So you think you can move…

/

If there’s one thing you do a lot – as in a very, very lot – when you sell a house and buy one in a foreign country, then it’s pen your signature to documents. In fact, after a while, I was tempted to initial and sign the pages of magazines, books, newspapers – anything paper related. You get in the groove of initial, initial, initial, initial, full signature; initial, initial, initial, full signature (press repeat…).

When you also sign your life away in a language you don’t speak, understand or read, then it’s vital that you find yourself an estate agent you connect with well – and whose English is 200% better than your non-existent French – as well as a notary who is super serious about explaining every crossed t and dotted i.

In September 2017 we returned to Pézenas to see if it would be possible to buy a small apartment. In a two-week whirlwind that made House Hunter’s International look like a stroll in the park, we viewed a list of properties, gradually going from apartments to houses and even a farmhouse with a vineyard. We made an offer on a house, which was rejected, lost our hearts to another, which was way above our budget, and in the end, instead of a two-bedroom apartment, bought a three-bedroom house with three one-bedroom apartments on the property.

Downscaling? Not so much!

What we learned along the way is:

  • Always view a property more than once. The first time we viewed the house we eventually bought, we were underwhelmed. The second time it felt like home.
  • Make sure you hit it off with your estate agent, and if he or she can speak your language in addition to the language of the country where you’re buying, then you have a gem. Because there was an instant rapport, we could look past a well-intentioned warning that “sweet doesn’t get you a good deal” – as it turned out, our very sweet agent got us a very sweet deal.
  • Trust your instinct. We did and struck oil with both the property and the agent.
  • Walk around the neighbourhood and don’t be tempted to buy the best house in the worst area. We nearly bought a beautifully renovated house next to a wine distillery and a motor mechanic’s workshop. Blinded by the beauty of the house, we totally missed the surroundings.
  • Look beyond the obvious for the potential, but if you’re not a handyman and do-it-yourself specialist, don’t go for the bargain that can hardly keep itself together.
  • Don’t be scared. There are good people around and not everyone is out to swindle you.
  • Small villages are charming, but make sure the things that are important to you are within reach. Caux is close to Pézenas, which is much bigger, with more shopping and supermarkets. It’s the best of both worlds.
  • Keep the dream alive. Buying property long-distance is not easy. It’s doable, for sure, but it will test your sense of humour severely, so talk about the house and keep photos of it on your phone or tablet for easy access because back home, daily life will get in the way and push your dream to the edge of your mind.
  • Practice your signature for the documents that will pop up in your email on a daily basis: from loan generators, the seller, the agent, the bank.
  • Google translate will fuel your sense of humour. No, really, some of the translations from French to English may just as well have been Greek, but they were funny when they weren’t terrifying.
  • Don’t let age trick you into thinking an adventure is beyond your grasp. We’re in the 55-60 age group and are gearing up to move to and work in Switzerland for a year or so, and at the same time set up and run our home in Caux as a holiday let. It’s exciting and scary and we’re going to cry rivers when we leave our daughters and sons-in-law behind, but we also know we can’t let this opportunity go by to do something a little crazy.