routes towards the Spanish frontier.

One of the most famous English escapees was the World War resistance fighter Nancy Wake who worked for the Special Operations Executive and was forced to flee from the Gestapo in 1943 along Le Chemin de la Liberté. Many had no food, completely unsuitable clothing and had to survive terrible weather conditions and heavy snow along the route. Most would never have survived without the help and bravery of the local Ariègeois.

By the beginning of 1943 German surveillance had increased often due to the betrayal by Frenchmen who worked for the feared Vichy-run paramilitary force "La Milice" and there were many ambushes along the trails. Despite this increased surveillance, the St Girons-Esterri escape route via Mont Valier remained operational until the end of the war.

Hence, each year, a guide leads a group along the trail to commemorate those who made it and those who did not. What a great and very appropriate way to remember such brave, determined and enterprising people.

The text on this post along the route says:

“Claustre J-Marc, 1943, 14 ans berger, je montais au Mt Ceint pour surveiller les patrouilles allemandes pour aider les passeurs vers le pic des trois seigneurs.”

Eccentric British Behaviour

Apparently today is officially the first day of Autumn. Which, in the sunny south west of France, means that, despite the fact  that the sun is shining, the sky is blue and Meteo France is forecasting 26 degrees in Saint Girons for this afternoon, everyone here is now wearing winter coats and winter boots. Well, everyone that is except for us – the crazy famille anglaise.

An autumn day in Saint Girons

As we arrive at school on another perfect, sunny morning, nobody actually says the words, irresponsible mother – or certainly not within my hearing – but the slightly shocked looks as each new parent and teacher clocks my children’s bare knees and toes, say it all. I fear that, if this was England, I would probably be reported to social services for cruelty to children.

There is no doubt that there is a noticeable chill in the air in the mornings now; a warning that colder weather is not that far away. To put this in a British context however, we are still eating every meal outside on the terrace and by mid-afternoon it is definitely too hot to sit in the sun. This is better than English summers that I remember and, being forever British at heart, there is no way that I am going to waste any opportunity to make the most of every last warm ray of summer (or autumn) sun. Of course winter has its own pleasures but I am not ready for them yet. It is another of the many reasons we live in this glorious part of the world where the summers seem to go on and on. Much as I love England, I have always struggled with those endless long grey months whereas here winter proper doesn’t really start until December and, even then, it is usually bright and sunny, albeit cold, with that wonderful, mood-enhancing southern light.

Luckily, one of the many good things about being an English family in France is that we can get away with odd behaviour which our friends and neighbours here happily put down to typical British eccentricity. And of course, there’s nothing the French like better than us behaving in ways that confirm their beliefs about England – such as the wearing of t-shirts in September which clearly proves that we grew up in such a truly horrible climate that we are inured to the cold and thus can get away with wearing summer clothes in September when normal people are wearing jumpers and fur lined boots. Being British, we are expected to behave strangely, thus we can (and do) get away with so much more. Personally I rather like this role of eccentric abroad.

My favourite time of year in the foothills

I am often asked what is my favourite time of year here in the foothills of south west France and usually the answer is right now. But there really is something very special about the autumn months in the Ariège which is why (September being right now) I would say that this is my favourite time of year.

I love the abundance of fruit and vegetables at the market in Saint Girons, the colours in the valleys of the Couserans, the golden light and the calmness that descends as the holidaymakers take their leave.  Rather than the end of summer, I am more inclined to see Autumn as the start of a new cycle; maybe it is the ‘back-to-school’ thing of new pencil cases and shiny new shoes but I find it a very positive and energetic time of year.

On a more practical (and property) note, this is also of course the hunting season and by that I mean house hunting as opposed to the wild boar that my neighbours are so keen to track down now that the chasse has started.  As the summer crowds leave, a sense of calm purposefulness has descended and even the agents have begun to return my calls. Plus some real gems have started to appear on the market; house owners who have been pondering all summer whether or not to sell, seem to have finally taken the decision; thus the choice of houses for sale seems to have doubled overnight.

What’s more, the weather is generally perfect at this time of year. Every morning I open my shutters to another cloudless, blue-sky day, the outline of the Pyrenees so clear that it feels I could almost reach out and touch them.  Mornings and evenings are fresh (chilly even) but, by midday, the sun is hot on my back and I am too warm in a t-shirt; layers are the ‘mode du jour’ at this time of the year. Soon we will see the first sprinkle of snow on the highest peaks with the promise that brings of skiing at Guzet, snowshoeing around the Etang de Lers and magical, winter-wonderland walks through the woods. This weather usually lasts right through until December with the mornings and evenings getting progressively colder but the midday sun still strong enough to successfully take any chill out of the air, the ideal conditions for al fresco coffees and lunches sur la terrace. 

Perfect days like these are one of the many reasons why we live in France and, more particularly, in the beautiful foothills of the Ariège.

 www.frenchentree.com/ariege-haute-garonne-property-finder

nadia@foothillsoffrance.com

Property Price Psychology

I spent all day yesterday driving around the countryside trying to get loads of lovely shots for my new website www.frenchentree.com/ariege-haute-garonne-property-finder. This is certainly no hardship – driving around what I truly believe to be one of the most beautiful parts of the world with the odd refuelling stop at a village cafe or at one of the numerous mountain streams to cool my toes. My new business Foothills of France is a property search agency (part of the Frenchentree network) and I reckon the best way to persuade potential clients that this is where they want to buy a house, is to show them how beautiful it is here and what good value property is in this region.

This whole exercise, however, got me thinking about the complete madness that is property prices and the property market in general. Here in the Ariège and Haute Garonne we live within an hour of some fantastic ski resorts to rival many of those in the Alps. We also have the luxury of choosing whether we spend the day on a Mediterranean beach or an Atlantic beach as both are within reach at two hours in either direction. The scenery is breathtaking – there are lush, green valleys, rivers, lakes and stunning mountain views around every corner and there is a huge selection of beautiful houses to suit every taste and pocket from bijou mountain huts to stunning chateaux. Moreover, although this is a very rural and unspoiled area, we are close to Toulouse, the fourth largest city in France, with all its attendant work opportunities. The transport links are excellent with the Toulouse international airport around an hour away and Pau Airport and Carcassonne airport under two hours. And yet this region still has some of the lowest property prices in the whole of France.

This is the part I don’t understand. If we were in Haute Provence say, a four-bedroom, stone, period house with a couple of acres and a swimming pool with distant views of snow-capped mountains would set you back around 2 million Euros; here in the Ariège it would be nearer 400,000 Euros and that is if it were restored. Un-restored or ‘dans son jus’ as they say here, you are looking at half that price whereas in Provence, from what I understand, there is nothing left to restore, everything has already been done and overdone. Similarly, a traditional wooden chalet in the Alps, close to the ski slopes would not give you much change from a million Euros whereas here in the Pyrenees, there are lovely chalets available from 150,000 Euros. Now am I missing something? Ok so perhaps the climate is ‘better’ in Provence if you like having to hide away from the sun half of the year and are particularly fond of cactus plants, snakes and mosquitoes. But here in the South West, we have glorious sunshine all year round and yet we also have rain so the valleys and hills remain green and we can have a lawn and grow flowers and vegetables plus we get to sleep at night because it is not unbearably hot. As for the Alps; sure you have larger resorts but you also have a lot more skiers which make for crowded pistes and long queues at lifts and restaurants. Here we sometimes have the slopes to ourselves, there is plenty of challenging skiing for all levels and massive investment over recent years has resulted in fast and efficient lift systems. What is more, there is a really friendly, family atmosphere in the resorts here and the cost of ski passes and ski hire is half the price of that in the Alps.

The only reason for such a mismatch of property prices that I can see is that this is a relatively unknown, unfashionable region compared to Provence and the Alps. Now I don’t want to ‘do a Peter Mayle’ on this region and cause a mass influx of tourist buses but it seems to me that this situation is untenable. There really is only one reason for prices to be so disproportionately different and that is because of fashion and demand. Eventually, as people get priced out of one area, so they begin looking for another. We have seen this happen in the UK and the same is sure eventually to happen here.

So what am I saying? Really just that, if you want your own piece of an incredibly beautiful and varied part of France, you can still afford it here but that is not necessarily always going to be the case. If property were valued in terms of the quality of life it offered, the houses here in the foothills of the Pyrenees would be ‘hors prix’ or way out of reach of us all. So make that dream happen before everybody else gets here first.

To find out more about how I can help you find your dream house here in the foothills of France, take a look at my website www.frenchentree.com/ariege-haute-garonne-property-finder, e-mail me on nadia@frenchentree.com or call me on 0033 (0)5 61 66 70 11 or 0033 (0)6 45 23 62 48.