This French Life

  • Finding out average property prices in France

    ImmoprixTHERE is no doubt that the internet has helped balance the advantage those with information had over those without, and this is especially so when it comes to property prices.

    Being able to get an idea of what has been paid for property, from small city apartments to larger homes in the countryside, can really help in your search for a place in France.

    The Immoprix website, which is part of the Notaires de France, draws together figures from sales over the past years to provide you with average property prices for locations across the country.

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  • Getting to France… and staying there

    Cahors villageAS our figs start to shrivel I am realising that our first French summer is blending into autumn and soon the wasp spiders will abandon us to the winter frosts, writes Frances Penwill-Cook.

    One thing that I will look forward to this year is leaving the house in the right clothes and staying in them.

    Gone are the days of cladding myself in knitted jumpers and scarves, to brave the cold walk to the Tube, only to strip off on the sweltering train, handbag in hand, hitting people around the face as I unravel my scarf.

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  • The private education system in France

    French schoolALTHOUGH many families when moving to France may look into the possibility of enrolling their children into an international school, there is also a long established private education sector.

    And despite the republican values of there being a strong dividing line between church and state, many of the schools will have a religious background but also receive money from the authorities.

    However, many of these schools, especially those in rural areas rely upon the fund raising efforts of parents, and Jon Doust writes a very interesting article about his involvement with his local school.

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  • Tips on working from your desk in France

    Nick ClaytonTHE chance to leave behind the daily commute and being able to work from your desk looking out over rolling French fields appeals to many.

    With regular flights, high-speed internet access and a change of attitude amongst some companies towards working from home, many people are able to take up the opportunity to work from France, with occasional visits back to the UK.

    Here journalist, Nick Clayton, who wrote The Guardian Guide to Working Abroad, offers some advice and tips should you want to work from a desk in the sun.

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  • Merlin makes its home in the Château de Pierrefonds


    THE BBC’s new autumn adventure series, Merlin, will have as its backdrop a château found to the north east of Paris.

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  • Five simple tips on promoting your holiday home

    Holiday home onlineIF you run a gite in France then there is a good chance that you are taking a few weeks rest after a busy summer.

    But if your mind is already drifting to next year and you want to make sure your website is pulling its weight, then here are some very simple tips you can use.

    Some will involve making tweaks to the site, or asking those overseeing it to do the changes, but the smallest of changes and simple promotional steps can really make a difference.

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  • Ten quiz questions about France

    Soeur EmmanulleJUST how good is your knowledge of France, both covering events from the present day to looking back over the past?

    Well have a go at the questions posed by author Andrew Whittaker, who compiled the book Speak the Culture: France, to see how much you really know.

    The list of questions are below, alongside a .pdf that you can print off and take away with you, which you could hand out at a get-together or similar event.

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  • Spotting the beetles of France

    France beetlesIF you spend a few hours in the French countryside you are sure to cross some of the meanest looking beetles ever to walk the planet.

    But if you have wondered what the different beasties actually are then a great piece by Susan, of the Days on the Claise, website will help you spot them.

    Her Big Black Beautiful Beetles article provides detailed photographs, info on where the different bugs live as well as their names in French.

    And if you are scared of such bugs I’d read the piece from a safe distance.

  • New forest footpath in Burgundy opened by Coral

    Sentier etangs moines

    A surprise lay in store for Coral at the opening of Le Sentier des étangs des Moines

    WHEN I received an invitation to the inauguration of a footpath for the disabled at a beauty spot near Saint-Nicolas-lès-Cîteaux, in Burgundy, I thought it was to bring the place to the attention of others with disability or reduced mobility.

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  • Inheritance tax black hole for same-sex couples

    Civil partnerships France
    THE inequality that same-sex couples from the UK, and elsewhere, face in France can see people have to pay massive inheritance tax bills.

    Here a reader of the site, Jerry, who has owned a property in France for nearly four years writes about his own experience of the system following the death of his partner.

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