Life is better in Brittany and Normandy

An 8 Bedroomed Manoir, PLUS a 4 Bedroomed Longere/Farmhouse on a large courtyard, with stables, outbuildings and 7 Hectares of land - divided amongst parkland, woodland, grazing and gardens close by the house. Sounds idyllic, ne fait-il pas? Well it is... and it's now available for just 300,000€ + Fees! (£238,000*)  Exceptional it certainly is and deserves to be seen! If this was in the Home Counties you wouldn't see change out of £1.25 million - but in Brittany at today's prices they are just this side of 'hen's teeth in terms of their rarity! At A House in Brittany we don't often publish blog posts about individual houses - but now and again there is a good reason to buck that trend... and this house deserves it in spades. It has been on the market for a good while now and started off, as you can imagine, at a much higher price - some 650,000€ + Notaire's Fees. The current owner, from the UK had the misfortune to have a successful career cut short ...

There was no inkling when we rolled up that anything was unusual about Le Roz... 'The Rose'... an 18th Century Corps de Ferme (the heart of a farm with all but 3,000m2 of it's land redistributed amongst neighbouring working farms) we plucked it from dereliction. And from under the noses of some local would-be buyers, who we pipped to the post; those who might have had a weather eye on the place themselves...but bought by this barmy couple from England. Since March 1999 and the signing of the Compromis and the paying of 10% deposit , we had eagerly awaited the call to say that all the documentation was complete and we were ready for the Acte Finale... Balance wired to the Notaire for placement in his clients' holding account, we were on the blocks and ready for the 'off' when Russell (who had introduced us to the house in the guise of introducing agent) called to give us the preferred date for the transfer of ownership. He suggested that we should meet him...

Our £12,000 house when we first saw it in 1999. Have you outgrown life in the UK? or almost anywhere else for that matter… Apart from all the hype and hyperbolé about Europe the 'are we in', are we out - is it good, is it bad?... How could we have turned this down at £12,000 back in 1999? Maybe you're empty nesters - We were in our time, 'rattling around' in a house that is getting a bit baggy now that the kids have left home. OR, you're younger possibly… and maybe technology has set you free and - lucky you - you can work from home…wherever the difference between income and expenditure is the widest (George Osborne - take note) - anywhere at all in fact. You are, as were are - and still are, 'have laptop… will travel' and all that,. Brilliant! But, whatever makes you footloose, you might just want to take a look at North West France. Out of reach - but not out of touch. Brittany and Normandy have plenty to offer apart from Moules Mariniere, Crepes...