Cognac golf course - a review

Regular readers of a certain age will know that around this time of year I go off on a 4-5 day golfing trip wth some old school friends from the UK.

We travel all over Europe to find decent courses and, in France, we have played some crackers like Chantilly, Paris International and Royal Medoc.

This year we are popping across the border into Spain and will be sampling the delights of San Sebastian among others.

The point of the post though is to highlight what a superb course and practice facilities I have here in Cognac.  I haven't played since our last tournament and thought I'd better dust off the cobwebs (literally and figuratively) and get in some training.

Cognac golf club is a championship, 18 hole, course of 6,125 metres from the back tees.  It's always well kept and the holes meander through the vines giving some lovely views down into the river valley. The par five 9th is my favourite hole - 484 metres all downhill and eminently reachable in two.  The great thing is that the hole funnels down, getting narrower and narrower, with a huge lake protecting the green and out of bounds tight to the left.  It's a potential card killer for those (like me) who think golf is about the glory not protecting your score-card!

The attractive clubhouse has an excellent restaurant (same team that runs the Chateau de l'Yeuse restaurant) with terrace overlooking the par three 18th.  The pro-shop is well stocked with knowledgeable staff.

The practice facilities are first class with four holes, a large, bunkered, green and two driving ranges (one covered area with mats and one uncovered off the grass).

It's definitely worth visiting if you're in the area and if you'd like to buy a house on/close to the course then for the price of a 2 bed apartment on the Algarve you'd get a wonderful family home with pool!

www.cognacproperty.com

French Property News - spotlight on Jarnac

The latest edition of French Property News is running a double page spread entitled "Spotlight on Jarnac, Charente" written by yours truly.

You can see the full online version of the article here.

If you are interested in buying a house in the Charente then I'd suggest that Jarnac should play a central role in your search.  The town itself (home to Courvoisier and birthplace of Francois Mitterand) is exceptionally pretty with a lovely market and plenty of riverside walks.

It is also at the centre of some of the prettiest towns and villages of the Charente.  Segonzac, Bassac, Bourg Charente, Chateauneuf & Cognac are all within a few minutes.  There is championship golf close by as well as theatres, cinemas, tennis clubs, swimming pools, ice rinks, cycle routes and a huge amount of terrific bars and restaurants.

Take a minute to read the article and meanwhile here's a couple of photographs I have taken locally.

www.cognacproperty.com

Guest blog: Jeff Lichtenstein of Jeff Realty

Regular readers will know that I sometimes invite guest bloggers to write about their specific areas of expertise.

My network of buying agents across France has seen a dramatic increase in enquiries from the USA over the last 12 months and I thought it would be good to get the views of an expert from "across the pond".

Jeff Lichtenstein specialises in the top end of the market including (close to my heart) golf properties. Here's his take on the market:

Housing Market in United States Improving, but Hold the Bubbly!

The United States housing markets is getting better, but hold the champagne if you think the market is going back to where it was.  It’s kind of like a student who always receives failing grades getting a D+ and being all excited.  However, it’s still a D+. Although that D+ does feel better than an F.  Some factors to take under consideration…

·       United States unemployment has decreased to 8.2% from a high of over 10% in 2009.  However, many have dropped out of the labor market and aren’t counted as unemployed in these statistics.

·       Interest Rates are at historic lows.  While it is not nearly as easy to get a loan, loans are taking place and FHA loans for example are work-arounds for home purchasers.  I just did a transaction where the buyer received a 96.5% loan utilizing FHA!

·       March retail sales were 2% higher than they were the period before.  A bit better economy and a hair better housing market helps spending and this trickles to all areas of the economy.

·       Permits for new construction were 8% higher than the previous quarter and 18 percent higher than 2011, first quarter.

·       HUD reported that total delinquencies for all mortgage loans were at 7.6% in the fourth quarter of 2011.  Subprime loans are at 20.8%

·       Total homeowner ownership in the United States is down 1.5% from a year ago at 65.4%.  Watch for this to go down further.  There is a giant backlog of foreclosures and short sales.  Bloomberg reports that distressed sales are made up 35% of the total market sales.  The homeowners who sell these distressed properties most likely have their credit destroyed and enter the rental market.
The United States is still a regional market.  My market in South Florida was hit the hardest by any in the country.  For example, Florida is at 9.4% unemployment and our backlog of foreclosures is by far the highest in the country at 3 years!  Below is a little more information on what is happening in Florida.

 Law of Supply And Demand changing South Florida Real Estate Market

 The Florida real estate market was hit the hardest from the housing bubble crash in 2006.  Finally, that market is starting to come back. Here's why:

1. Overall Market
The market is improving as of spring 2012 in Palm Beach County, Florida. We are seeing a slight increase in supply because of economic conditions, but a bigger jump in sales because of a 6-year slow drip of investment and must-sell inventory that has dried up.


2. Prices: This Year versus Last
In January of 2012 the average price was $296,000. The average sold price in February 2012 was $318,000. However, the average sold price in February of 2011 was $348,000, so prices are lower today than they were a year ago at this time.


3. Sales Volume
February 2012 home sales are up compared to last month. There were 797 sales in February 2012 versus 749 sales in January 2012. 752 sales took place in February 2011, so more sales are happening now than last year at this time as well.


4. Who is Purchasing?
Snowbirds, some first timers, and downsizers are purchasing. We are also seeing a trend of people selling their northern and small Florida home and then purchasing a medium-sized permanent Florida home. A few foreign buyers, but mostly from Canada. There are not as many Canadian purchasers as the last few years because many Canadians purchased from 2009-2011. Not much activity from Europe because their economy is weak.


5. Distressed properties:
163 short sales sold in February of 2012, which is more than the 128 that sold in February of 2011. There are currently 2621 short sales out of the 9593 homes available on the market. The Palm Beach County MLS has never kept exact track of foreclosures. Some lenders had their agents hide this for fear that agents would not show the property. However, that has changed in the past month, and going forward those properties must be marked in Palm Beach County MLS. Overall it has been reported that Florida, which takes a whopping 3-year time-span to foreclose on the average property, is starting to see that number go down. Banks are foreclosing faster as the overall inventory has diminished.


6. Can Buyers still get loans?
The people who want loans are not having trouble getting them. There is much more verification. I haven’t had problems myself with buyers finding financing. The problem lies more within the appraisal process of homes not appraising. Many times it is because the appraisal is not done well. Some of the appraisers hired are from out of the area, traveling from Miami or Orlando and don’t know the property well.

Natural Laws of Supply & Demand at Work in the Housing Market

For the past six years, economists and politicians have argued about what to do with the housing market. We’ve heard all sorts of solutions, from bulldozing homes to giving huge reductions in principal to homeowners upside down on their mortgages. President Obama blamed President Bush, Republicans blamed Barney Frank, and everyone blamed Wall Street. Quietly, though, as we start 2012 in Palm Beach County, overall inventory is significantly down. There were 9,593 homes available in February of 2012 versus 10,883 in 2011, almost a 12% drop in inventory. I attribute the drop to a change in supply, not so much to a surge in demand. As evidenced by the amount of sales staying the same, there has been a slow drop in supply since 2006. In 2006 we had a perfect storm of excess inventory:

1) Investor purchases of new construction

2) Builder speculation homes

3) Over-confident Sellers who purchased first without selling

4) Sellers who were in a must-sell situation

While we still have many Sellers in the 4th category of ‘Must Sell’, due to a loss of income or loss of job, 80-90% of the first three categories that I outlined have sold since 2006.

Picture a slow dripping faucet as a sale. One drip doesn’t amount to much, but drips from 2006 to 2012 add up to an overflowing bathtub! That is what has happened in real estate over the last 6 years, and 2012 is the year the bathtub overflowed. The investor, builder, and over-confident Seller who got stuck with their good-looking homes have taken their 35% loss and moved on. These Sellers have gone though denial, trying to wait it out by renting their home, got angry at Wall Street, switched to 4 different real estate agents before they stopped blaming everyone and accepted reality. Finally, they have sold and moved on.

Now we are left with a just a bad economy and a lousy market. This market is stronger, though, because the one-time Investor/Builder Spec/Over-Confident inventory has dissipated. I’ve personally had 2 Buyers lose out on homes ranging from $500,000 to $4,000,000 in the past two weeks. Buyers are in disbelief thinking they can wait forever only to lose out. Pending sales for March and April are going to be way up and buyers need to recognize the bottom is here, not because the economy is strong, but because there are no more investors investing, spec buildings being built, and over-confident Sellers buying first without selling first.

The turnaround in housing has begun because of the natural laws of Supply & Demand. In 2007, I explained to my 7-year-old son Sam, to picture a town with 100 homes and 100 people. If one person moves to the town each year, then one new home needs to be built. What happened in housing is that builders constructed 7 homes in one year, giving the town an excess of 6 extra homes. After a 6-year-long wait with no homes being built we have hit equilibrium. We now have 107 homes and 107 homeowners. Supply and demand are smoothing out. Watch for the Republicans and Democrats to fight over who gets credit. Sam, now 13, can tell you that the credit really goes to the free market principals of supply and demand.

Jeff Lichtenstein specializes in luxury real estate in Juno Beach Condos  and  Egret Landing Jupiter Homes in South Florida. 

His website is at www.JeffRealty.com

Are the French "super rich" really going to up sticks?

There's a feeding frenzy amongst the UK media at the moment to see who can run the biggest headline about wealthy French bankers upping sticks and moving to London.

The Daily Telegraph seem to regurgitate the same story daily, this is today's effort entitled "High earners say au revoir to France".

Francois Hollande has come into power on the back of pledges to tax the wealthy and put an end to the austerity drive implemented by President Sarkozy.  It will be interesting to see how many of these pledges he will be able to keep.

For sure those French residents with earnings over €1m pa are worried.

However, whether there is really a "huge exodus" is not yet clear.  London agents looking for a bit of free PR are, of course, going to stoke the fire and make all kinds of claims. 

There are already around 400,000 French people living in London so it's hardly a new phenomenon and I remember ten years ago the Chesterton agents in South Kensington and Sloane Square talking about the high amount of interest from French buyers.

And why not?  London is a fabulous city with a huge variety of parks, restaurants, museums and some excellent schooling (if you can afford it).  If you want to earn big money there's no better place.

Time will tell of course but with the pound at around €1.25 now (and getting stronger) even the super rich had better make their mind up quick. 

Having lived and worked in London for 20 years before moving out to France I do have one piece of advice for anyone looking to move the other way though:

Don't forget to pack your umbrella :-)

www.cognacproperty.com

Findaproperty app for ipad reviewed

The first thing I should say is that I'm being paid for this review - not much I grant you, but certainly enough Amazon vouchers to buy my youngest the Ed Sheeran album she wants. 

With that caveat in place it was actually a fun half hour running through the new Findaproperty app for ipads and comparing it with the French equivalent.

My comparison is with the SeLoger app that is used this side of the channel (download here).  The best word to describe the SeLoger pages is "ugly".  The site does all the basics (including GPS position to search by your current location), it's fast enough to load but it's pretty clunky to use and everything seems to be a struggle.

To be fair it is also drawing on much more basic information than you get in the UK.  Agents here take lousy photographs and the thought of putting a floor plan on their details is probably still 2-3 years away!

In contrast the Findaproperty app (download here) was pretty slick and a pleasure to use.  The "kid" in me liked the fruit machine effect when you put your price parameters in and the pinchable (is there such a word?) map feature worked quickly and smoothly. 

I didn't even try to use the GPS positioning (not sure how many houses they have for sale in Cognac) but I honed in on my old road in Walton on Thames within seconds of opening the app and it was simple to look at all the houses on the market, download photos and floor plans and save to favourites. Setting up my personalised search criteria was a breeze and the whole site was quick to load.

The size & quality of pictures was far, far better than on the French equivalent and whilst this probably has little to do with back end IT capabilities it is surely the most important issue when househunting and Findaproperty have got it right.

It's going to be interesting to see how the mobile revolution continues to shape the way that househunters look for property.  What's clear from this exercise is that this isn't going to be a "French Revolution" and that it's going to be the UK portals and agents leading the way.

www.cognacproperty.com

Pound reaches 2 year high against the euro

I have a little icon on the top right of my computer screen which shows the real time changes between the pound and the euro. It's important to my business for pretty obvious reasons.

It's currently showing that a shiny one pound coin will buy 1.23 euros which is the highest it's been for a couple of years.

The euro is under huge pressure - concern for the Spanish economy is getting worse and the continued woes of other continental european countries (with doubts over the depth or viability of their austerity measures) means that the euro is in real trouble.

According to research from Morgan Stanley, of the €1.5 trillion lent to commercial real estate developers in Europe, Spain alone accounts for more than 20% .  It's also been reported that between 1992 -2010 Spanish housebuilders were building at a rate of one new house per head of population....incredible eh!

If Hollande wins the election next Sunday, as is looking likely, his "anti austerity" policies will go down like a lead balloon in Germany. Who knows what will happen if these two powerhouses fall out.

When we moved out to France in 2003 we got 1.43 euros for our pounds.

Goodness knows, I'm not an Economist (struggled badly at A level, should have opted for something less taxing on my little grey cells) and am no FX specialist but I do have a hunch that my little icon may well continue clicking upwards for a while.

This does, of course, make a big difference to the demand for houses here from international buyers.

This time last year the rate was 1.10 which meant that my typical client (£300,000 budget) was looking at houses around €330,000.

Today my same client would be looking at houses around €370,000.

Oh for a crystal ball :-)

www.cognacproperty.com

Can we stop hyping French property prices please

Just read this very positive article about people moving to France in the Daily Telegraph.

Entitled "Vintage investments: buy a house in France" it's the kind of feature that brings clients to my door and I echo many of the sentiments expressed in the article.

You might then say that it's a bit churlish to complain about it....but I'm going to anyway.

"France remains the foreign property dream: sunshine, scenery and, mais oui, the food. What’s more, the beating that the euro has taken of late means that now is a great time to buy. On the one hand, France isn’t about to go bankrupt, but on the other, the situation in Greece, Spain and Italy is dragging down French property prices.  

All of which explains why British interest in French real estate is on the up. “Between June and September last year, we saw an increase of 192 per cent in requests for our guide to France,” says Richard Way from the Overseas Guides Company".

Hmmm - we know British interest is on the up because Mr Way has sold more guides.  Is this really the best indicator that The Telegraph can come up with?  His guide may be truly brilliant but if he sold 23 this year and 12 last year then that's a 192% increase.

"Overall prices in France rose by 4.3 per cent in 2011, and look set to rise this year".

Hmmm again - that's a pretty broad brush statement (and didn't they say in the first para that French property prices had been dragged down).  If overall prices in France rose last year it was only on the back of a red hot Paris market which saw double digit growth.

Believe me, prices in most parts of France didn't rise anything like 4.3% last year and I'd love to know on what grounds The Telegraph are confident enough to say that they will rise even further this year.  We have an election coming up, no-one knows who will get in or what changes they will bring about.

Don't get me wrong.

I firmly believe that the French property market is more stable than just about any other in Europe.  I believe that there are some great deals to be had whether buying as a home or an investment.  I believe that there is a rock solid underlying demand from international purchasers who love France and want to buy here. 50 million tourists come here every year (it's the most visited country on the planet) and they do so because it's a great place to holiday, live and work.

But hyping the prices here is a bad long term thing to do - the market is trundling along pretty well on the back of sensible pricing and realistic expectations (from vendors and agents alike), let's not stall it.

If a publication as well known and well respected as The Daily Telegraph is going to write an article like this then it should be on the back of some proper research (BNP Paribas do a great bi-annual study on this subject or try the FNAIM or Notaires de France) and not because Mr Way has increased his sales and is brilliant at PR.

www.cognacproperty.com

Tom Jones and Sting headline the Cognac Blues festival 2012

Following on from my last post about the town of Cognac punching above its weight how's this for a musical line up?

Sir Tom Jones (younger readers will know him as a judge from The Voice on BBC1), Sting (older readers will know him as the Ace Face from Quadrophenia), Hugh Laurie and The Cranberries.

These, and many more, acts will be gracing the annual Cognac Blues Passions festival which takes place between 3-8th July.  You can see full details, or buy tickets, here.

All of that is really exciting of course but not quite as exciting as the headline act for the annual Fete du Cognac which runs for three days later that month (26-28th July).  For just €5 (yes that's five euros) you can get admission to the quayside and see......The Stranglers.  Full details here.

Now, Sir Tom may well have sung with Elvis and The Beatles but he didn't supply the soundtrack to my youth (unless you count track 67A in The Grotto, Weybridge circa 1980 - "what's new pussycat" is a jukebox classic).

I'm pretty excited about all the concerts but suspect that it will be my €5 tickets that offer greatest pleasure for money.

You have to admit though that for a town of under 20,000 inhabitants Cognac really does pack a wallop. To paraphrase a certain lager ad:

 "If Carling made towns to live in...."

www.cognacproperty.com

Harlem Globetrotters roar into Cognac

 I know that it's only a small town in unfashionable, rural, Charente but Cognac really does punch above its weight.

Last night the world famous Harlem Globetrotters swept into town and beguiled a capacity audience of 2,000 in our local gym.

I have been a fan of the Globetrotters since I was a little boy, mesmerised by the tricks of Meadowlark Lemon, Curly Neal and gang.  We had ringside seats for the show and our youngest was rewarded by being dragged onto court and becoming part of the evenings entertainment.  The fact that all the players were American and needed someone to translate probably did no harm.

A big part of the evening is in the hyperbolic announcements provided by the American courtside commentator - all excitement was lost though by the French guy who was paid (although goodness knows why) to translate. 

"PERLEEEEEASE WELCOME THE WORLD FAMOUS HAAAAAARRRRRLEEEEM GLOOOOBETROTTERS" was followed by a two minute translation in a dull monotone, by which time all excitement had dissipated and we were flicking through the programme.

It was a great evening though.  Terrific entertainment, some great basketball skills and the team went out of their way to interact with the audience.  They stayed behind for photos and autographs and weren't at all in a hurry to get away.

I guess this was probably the smallest and cosiest venue they play on their tour and it's a testament to Cognac that they can attract entertainers/sportsmen of this calibre.

What more can one ask of a town - vineyards, sunflowers, sunshine, great food, wonderful houses and best seats in the house for "the greatest show on earth"!

www.cognacproperty.com

The wealth report 2012 - Knight Frank

 Leading international agent Knight Frank has just published its 2012 edition of "The Wealth Report" and it's more than worthwhile grabbing a coffee and reading through it when you have time.

You can download the report from here.

The report highlights locations that are important to the "super rich" as well as talking about prime residential and commercial hotspots.  My favourite section is where experts predict the world's leading city in 2050 (although rather predictably most go for Shanghai).

It comes on the back of a BBC story with the headline "Chinese buy their favourite Bordeaux by the vineyard", a story about Chinese investors buying the Chateau Latour-Laguens vineyard in 2009: 

"Chateau Latour-Laguens was the first estate in Bordeaux to be bought by Chinese investors three years ago, but at least five others are now also Chinese-owned" says the author.

Last year I too was mandated to find a chateau and vineyard around Bordeaux and a couple of years ago I helped a local agent find a buyer for a big chateau on the edge of Cognac.

Such transactions are definitely not "the norm" in the Charente but we have our fair share of luxury chateaux, vineyards and glorious estates and it seems that despite the global recession the super rich are still ready and eager to buy premium estates in prime locations. 

www.cognacproperty.com

Sarkozy offers 50% subsidy on all French property

In a controversial move to attract international investment into France President Sarkozy today announced a subsidy for all international buyers of French property.

Find your dream home in France and if, for example, the cost is €300,000 in the estate agents window then you will receive a €150,000 grant towards it from the French government.

The scheme runs from today, April 1st 2012, for exactly one year.

Spokeswoman, Mme Avril Poisson (pictured above with President Sarkozy), says:

"We are fed up seeing Boris Johnson (Mayor of London) boasting about the number of international buyers that are attracted to the UK.  We aim to redress the balance by offering this subsidy which will be granted in vouchers that can be redeemed in any E Leclerc, Auchan or Intermarché".

It will be interesting to see what effect this has on the French property market and whether Mme Poisson can indeed make a fool out of Mr Johnson.

www.cognacproperty.com

France still number one when buying a place in the sun

Just read this story in The Independent.

It appears that France remains in the number one spot for holiday-home owners who wish to buy their dream home in the sun:

"Unsurprisingly, France is the most popular destination for UK buyers who relish being able to pop across the Channel while still being close to home. France hasn't seen the dramatic house price decline of neighbouring Spain and finance is still available up to 85 per cent loan to value".

Whilst hardly earth shattering news this survey from Caxton FX does give one a little faith that the French property market will continue to prosper. Particularly in prime areas such as Jarnac (pictured above).

Of course, dreaming of a holiday home and actually buying one are two completely different things.  UK buyers are still a pretty rare species over here and are likely to remain so until they get confidence in the whole European economy, less penal lending restrictions and more security in the job market.

The good news is that although rare they are certainly not exctinct.  I have some cash buyers out next week and will be showing them some houses that are excellent value for money, all of them under €300,000.

If you feel as though your job is secure and you have some spare cash then French property looks as good an investment as any other I can think of - and surveys like this one in The Independent can only give credence to that opinion.

www.cognacproperty.com

Want to buy a house in Charente? Now here's an offer....

Spring is definitely sprung here in the Charente and the temperatures are in the high twenties.

Last week we went with some friends (& ex clients) to La Tonnellerie riverside restaurant in Chateauneuf sur Charente for a long and lazy lunch.  It's a charming place in an idyllic spot with a small terrace and views out over the weir.

We slowly cooked in the sunshine whilst enjoying an excellent meal and David showed us a painting he had done to give as a gift to the owners of his favourite bar in Jarnac (pictured above).

I was blown away - it captures the essence and character of this typically French bar brilliantly.  David told me that he'd been commissioned to paint a house in Montpellier too.

This got me thinking that having a painting such as this of your dream home in France would be a superb gift.

Therefore, dear readers, my offer is that any of you who mandate me to find them a property this year (2012) will receive a unique and original oil painting of their new house (subject to David's availability) paid for by yours truly.

All you have to do is quote "David Hughes fine art" before signing my standard T&C's and, of course, my search has to prove successful!

Now there's an offer you won't find from any other buying agent or estate agent in France.

To see a gallery of David's work visit www.davidhughesfineart.co.uk.  Even if you already own a house in France you may want something to gaze at longingly while you're away from the place! 


www.cognacproperty.com

Charente Monopoly - which are the dream home locations?

Regular readers will know that my youngest daughter is a keen Monopoly player.  A career following in her father's illustrious footsteps beckons perhaps!

Recently we borrowed the "Charente" version and it was fascinating to see which towns & villages were deemed as the Whitechapel & Old Kent Road clones and which were deemed to be Mayfair & Park Lane.  I have no idea who took the final decisions but I'm guessing that a few local mayors got involved in the politics.

I have no problem with the two prime areas - Cognac as the highest value (€400) and Angouleme second (€350).  I love Cognac - the town not the digestif - and think that it's the perfect size with a real "buzz" all year round.  It has beautiful & ancient pedestrian streets, a lovely stretch of river, world class restaurants and a championship golf course.

Jarnac is unlucky not to share the slot next to Cognac but does take the place of Bond Street so you don't want to land there if it has houses or a hotel on it. In real life Jarnac is probably my favourite town in Charente with a simply gorgeous park and pretty riverside walks.

Where I would take issue is the ranking given to the villages of St Simon & Bassac which are in the light blue section just before the dreaded jail cell.  In reality these two small jewels sit beside the prettiest stretch of the Charente.

They are both no more than hamlets yet St Simon boasts its own popular bar/restaurant and Bassac hosts two of the best restaurants around - the Auberge de Condé and L'Essille.  I have had plenty of splendid meals with clients & friends in both.

That's a great word and so I'm going to use it again as the river between Chateaneuf and Cognac is simply splendid too.

With this in mind, why no place at all for Chateauneuf sur Charente?

Of course it's all good fun and fairly subjective - and the truth is that I get slaughtered by Downie Junior whether we play the traditional version or any of the newer derivatives.

Perhaps I should consider offering her a salaried partner position when she turns 12 next year.....

www.cognacproperty.com

Narrowing your house search in France

The Notaires de France website is a mine of information and if you are seriously interested in buying property in France then it's a "must see" part of your research.

A few weeks ago they posted a map showing average prices across various regions, you can download the pdf here.

It doesn't really tell you what your money will buy but it does give a decent comparison of relative values between say St Malo & Poitiers.

Once you have decided which region suits your requirements and budget then you can narrow your search by looking here.  The Immoprix site gives a more detailed breakdown by department and areas within a department.

Found your ideal area - then why not take a look at some listings on FrenchEntrée or Se Loger so that you get a rough idea of what your money will actually buy.

Once you have done this and have your financing in place then it's the ideal time to appoint a buying agent to help source the specific property and buy it at the lowest possible price for you.

Here are fifteen I'd recommend....there's bound to be one near you!

www.cognacproperty.com

Winter olympics in the Charente

I'm sure that you are probably aware of the freak weather conditions we're currently "enjoying".  Temperatures of minus ten and the deepest covering of snow that we have seen since we arrived in 2003.

It's playing havoc with the three client searches that are live at the moment - the main roads have been cleared but the outlying towns and villages just aren't equipped to cope with this kind of weather.

The good news is that the girls and I have taken the opportunity to pretend that we live in the Alps or the Pyrenees and have been sledging every day.  Right on our doorstep is the St Meme les Carrieres "cresta run".

It's a 200m piste that leads down between two rows of vines.  The picture doesn't do justice to the gradient but the little dot in the distance is my youngest at the end of her run.  Of course it wouldn't pass any health and safety tests as we go swooping down between rows of Ugni-blanc grapevines....leave the piste and it's a long way to Cognac General Hospital (I'd also have an angry viticulteur banging on my door if we took out a row of his best producers).

Great fun though, with echoes of my youth..... 

www.cognacproperty.com

The France Show - a great start to the year

Apologies for the lack of posts lately but it's been a busy start to the year.

Earlier this month I was in London for The France Show in Earls Court.  The show happened to coincide with France losing it's AAA credit rating and I wondered if this would affect the mood of visitors to our stand.

The answer was a resounding "not at all".

We had, literally, thousands of visitors over the three days and the ones that I spoke to didn't mention credit ratings, the forthcoming election, PIIGS or the fate of the euro.

Instead they asked me about sunshine, vineyards, education, healthcare and "respect" (of elders, teachers, policemen and each other).  It was clear that whilst funding the dream may be proving difficult, the attraction of France remains undiminished.

Within hours of returning home I had picked up two search mandates and have others "bubbling under" which I expect to come to fruition over the coming days.

I'm pretty sure that overall housing transaction numbers will be down this year in France - I'm optimistic though that by increasing market share there will still be plenty of opportunities to prosper.

www.cognacproperty.com

Primelocation property blog awards - placed again!

It's that time of year again, when Primelocation announce the results of their annual property blog awards.

Now in their third year, the main award has been won previously by yours truly and the much respected property journalist Graham Norwood.  This years winner is another journalist, Roger Hunt, you can see his excellent blog here.

I'm delighted to say that A little drop of Cognac was "placed" for the third year running.  I wrote "House prices - will Google ruin your dinner party?" back in the summer and the judges decided that this particular entry was worthy of the runner-up spot.

I guess the thing I am most thrilled about is the consistency - a win and two runners-up in the three years that the awards have been running is no mean feat.  Being ultra cynical I write the blog in order to win business and to position myself as being an expert in both French property matters and in local issues pertinent to life here in the Charente.  The awards give added authority (and perhaps even a much needed gravitas) to what  are some quite personal and parochial postings.

Anyway, I'm thrilled that my work is recognised and will do my utmost to justify the award.

Here's to the 2012 competition.....

www.cognacproperty.com

63% of Americans use a buying agent to help find their dream home

Earlier this week I had a most interesting Google+ "hangout" with some of my colleagues in the FrenchEntrée property finders network.

One of the agents, Sophia, was telling us about her experiences in America where she lived and studied for a while.  She was saying that it is the norm for buyers to have representation when looking for a house - it's probably the biggest expenditure they will ever make so this makes perfect sense.

I looked it up and, according to this article in Wikipedia 63% of Americans do indeed instruct a buying agent.  The article goes on to say:

"Most Buying Agents specialise in a particular location: a large part of their expertise is derived from local knowledge, personal contacts with local estate agents, and inside-information about properties that are not yet on the open market".

This combination of local knowledge and contacts is doubly important if you are looking to buy a property abroad.

For example, if you are currently living in the USA, Australia, South Africa or the far east there is simply no way that you could expect to fully search the market here, or indeed gather the comparable evidence needed to help you negotiate the lowest price possible.

We are seeing an increasing amount of business coming from international clients and whilst it is hard on my telephone bill it is also comforting to know that we have such a robust and long standing business model.....one that more and more UK buyers are adopting.

http://www.cognacproperty.com/

Knight Frank global housing predictions for 2012

Regular readers will know that I'm a fan of the research team at Knight Frank and particularly like the way they present their research.

Of course we have to understand that they have an extraordinarily wealthy client base and look at things from a different viewpoint to the majority of other property analysts.

Their 2012 property predictions report says that instability in the Eurozone has led to very weak mainstream housing markets but, perversely, this has helped "prime" markets such as London & Paris.

They forecast that 44% of the worldwide cities they monitor are set to see house price increases.

Several Asian cities are set to see soaring house prices, including price rises of up to 20% in Bangkok and Jakarta, with Paris (yet again), Kiev and St Petersburg forecast to see similar increases.

However, certain cities are pipped to see massive falls, with values declining by up to 20% in Shanghai, Mumbai, Hong Kong and Geneva.

As regular readers will also know I don't have much (any) faith in house price indices - transaction numbers are the only key indicator that really count.

A double digit rise in Paris would mean plenty of misleading headlines about "soaring French house prices" but would be distinctly unhelpful when it comes to matching vendor expectations with reality here in SW France.

It all makes interesting reading if you have the coffee ready and a spare fifteen minutes though.

www.cognacproperty.com