France: A land of vine and roses

By Jane Slade
Posted: 2010/06/20

As JANE SLADE has discovered, France's south-west region is perfect for downsizers who w ant tranquillity and charm

AS THE No1 tourist destination for Britons, with more than 60 million visitors each year, property values in France are set to soar again this summer, according to international property company Assetz. While beach-front properties are proving the best for investment others are emerging as ideal for downsizers seeking rural solitude and unspoilt scenery.

Paul and Kay Evans sold their home in Portsmouth eight years ago and moved to a farmhouse in the wine-rich department of the Tarn in the Midi-Pyrenees, near Toulouse.

Both are active and young-at-heart. Kay, 50, w as an art teacher and Paul, 60, worked for a computer firm and was a former JP.

"We decided, after I broke my leg and Kay had to have surgery, that this was a chance to change our lives, " says Paul.

They fell for the undulating vineyards of the Tarn on their first visit and bought an old farmhouse in a two-hectare plot with a tumbledown barn that they converted into a gîte.

"We loved the peace and quiet and stunning countryside and picture-postcard villages, " says Kay, who now helps out with art classes at the local school and with Paul rents out their two-bedroomed, two-bathroomed gîte to visitors during the summer. During the off-season they donate the gîte to wounded soldiers though the Help For Heroes organisation.

"We wanted to do something with our time even though we were debt-free, " says Paul.

They live in the historic Cathar region where members of a Christian sect escaped to to avoid persecution during the middle ages. Ruined hilltop castles pepper the landscape.

Perhaps more important for the modern-day, would-be buyer is the fact that the Tarn has Gaillac vines, the second oldest in France dating back to the Romans, and is surrounded by white, stone medieval villages.

The Evans bought their property for £280,000, spent £50,000 renovating the barn and installed a £25,000 swimming pool. It has now been valued at about £600,000. "We are in the Golden Triangle, " says Kay, meaning that they are in a prime spot: close to Toulouse yet in the midst of vine-country near the historic town of Albi.

"The Tarn has changed since we have been here, " she adds. "The restaurants have improved and the villages are better cared for.

"There are several golf courses, many bridleways and seasonal cultural events as well as the wonderful city of Toulouse with its shopping, cafés and restaurants."

Just this week a new property scheme was launched in the region: 63 "residences" on a 15-hectare site around the 19th-century Château de la Durantie, the former home of the perfume and beauty Schwarzkopf family.

A variety of fully furnished, turn-key freehold properties are available with on-site facilities including three heated swimming pools, spa, tennis courts, restaurant, deli and wine bar.

Co-developer Hugh de Meyer says: "This is an opportunity to own, with ease, a piece of France's heritage."

Surrounded by rolling hills, a 7,000-hectare forest and the River Tarn, owners will be nature-loving types with a passion for walking, hiking, horse-riding and fishing. There will also be on-site stables with horses and a livery.

Fellow co-developers are British-born Gary and Tony Randall of Three Sixty Developments, renowned for their Blue Waters Hotel and Residences in Antigua, so quality is guaranteed.

The Pyrenees are within a two-hour drive so the château is ideal for skiers in winter and hikers in summer. There will be a rental pool for owners interested in earning an income. Five two-bedroomed château apartments start from £269,000 and two two-bedroomed courtyard residences will be priced from £207,000.

A further six two-bedroomed barn properties will start from £269,000 and 50 new-build, three-bedroomed residences, each with their own private pool, garden and terrace, will be priced from £289,000. Each attracts an annual maintenance charge of about £3,300.

The resort is 50 minutes from Toulouse airport which has flights to several UK airports and the medieval walled city of Carcassonne with flights from Stansted 60 miles away.

MORE INFORMATION:
Paul and Kay's gîte: lejouvenal.com; chateaudeladurantie.com, 0800 311 2193; international. assetz.co.uk, 0161 482 7591; tourisme-tarn.com.