So what's going on with the Charente property market?

I'm fed up of reading stories in the press about French house prices.

Market commentators tend to speak in such generalisations that the conversations are meaningless.  It's the same in the UK of course - try telling someone in Burnley that their market bears any relation at all to that of London & the south east.

So if the notaires or FNAIM feel that prices are going to fall by between 2-5% this year then good for them.

What is of far more importance to my clients and I is the gap between "sticker price" (what you'll see a house for in an agents window) and "selling price" (what it actually sells for).  Other than keeping your ear to the ground and relying on local gossip then these stats are impossible to come by.

I'm not going to give away any client secrets here but certainly the deals we have been striking have seen a pretty big gap between the two.  Indeed I wrote an article on pretty much this subject in the last issue of FrenchEntrée magazine.  I have copied the article below in its entirety as I think it's an important issue....far more important than whether prices across the country have gone up or down a point or two!

Mind the gap....

 

Oh the memories.....for over twenty years I had to put up with the commute into central London from my suburban house in Surrey.  I'd catch the 7.06am train before jumping onto the tube at Waterloo, then whilst at Savills I'd get off at Green Park and whilst with Chesterton I'd get off at Oxford Circus.  From waiting around in the freezing cold for trains that never came to being jammed into an underground carriage in the heat of summer I have plenty of memories to keep me going whilst I laze around in the Charente sunshine.

 

One phrase stands out above all, every morning I would be popped out of the crowded carriage and be greeted with "please mind the gap".

 

I hadn't heard these words for a long time but this year they seem to be a daily occurence again....just used in a different context.

 

You see 2013 is going to be another difficult year for the French property market.  When I moved to France around 10 years ago there were around 850,000 property sales pa, last year there were around 650,000. Michel Mouillart, the Head of Economics at the Paris-Nanterre University, was quoted recently as saying that around 3,000 estate agencies have had to shut up shop with 10,000 agents losing their jobs.

 

Of course the current economic woes aren't just confined to the French market, indeed it remains one of the most robust in Europe and we should be grateful that we've had what analysts like to call a "slight correction" rather than the decimation seen in say Ireland or Spain.

 

My point though is that it's a buyers market and investors with cash in their pocket know it.

 

This leads me back to "mind the gap" - you see there is now a definite gap between what vendors think their properties are worth and what buyers are prepared to pay for it.  This gap is the main reason for falling transaction numbers and until it is closed we will continue to see a flat market. 

 

Those people selling their homes in 2013 will be the ones who have priced their houses realistically.  They in turn will then probably become a buyer themselves and will find themselves in a position of strength.  The old mentality of "well, we paid €200,000 then spent another €50,000 so we'll put it on the market for €300,000 as you always make money when you sell houses" simply won't wash.

 

If this is your thinking then I'm afraid you're going to have a long wait before selling it unless you are extremely lucky or bought it at a particularly bargain price.....and don't forget that we all think we are getting a bargain when we buy a house but the reality can often be different in a country where getting comparable evidence on house prices can be so difficult.

 

As a buying agent I'm mandated by international buyers to find them a house and then to negotiate the lowest possible price.  It used to be that I would be holding clients back when it came to the purchase price but it's noticeable now that when issuing the mandate they all tell me that they have no intention of paying "window price" and that we will be using my research to strike a hard bargain.

 

Mind the gap!

FNCI - the national federation for buying agents in France

As clients will know I (and the rest of my colleagues within the FrenchEntrée Property Finders network) am a member of the FNCI - the National Fédération of Chasseurs Immobiliers, literally "house hunters".

Having a federation like this is the same concept as traditional agents who belong to the FNAIM which is their national body and well respected throughout France.

The FNCI lobbies Government on behalf of its members and has a quality charter that all members agree to abide by.  Membership comes in handy when describing the role of a buying agent to vendors and local immobiliers as it's a new concept to many of them.

The FNCI have just launched a new website which features the first of a series of videos about looking for a flat or house without the help of a buying agent (above).  It's in French of course but even if you're not fluent you will probably get the gist and see the humour.

Most bodies like this are quite stuffy and staffed by bureaucrats.....I'm happy to say that the FNCI are just the opposite and they are a friendly, professional and forward thinking bunch.  Paying my dues is one of the few cheques I write each year that I don't begrudge.

They must be good!

www.cognacproperty.com

Finding a riverside property in the Charente

The Charente was the "finest stream in the kingdom" of Henry IV and anyone who knows the river will surely back up this fabulous claim.

It's no wonder that I seem to be constantly looking for riverside properties on behalf of clients.  My latest search is for a lovely couple from the West Country in the UK who are looking for an old water-mill to renovate.

The bad news is that I'm struggling to find anything special.  There's plenty of property that has been reduced in price and there's plenty that I have no doubt would be open to offers....but I'm still to find anything that sets my heart soaring.

I'm hoping that this lack of good stock is either a) a blip or b) because my search is limited to water mills - but I fear that 2013 might be the year that international buyers come back to France only to be thwarted in their efforts because new sellers aren't coming to the market.

Sounds strange doesn't it considering that we're still in the midst of a crise financiere, perhaps many vendors are waiting for the Spring and I'm worrying for no reason.

It hasn't been for the want of trying I can assure you - the market is being well and truly scoured from the biggest of agents to small one man bands and from notice boards in the local notaires to the private sale websites and freesheets.

The good news is that my clients aren't out for a few weeks yet so there's still time for me to put a decent short-list together.

Anyway, watch this space for an update throughout the year....I'm confident that I will be active on behalf of cash buyers but will we be able to meet their needs?

Time will tell.

www.cognacproperty.com

Jarnac Cycling Club (Velo Club de Jarnac)

Following my post about integrating into the local community I thought it would be good to share my experience of joining the local cycling club.  If you're only interested in property related posts then turn away now.

Regular readers will know that I had a kind of epiphany before my 50th birthday last year and decided to get fitter and undertake a bit of a bike ride.  Getting up from the couch felt great and I have tried to stay active and keep cycling ever since.

I don't want to mislead you....I've never been particularly sporting and you don't shed thirty years of inactivity overnight.  I'm not going to be entering races but I do fancy riding regularly so I have joined Les Poissons Rouge which is the name of the Jarnac cycling club.

Bizarrely, there is no entry fee, nor annual subscription.  You do however need to pay €50 pa for your licence & insurances and you need a doctors certificate to say that you're in reasonable shape.  You're also encouraged to purchase some items of team kit so that the team looks good when out on a club ride.

It's a friendly club with an excellent local reputation.  There are around 60 members and the Patron is a professional cyclist called Lloyd Mondory who rides for AG2R.  He's from the area and his parents are members - each year he'll come back for a ride or two and I'm particularly looking forward to sharing the peloton with a guy who rides the Tour de France each year.

This week-end I went out for my first ever group ride which was quite a nerve racking experience.  I had no idea how fast they would go or what the etiquette is for riding in a bunch.  Would I be dropped after 500 metres and left to turn around and trudge home by myself?  Unlikely as my father-in-law (who devoted all of 2011 getting me up the Col du Tourmalet) was there too but he takes these rides seriously and you never know!

We met in Jarnac town centre, opposite the imposing Courvoisier chateau.  There were about twenty people there and they're a friendly bunch.  It was sunny & mild so I was bare-legged with no wind jacket.....this caused a mixture of hilarity & consternation as everyone else was wrapped up like polar explorers.  I was also the only person who didn't have a drop handlebar road bike (I ride a Boardman Hybrid Comp as I find it more comfortable and didn't need a second mortgage to buy it) but no-one seemed to give two hoots.

Off we went and it took me twenty minutes or so to get used to the hand gestures and general movement in a group.  Wind resistance is much reduced and you ride 20-30% faster than when on your own.

We cycled for around two and a half hours and the truth is that it was a breeze.  I struggled up the hills because I'm big & heavy but I didn't get dropped and I loved every minute.  I didn't time it but suspect we were averaging around 28-30 kmh and people were chatting throughout.

Whether you are contemplating expat life or are an established expat already I'd heartily recommend joining a club like this and I wish I'd done it sooner. You don't need to be ultra fit either, my friend Paddy joined Jarnac chess team as soon as he arrived here and was soon jetting all over Poitou Charentes for club matches.

As we were riding round, one of the regulars said he liked the fact that my father-in-law and I give the club an international flavour and that they have a Spanish chap join them from June each year.

Wonder if his name is Alberto something......

www.cognacproperty.com

Dismal failure of the Norman Tebbitt "cricket test"

I took my youngest through to Cognac last night for one of her bi-weekly gym practice sessions.

If there's a competition she's proud to wear the club colours but last night had a leotard with a sparkly union flag on the front.

It got me thinking back to 1990 and the infamous "cricket test" suggested by the Tory MP Norman Tebbitt.  He said that those immigrants who root for their native countries rather than the England cricket team lacked loyalty to their new country.

He'd have a fit at some of the things the Downie family get up to but I'd argue strongly that we have integrated well and are a positive force in both local and national life.

Let's start with the "well integrated" bit:

• we all speak the language (albeit in my case with a horrible accent & plenty of mistakes in my conjugation). Indeed, both daughters are within the top 5% of their class in French.
• we pay our taxes - 19.6% TVA on all our sales, income tax, professional tax, taxe d'habitation, taxe fonciere and, of course, the huge social charges to pay for the famously good healthcare, schooling et al.
• we do our bit for the community. Whether it's being a member of the PTA, taking the local school children on field trips or simply frequenting the local bars and restaurants. My proudest moments in France have been when the girls have been chosen to read out the names of fallen soldiers at memorial services.
• every year we help out with the grape picking at our mates vineyard. It's been in his family for generations and it's the highlight of the year.
• we have oodles of other friends locally.  We go to them for dinner or they come to us.  We stopped being "La Famille Anglaise" years ago and are now simply "Les Downies".

Now for the bit that would make Mr Tebbitt choke on his fish & chips:

• I read L'Equipe every day but it's the only French paper I like.  For news other than sport I'll go online to the Guardian, Telegraph or London Standard.
• The only French TV we watch nowadays is the weather and the football on Canal Plus.
• I'm joining the local Jarnac cycling club.  I'll happily wear the club kit on our Saturday club runs but the rest of the week I'll be in my Team Sky jerseys.  This July I'll be cheering on Wiggins & Froome not Thomas Voeckler & Pierre Rolland.
• During the 6 nations I'll invite my French friends round as usual.  But they'll have to enter through a swathe of Union Flags and drink pints of English beer....strangely this never seems to be a problem for them.  They give it to me in spades if France win and they get it back if Les Rosbifs triumph.

I suspect you get my point.  France is my second favourite rugby team, Bordeaux are my second favourite football team and if a Brit doesn't win Le Tour then I hope a french cyclist does.

I don't think that makes me disloyal to France, I just think it makes me loyal to the country of my birth. 

That's as far as I'd got before the gym session ended and it was time to head home for supper.

French onion soup :-)

www.cognacproperty.com

French property market 2012 and prospects for 2013

It's that time of year again - industry folk look back over the last 12 months and make predictions for 2013.

The former is relatively easy but the latter is simply a case of wetting your finger and sticking it in the wind....who knows what will happen to the European economy, the euro itself or the effects of the changes and austerity measures being introduced by our new President.

Let's start with 2012.

On a macro level it looks as though the overall number of French property sales will be around 650,000 which is quite a drop on the 790,000 we saw in 2011.  The market definitely slowed in 2012 and despite the many front page headlines talking about soaring prices in Paris and on the Cote d'Azur I'm dubious that any region is currently showing price growth. 

Latest research from the Notaires de France says that some areas buck the trend and they quote Limoges as seeing a 7% rise, Toulouse an increase of 4.5% and Lille rises of 2.9%.....don't forget though that these figures are already well out of date and I'd take them with a healthy pinch of salt.

Closer to home I'm certainly seeing plenty of local agents dropping prices from what were pretty optimistic levels.  I'm not saying that prices are in freefall or anything dramatic like that but it seems to me that a) only properties in the best locations are selling and b) they have to be priced realistically to do so.

Forecasting anything for 2013 is pretty much a lottery and my family & friends all know that my ability at tipping stocks, shares or the winner of the X Factor is dire.

However, I'd be surprised if transaction numbers for 2013 weren't between the 600-650,000 range, ie showing another slight decrease and another tough year for those of us who earn our money in this arena.

I'm not going to forecast anything to do with prices as the conflicting figures we are presented by the notaires, FNAIM, INSEE and others are meaningless.

What I will say though is that I don't think we'll see many areas being touted as having rises or falls of more than a few percent.  I sense a pretty flat market which, given what is going on in the rest of the world, may not be a bad thing.

As I have said before, international buyers come to France for a mixture of reasons - around 40,000 of them bought in France last year and I'd predict that this number won't change much either way this year.  The sunshine, great food, world class wine and welcoming culture are happily pretty much recession proof!

www.cognacproperty.com

Ed Sheeran plays Little Things at Le Trianon, Paris

One of the great things about living just outside Cognac is the access to live music.

Many of the bars & restaurants have live acts at the week-end and, of course, there's the famous Blues Festival each summer - this year Tom Jones & Sting were the headline acts.

Sometimes you have to go further afield though and having seen Bruno Mars in Nantes we found ourselves in Paris last week-end.

More specifically we were at a terrific venue called Le Trianon in Montmartre. It's a sumptuous theatre and, best of all, it holds just 1,500 people.

The queues for Ed Sheeran began first thing in the morning and the doors didn't open until 7.30pm. We got there an hour early and joined the back of a snaking line.

The theatre was spectacular and intimate - the warm up act "Passenger" set the crowd alight and couldn't stop commenting on how good it was to be so close to the audience.

This theme continued when Ed Sheeran took to the stage. He was in a good mood as the song "Little things" which he had written when he was just 17 and recently given to One Direction had gone to number one in the UK that day. He was proud that it was his first number one and said that he was never going to sing it again as it now belonged to another act.

However.....he asked if he could sing it one last time. Better than that, he liked the intimate atmosphere so much he wanted to strip it back and use just his guitar and his voice....no microphones.

He asked the crowd for absolute silence and the next few minutes made the hairs stand up on the arms of all 1,500 people who were there to witness it. Spellbinding.

You can get a taster from the video above (not mine, pinched from You Tube) but I guess you really had to be there.

Who knows, maybe he'll headline the 2013 Cognac Blues Passions.....

www.cognacproperty.com