SERIOUS BRITS BRAVE SNOW FOR FRANCE SHOW
The first UK property show of the year drew determined buyers at the weekend, despite poor weather conditions.
Travel and property exhibitors at The France Show at Earl’s Court, London, reported a busy show on Saturday 9 January despite the total number of visitors expected to be around half of last year’s figure.
“Generally the quality of buyers was better than at other shows and a lot of people were going on visits in January and February,” said Chris Bishop, managing director of agent Latitudes.

December is the perfect time to search for a house in France – although in many parts of France you will be enjoying clear blue skies and sunshine, albeit with colder temperatures – you will be seeing it at its worst – bare trees, possibly bad weather, dark nights etc so what better time to choose where you would like to buy than now.  You will see any bad points and be able to make a much clearer decision.    Owners of properties are notoriously more negotiable just before Christmas as everyone would like to start a new year without worrying about anything and being able to get on with their lives in the way they would like to.    Flights are cheap at present and hotels too so why not make that trip that you have been promising to do all year and  visit some properties to get an idea of what you can find for your money as well as leaving time to enjoy some wonderful meals, often close to a lovely open fire.  You will also find that the agents have time to show you around the area as well as the houses during this quieter period – so dont leave it until everyone else is booking to go – give yourself an early Christmas present of a few days off and maybe pick up a bargain too.

We have just come back from a great day in Italy which took us only an hour from Juan les Pins.   We arrived around 10am -  had coffee and pastries and then wandered around the market buying shirts and scarves etc.  We followed that with a great lunch of pasta and freshly made zabaione washed down with white wine. We ambled around the shops with friends finishing with tea a cake before  heading home – a grat day – and there are many more different ways to spend the day – head towards the Var and the Gorges de Verdun for some walks, visit Marseille and Aix en Provence and very shortly the ski resorts will be under 90 minutes away and well worth visiting as we can already sea the snow on top of the mountains as we sunbathe on the beach .   Corsica and the Porquerolles are just a ferry ride away  and if you really dont wan t to go far there are museums, exhibtions and cinemas within 15 minutes if the weather should let you down – which it hasnt yet!   Golf courses and tennis courts abound so no wonder we never get around to doing all the things we intend to do.     Prices are more reasonable than they were – the Euro is slowly improving again and this is always the time of year to be able to negotiate the price down the best – so what are you waiting for!

Although the exchange rate in the last few weeks has not been great for sterling, if you are looking to buy in France it is an extremely good time to buy.  Sterling is now slightly improving and over the minimum of 3 months that it will take you to look and find and complete on a purchase in France, it is more than likely that the exchange rate will have its ups and downs so that if you keep a careful watch on it you will be able to purchase your currency at the best rate during that time.   Currency companies offer a service so that you can ask them to keep you informed of the exchange rate and will advise as to when they think the rate is best, using their professional knowledge of the markets.   You can also buy forward, ie fix an exchange rate so that you know exactly now much you will have at some future date – it is really worth having a discussiong with us or direct to a currency company to know your options at this time as prices are still lower than last year in France and particularly at this time of year, coming up to Christmas, we always find vendors a little more negotiable on their properties as many of them would really like to sell before the New Year so that they can then get on with their lives.    As the market doesnt really pick up to any great extent until March, vendors at present are not that hopeful of selling quickly so that they often accept offers that they wouldnt have accepted earlier in the year rather than wait perhaps six months for a better market – so take the opportunity of going to have a look – flights and hotels are cheaper and at the very least you will have a lovely few days enjoying the area, the food and the better weather.

The weather throughout September in the Southen part of France has been amazing, sunny, warm and just like summer.  With flights at rock bottom prices and hotels offering lower rates it is an ideal time to visit the areas you are thinking of buying in to see what is available.  The  holiday rental season for properties is normally May to October,  6 months as well as Easter, Chrismas and the occasional weeks in February and November, so that if you would love to buy but dont have enough time to use the property, now could be the time to buy and then let the property when you cant use it.   The rentals will pay off your mortgage and expenses on the property depending on how long you dont need to use it.  In this way you can get other people to ‘buy ‘ your property for you, ie pay your mortgage, so that it might be all paid off by the time you are ready and able to use it for longer periods.  With prices lower than last year it is well worth making a trip to view so give us a call and we will arrange viewings for you with our agents with no obligation to buy.

The French property show last week was well attended and we at Latitudes found that people were really fed up of waiting to see what happens and had decided that they were ready to take things further and go and look in France to see what they can find for their budget – even if, in some cases they had reduced it.   Prices are bound to rise from here on in with France being least affected by recession and mortgages continuing to be available.   The exhibition provides potential buyers with all the information they need regarding how to buy, where to buy, the legal system, the French market, how to get work done etc – all the facts are provided by the many stand holders so that it makes a worthwhile visit.  For those who missed it, there will be another one coming up at Earls Court in January so hope to see you there to help and advise you.    However if you are not able to attend please dont hesitate to give us a call and we will be happy to give you all the information you require and do some research for you to find the ideal property if we dont already have some suitable properties to send to you.   Our service is free as we work in association with French agencies and share the standard commission which is included in the listed price, so that you pay exactly the same as you will do if you go direct to an agency in France.

With the turn around imminent in the property market why not beat the crowds and the price increases and come to The French Property Exhibition at Olympia on 11th, 12th and 13th September and see what is on offer.   Latitudes will have a selection of their properties on view and be able to offer their expertise as well as the invaluable knowledge of their local agents who will be on their stand with them.

 France never lent money on the same basis as here and has always stuck to very strict lending criteria and so we are not seeing distressed sales as people have mainly bought within their means.   We are however seeing some good reductions which does make it a good time to buy – especially with the slight improvement on the Euro exchange.   It also means that those who are selling are probably doing ok with the fact that they bought when the Euro was weaker so will get back more Sterling than they paid out  – so still making a profit in these difficult times whilst those buying are getting more for their money even bearing in mind the exchange rate – a definite win win situation.

It is a great time to visit France if you prefer not to fly as Eurostar are offering some great deals – you an travel direct to most major cities in France and then get a more local train if you want to go elsewhere – or why not hire a car for your onward journey so that you can take a good look around in the smaller villages and soak up the real atmosphere.  It offers a great opportunity to grab a few days away to go and view properties whilst property prices are stable and not increasing as well as some reductions from previously over hopeful vendors.  With the better rate again Euros that we are now experiencing and the good prices it could offer the opportunity to buy at the best price for some time with the benefit of cheap travel and deals being offered at some hotels.  And if the area you buy in is served well by Eurostar as well as flights then you are sure to be able to get there conveniently at any time.

With the Grand Prix in Monte Carlo this weekend and the Cannes Film Festival just coming to an end – doesnt it make you want to jump on a plane and soak up some of the atmosphere and sunshine – there are plenty of flights still available with Easyjet or British Airways at reasonable prices and wouldnt it be nice to get away from all the problems in the UK for a few days.  And if, whilst you are there, you fall in love with it as so many do, then just let us know at Latitudes and we will arrange for you to see some wonderful properties in and around the area at more reasonable prices than you would expect ie starting from around 150,000 Euros – although there are plenty of properties at ten times that price.