Life in France - how do you define integration?

There have been some spikey "letters to the editor" in The Connexion recently about people buying & selling British food in France.

It (falsely) leads you to believe that there are only two types of expats living over here.  Those who don't want anything to do with Great Britain or the Brits in France and those who are happy importing their sausages, watching Sky and going to the golf club for a Sunday roast.

People get incredibly indignant over even the smallest issues and it got me thinking about our life out here.

On one hand I earn my living in euros and pay way too much to the state by way of TVA, tax and cotisations.  Our kids go to local school and most of our friends here are French.  On Friday night we had a dinner party where we didn't speak a word of English, all produce was bought at the local market and we discussed everything from Sarkozy/De Villepin/Chirac to how this year's PTA aren't as active as last year's.

On the other hand I spent Saturday watching English sport on the BBC and tonight we have (English) friends coming round to watch a Prison Break triple header on dvd.  We also take the girls to McDonalds once a month and I'd have no hesitation at all in going to the British food stall in Cognac market if I fancied a pork pie or a Curly Wurly.

It seems wrong to me to judge others by how they wish to lead their lives.  Life in France isn't better or worse than in the UK it's just different.

I do feel that those who don't attempt to learn the language or integrate are missing out on huge tracts of life over here....I also think that it's rude to live in a country and to make no attempt at communicating  in the national language. 

However, if someone wants to operate (or shop at) a stall selling produce from the UK then best of British to them - particularly if they could get hold of those little licorice sweeties I had as a child!

www.cognacproperty.com

Free Google sat-nav - world domination continues

So yesterday the shares in major satellite navigation suppliers took a huge hit.  If you want to find out why just click here.

US firm Garmin fell 18% after details of Google maps navigation were revealed. Dutch firm TomTom fell 9.5% when markets closed on Thursday.


The Google application promises free real-time, turn-by-turn directions for people to follow on their phones.

The Motorola "droid" will be the first mobile phone equipped with the system.

Google maps navigation combines services including a search engine to find addresses, Google street view for photos of locations, and live traffic data.

The implications for estate agents and people searching for property remain to be seen as this is just one tiny segment of the thousand piece jigsaw that Google are currently weaving.

www.cognacproperty.com

More than 25,000 UK shops closed this year

Planning Resource magazine has just run a story saying that over 25,000 shops have closed in the UK so far this year (presumably a few estate agents among them).

I'm just pulling together some research for a story that I'm writing for French Property News about the impact that Google and sites like Tepilo will have on the future of the property market (they picked up on this blog entry I wrote last month).

One thing for sure is that the days of just having a prime high street position are well behind us.

Think I'm scare mongering?  Get yourself a coffee, clear your mind, click here and then let your imagination run riot.

www.cognacproperty.com

French property market sees lending soar

The prudent French banking system seems to be paying off with finance still available (even at 100%) and a rise in house prices of 2.8% over the last six months (although a drop of 7.8% if you take the last 12 months.....lies, damned lies & statistics eh).

The source of these nuggets is the FNAIM and you can read a fuller report here.

Of course, as any estate agent will tell you, it's the number of transactions that is the key indicator rather than the vagaries of price.  This is why many agents are still struggling and thousands of staff have been laid off throughout France.  I don't know of any agencies in this region that are hiring again yet.

It seems to me that there is still a steady trickle of international buyers looking to purchase property in France but that many more are still waiting in the wings.  It's not a case of "if" this trickle will turn into a stream but "when".

Timing is always crucial in the property market - if any of us knew the answer to this for sure we'd be millionaires but I do have a hunch that Spring next year will see some of those currently vacant high street shops having shiny new agence immobilier signs being hung up over the door.

www.cognacproperty.com

Free tickets to The France Show

The France Show is being held 8-10 January 2010 and, once again, yours truly will be exhibiting (or making an exhibition of himself if he gets to be invited as a speaker).

It's an excellent day out and is the UK's largest celebration of everything we love about this wonderful country.

Tickets are £10 on the door but if you register now you'll be able to get in for free....make sure you get a ticket for each member of the family as there's always plenty to do and see.

You'll find me on stands P54 & P80 (they're next to each other) and please do feel free to come and say hello.

www.cognacproperty.com

French half term already!

Back from my trip away to discover a bulging inbox, voicemails galore and that the girls are (yet again) off school.

To make matters worse the senior partner is working most of this week so I'm juggling babysitting with appointments to view plots of land, visits to local mairies (to enquire about said plots) and my winter "new business drive"....so far the latter is still a cacophony of brilliant ideas.  I'm very aware though that at some stage I'll have to actually do something!

The good news is that the editor of French Property News is interested in running two articles over the coming months.  Now I just need time (and solitude) to flesh them out.

On our recent golf trip we had a big debate over the merits of giving our children Latin or Mandarin Chinese lessons (yes, I know but we're old & dull now).  I was firmly in the camp for the latter and am considering going out and buying some tapes & books.

Instead of letting them play on the CBBC website I've also discovered the Beeb offers free Chinese lessons online.

That should keep the little buggers quiet for the next couple of weeks.

www.cognacproperty.com

Three Peaks Challenge ends in a historic tie

History has been made.

2009 is the first year that a fully completed tournament has been halved and boy did Chris & I have to sweat to retain the trophy.

We were playing the famous course at Seignosse and in the morning round we simply couldn't live with Steve's consistency and Tim's incredible shot improvisation (one particular "save" from out of a bunker will linger long in the memory).

We lost 6&5 and lunch was a tense affair.  It had been a drubbing and we needed to find inspiration from somewhere.  Chris had lost the "toss" for who has the honour three times running and put me in to bat.  30 second later we were teeing off first and we had our omen.

All of a sudden we were hitting fairways, finding greens in regulation and holing putts.  The result was never in doubt and a 4&3 victory meant that we retain the trophy.

Cornwall next year where we'll be tackling St Enedoc & Trevose....a change of partners too where Steve & I will be looking to justify our position as red hot favourites.

www.cognacproperty.com

Moliets GC - what a cracker

Robert Trent-Jones is a genius.  We played Moliets GC today and the score was (almost) irrelevant.

I've played many classic courses in my time: St Andrews, Muirfield, Turnberry, Gleneagles, Wentworth, Paris International and Druids Glen to name but a few.

Moliets ranks up there with them all.  Part woodland, part links and wholly challenging.  The golf today was worthy of such a test and it was a match that ebbed and flowed like the Atlantic Ocean we could see.

We were all square down the last. Steve had played well all day and decided to smack his driver down the middle, nail a 3 iron to 20 feet and lag his putt for a stone dead four that we couldn't equal.

Match lost 1 up and we go in to tomorrows rounds all square...it's perfectly set up for a fitting finale to what is proving to be one of the best tournaments in years.

www.cognacproperty.com

Move over Seve.....

When one thinks of inspirational captains in sport names like Martin Johnson, Bryan Robson & Seve Ballesteros spring to mind.

Well now you need to add Chris Stead to that list.

We got off to a terrible start on day one of the "3 Peaks Challenge - 2009" and were soon 3 down. Our opponents were cruising and my game had been left in the locker room at Pessac golf club.

Then it happened.  Chris decided that he simply wasn't going to sit back and accept this.  What followed was one of the best single rounds in 3 peaks history. He was splitting the fairways, finding the greens and chipping & putting like Ben Crenshaw in his prime.

Single handedly he hauled them back to all square and the pressure began to tell.  If I were to say that he finally closed them out on the 18th with a curling 25 foot putt you'd probably think I'm making it up...but I'm not. 

Victory was ours - one up.

We go into the match tomorrow at Moliets golf club with confidence and a point securely lodged in the hotel safe.

I need to up my game as Tim & Steve are sure to fight back....but with Seve at the helm they'll need to go some to level the match.

Watch this space.

www.cognacproperty.com

Top 10 property investment destinations

Just read an interesting little piece of research from a company called Global Edge marketing.  They rank the investment potential of property held in 77 cities throughout the world (using gross rental yields as the determinant).

Surprisingly Paris only comes 59th (outlook very poor) with New York 62nd and dear old London down in 66th.

Chisinau (me neither) heads the list and is marked "spectacular". Amongst the top 10 you'll also find Jakarta and Bogota.

Now, I've never been to Chisinau (it's in Moldova) or indeed any of the other "hot spots" listed but I'd have thought that it's a brave man who decides that buying property there is a better long term investment than in, say, Fulham.

I'm not sure that I'd feel too confident that my money was entirely safe either which surely has to be a factor if you're claiming to offer investment potential - the upside is that I guess you'd have great fun visiting your portfolio!

www.cognacproperty.com

Cognac Golf Club - practice makes perfect

We're very lucky here to have an 18 hole championship golf course on the doorstep.

Doubly lucky that the practice facilities are open to non members and always in pristine condition.  As well as the standard putting greens, bunker facilities and grass driving range they have a four hole course to hone your game on.

I was there yesterday for a while, fine tuning my game for the 3 Peaks Challenge trophy which starts tomorrow. I was shamed into this when my partner, Chris, told me that he'd been taking this years practice routine very seriously and was hitting the ball like a dream, which bodes well.

There's no finer sight in sport than seeing him roll up his sleeves and hit his driver out of the sockets 300 yards down the middle.

The bad news is that I was out yesterday in short sleeves with the sun on my back and yet the conditions in Biarritz & Bordeaux are forecast to be wet & chilly from tomorrow....I'm not sure that my swing will be quite as free flowing under shirt, jumper and bulky waterproofs!

Still, as the great man said "the more I practice the luckier I get".

Wish me luck....

www.cognacproperty.com

Bordeaux set for first great vintage of new century

The grape harvest has come to a close and the experts are unanimous; all the factors are there to make this the first great vintage of the 21st century.

‘Nature has been very generous,’ says Denis Dubourdieu, director of the Institut des sciences de la vigne et du vin (ISVV) at Bordeaux. ‘It is difficult to find comparisons – you have to go back to weather of the 1940s to find, perhaps, comparable conditions.’

My viticulteur friends also seem to have wider smiles than usual this year so it does indeed seem to have been an excellent year for the local firewater.

Let's hope it's a double whammy with the football team seeing off Bayern Munich in the Champions League this wednesday then going on to lift the trophy in Madrid next year.

www.cognacproperty.com

Charente property values - all over the place

Let's get one thing straight.  The valuation of residential property in France is not, and never has been, an art form.

Out here it's usually the vendor who decides how much he wants and then the agents add their fees on top.  That's why you can walk down a high street and see the same property at different prices in each agents window.

Throw in the fact that vendors often don't tell all the agents that they're changing the asking price and I've seen a difference of €70,000 on the same house (I kid you not).

It does seem to have hit new heights recently though.  Ever since Lehmann brothers tumbled and the crise financiere began in earnest property prices seem to have gone haywire.

Some owners have slashed the asking price, others refuse to budge.  Some agents still say they're busy and that the market has not changed (hmmm) while many others have simply shut up shop and left the premises.

I mention all of this because I had a client out last week and at one stage we spoke about value for money.  It's a difficult one to call at the moment and you have to rely upon experience and gut instinct more than ever.

What I can say for sure is that the first house I took him to was a corker.  With an (albeit over inflated) asking price of €475,000 and a nod & a wink from the agent that the desperate owners would accept around  €330,000 it has the makings of an exceptional bargain too.

www.cognacproperty.com

Blame it on Boreas

He's the Greek god of the cold north wind and he's arrived in the charente with a vengeance.

Two days ago it was still summer and we were parading around in shorts and a tee shirt.  Now I'm writing this with my jumper on having had to scrape the car for the girls school run.  Maitresse has just put the heating on in the classroom and all the parents are talking about the brutally cold wind.

It's bizarre....we still have the same deep blue sky and the sun is just as bright as ever yet the temperature has plummeted and my nose is red from frostbite rather than sunburn.

Reminds me of this old classic:

The Indians asked their Chief in autumn if the winter was going to be cold or not. Not really knowing an answer, the chief replies that the winter was going to be cold and that the members of the village were to collect wood to be prepared.


Being a good leader, he then went to the next phone booth and called the National Weather Service and asked, "Is this winter to be cold?"


The man on the phone responded, "This winter is going to be quite cold indeed."


So the Chief went back to speed up his people to collect even more wood to be prepared. A week later he called the National Weather Service again, "Is it going to be a very cold winter?"


"Yes", the man replied, "it's going to be a very cold winter."


So the Chief goes back to his people and orders them to go and find every scrap of wood they can find. Two weeks later he calls the National Weather Service again: "Are you absolutely sure that the
winter is going to be very cold?"


"Absolutely," the man replies, "the Indians are collecting wood like crazy!"

www.cognacproperty.com

Seignosse golf course

Day three and the final two rounds will be played at Seignosse GC.  We'll be kicking off with a fourball and then finishing with an alternate shots greensomes.

Seignosse is one of europe's outstanding golf courses with the immense pines and oaks creating a cathedral like atmosphere.  With rolling fairways and immaculate greens it should be a true test of our abilities.

At 6124 metres it's not a monster but it does have a tremendous finish.

The 17th is a short (365m) dog leg and the green is pretty much surrounded by water.  It's here that the trophy will be won or lost.  The afternoon round in particular will be highly charged.  Alternate shots means that someone will have hit a decent drive down the 17th but it will be their partner who plays over the water to the green.

It's imperative here that the encouragement is positive.  "aim for the centre of the green and let the slope bring the ball down to the hole" will go down far better than "don't go in that ******* lake whatever you do".

We'll be looking to hold them in the morning and go into the afternoon with a clear point advantage.  The pressure will be on and the lake at the 17th could just prove a bridge too far for them. 
So, who will be enjoying the champions dinner one week from now? 

Tune in to Canal Plus or Eurosport (France) to see the action live or come back here for daily updates from 21st October.

Statto says: There has only ever been one tied match (1999) in three peaks history.  This year things will be close too. I see a halved match in the morning but the 17th proving decisive in the afternoon with the low handicappers winning out. Morning match halved, afternoon 2 & 1 to Chris and Graham who will retain the trophy.

www.cognacproperty.com

Digital age comes to Jarnac schools

France has just introduced a national scheme to bring the digital revolution into rural schools and I'm all for it.

Our two (8 & 10) came back the other night saying that maitresse was excited because she's had it confirmed that they're taking delivery of fourteen new laptops - all wifi enabled and fully loaded.

That's one laptop between two pupils (CM1 and CM2 share a classroom) which I think is a pretty decent ratio for a state run rural school in one of the poorer regions of France. Hopefully now the girls will have sufficient time online in the classroom to stop them kicking me off the laptop when they get home.

I love the schooling out here as they seem to have a sensible mixture of "arty" cultural activities and rural field trips as well as an understanding that the basics of maths, french & computing need to be mastered early.

The lunches aren't bad either!

www.cognacproperty.com

Moliets golf course

Day two will see a different style course (both links and woodland).  Moliets is considered one of the top ten courses in France and was designed by the brilliant Robert Trent-Jones.

It's 6173 metres from the back so Chris & I should have a slight advantage as we're a little longer off the tee. This will be negated by the fact that there are three "blind" holes and Tim, in particular, seems to play his best golf on links courses.  His game is suited to picking long irons cleanly off the tight fairway lies and we'll do well to hold them both here.

A half would be a great result for us.

Statto says: When Tim played a French links course for the first time he went four down with four to play but played brilliantly to snatch a half.  I can see this course suiting them so Tim & Steve to win a tight match one up. Surprisingly, 20 matches have gone down the 18th yet only seven of them have been halved.

www.cognacproperty.com

Just announced - Tour de France coming to Bordeaux

Next years Tour de France route was announced today. You can see full details here.

I'm looking forward to not one but two stages close to me.

There are twenty stages in all.  Stage 18 is from Salies-de-Béarn into Bordeaux while stage 19 (and the penultimate day) is a time trial between Bordeaux and Pauillac, passing some of the major wine houses of this famous region.

If you've never been to Bordeaux then I'd heartily recommend a visit - it's a cracking place with wonderful architecture, lively bars & restaurants, good shopping and a terrific tram system to help you take it all in.

Similarly the worlds greatest cycle race is also a sight to behold - with plenty to do and see for both ardent enthusiasts and simple "hangers on".

So, put the dates in your diary now - Friday 23rd July and Saturday 24th July 2010.

See you there.

www.cognacproperty.com

Charente - grape picking coming to an end

That's just about it for another year.

The vineyards have been battered and bruised into submission and the huge machines have rumbled back into their garages until next autumn.

Soon the vast green acres of vines will turn a brilliant mixture of red & gold - it's my favourite time of year as for a few precious weeks the landscape looks as though it's on fire once the sun starts to set each evening...it truly is specatcular.

Thoughts turn from summer pursuits and the mornings and evenings have suddenly become much colder. 

This year we're thinking about building a huge bonfire and having the girls make a guy so that we can invite all our French friends to celebrate the 5th November.

We haven't done it before and I think they'd love the roast chestnuts, fireworks and, of course, baked potatoes from the ashes of the bonfire.  I have such fond memories of this from when I was a child that it seems silly to let the fact that no-one in France has heard of Guy Fawkes to stop us.

www.cognacproperty.com

UK - investor confidence returns for overseas property

There's a touch of Mandy Rice-Davies' "well he would say that wouldn't he" about this but it's worth repeating.

Nick Clark, managing director of the Property Investor Show has commissioned some research which shows that investors think that confidence has risen by 43% over the past three months.  He says:

"There has been a strong shift in the market, with savvy UK investors beginning to explore overseas opportunities as they search for sound investments with better returns than the other poor performing investment vehicles such as bank savings and the stock market".

Strangely he failed to mention either John Profumo or Christine Keeler.

www.cognacproperty.com