This French Life

  • Photographs from This French Life

    A COLLECTION of photograph albums featuring fairs, festivals and the countryside from the south west corner of France.

    Plus a few others from a little further afield…

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  • Disclaimer

    ALTHOUGH http://www.thisfrenchlife.com (the website) and its accompanying newsletter deals with topics of interest to the buyer of property in France each individual will have their own particular circumstances.

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  • Thank you for subscribing

    THANK you for subscribing to the This French Life newsletter, your email has been verified.

    Remember, I will NEVER share, lend or sell your email address.

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  • About This French Life

    Craigmcginty_2THIS French Life is a look at life in France from an English journalist’s point of view.

    It provides many interesting nuggets of information and is of service to people who are keen to move to France.

    There are many articles about setting-up a wide variety of necessary services, from banking to the internet, as well as some of the more enjoyable things about life.

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  • Tips from the building trade

    Propertyguide2012THE work involved in renovating a French property can be a challenging prospect for the most confident person.

    There are sure to be questions over the materials required, the amount of time it will take or the builder to use, and all this alongside doing it in a foreign language.

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  • Help from Le Patron

    Lepatron1912NOW here is a very useful website that will help you improve your written French.

    The Le Patron website allows people to type in body of text and then scans it to check for errors.

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  • Asking questions in French

    BEING able to ask questions, and understanding when someone is asking something of you, is important when living in France.

    Below you will find some common phrases that will allow you to grasp what people are saying and ask your questions to others:

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  • Tips on using septic tanks in France

    Catkins1907_7MOST septic tanks in France are of the type known as toutes eaux, in other words, they take all the grey water from the kitchen and bathroom, as well as sewage from the lavatory writes Patricia Mansfield-Devine.

    The main thing to remember about the system is that it is ‘live’ – it’s a living organism, so, as all septic tank users become aware very quickly, you have to be very careful about cleaning products.

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  • Listen in to France on the web

    Frenchlife_square1603_2_39THANKS to the internet you can brush up on your French language skills, stay up to date with the latest news and listen to hints and tips on moving to France.

    It does help if you have a broadband connection to the web but most shows are produced so that they will be suitable for a dial-up service.

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  • Buying a home en viager

    Frenchlife_square0608_5_33ONE method of buying a property in France is en viager, which sees the purchaser agree to pay a monthly charge whilst the owner lives in the house.

    But the twist is that when the owner dies then ownership transfers to the person who has been making the payments, of course this should be seen as a long-term investment.

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