Evianers

Periodically, one notices [mostly on other fora] that editors would like us to write of our experiences in moving to France from start to finish, with all the hiccoughs, problems, funny instances etc. with a view to publication. Has anyone actually done this? We are contemplating possibly doing this, as our removal will be from Belgium via Australia to the delightful shores of Lac Leman. Can't be an exeryday occurrance and is probably unique. But is it worth keeping a diary and then submitting the text? The purchase of the house was horrendous in the first place because it was an extremely complicated deceased estate. Do editors want to know all these details and does it help others?

If one did not change to CU at the time of purchase in France, and if one is not yet resident there, it is necessary to change at the Notaire's BEFORE coming to live in France, or can it be done after, at any time. What are the advantages/disadvantages please?

[quote]Don't forget that it is only the Mairie that is legal for a marriage. The bit in the Church is just a blessing type ceremony. This means that there can be a delay of several days, indeed weeks, betw...[/quote] The bit in the Church is just a blessing type ceremony   Not for we Catholics it isn't

We received our first Christmas card on Tuesday - two months early, but it was admittedly because the folks had moved into an apartment from a house and wanted us to know the new address. Neat idea to combine c.o.a. with Christmas?

We have a house in Evian which is unfortunately [for you] let for three years to a local French family. This is sad as it took many months to find someone suitable. However, we can recommend a very good, upright, honest agency in the area. Agence Lehmann Immobilier. They have several things on their books at the moment, one Les Terrasses du Lac with a superb view of Lac Leman: the person to contact is either Rene Lehmann himself, or Pascale Moro. If you need any further help or information, post another message or send to our private box. We will give all the help we can. PS don't even think of renting in Switzerland, it is double the price. Good luck.

We left UK in 1975 to emigrate to South Africa. Shock, horror in the bad old days of Apartheid, but with 29% inflation in GB at that time, we felt we had no option. Since then, stints in SA, Oz and Belgium. We would not/could not return to the UK primarily because we have been priced out of our own homeland but having said that, the mentality is no longer what we are used to.... sorry if this offends the majority of posters here but we find a great deal wrong with England nowadays. That's not to say that anywhere else is paradise: even dear old Switzerland, dear in both senses of the word, is no longer what is was 35 years ago. Cracks are appearing there too. Can't wait to get to France, at least the standard of living that is to say housing, is infinitely better than in the UK for a fraction of the price.

We have an enormous retailer here in Belgium, just outside Antwerp if you cannot find what you need in Lyon. Address gladly given as well as help, if needed.

if we decide to offer our house to the tenants we have already residing there, does the estate agent have the right to claim their usual percentage, bearing in mind they already extract 8% from the tenants' payments on a monthly basis?

We have moved, not only countries, but continents four times. As Tresco says, leave the plugs for your friends and neighbours. As soon as we arrive in the new country, OH shows me how to wire a plug, then says 'off you go - I've got a million other things to do'

Funny, did no-one see the programme on BBC2 Wednesday evening about young entrepreneurs buying to let in Eastern Europe, especially in Prague and Bulgaria? They have been priced out of the local market it seems: must be beset with problems. The last shot was of a development in Shanghai!

One wonders what impact Adair Turner's far reaching report on the state of the British pension scheme will have on those of us who are hoping to benefit within, say, 5 years. Will we be paid - will there be sufficient in the coffers? Worrying thought.

No, ours is fine. Must be the server, which according to OH who is an IT Manager,can be anywhere from the north pole to Tokyo

We are surprised that although 88 people have viewed our posting regarding the on-going subject of Communaute universelle and its implication, no-one has yet commented in The Post Bag section. Ergo, we feel perhaps it should have gone into the legal heading. An interesting snippet appeared in the BNP Paribas' September magazine : "La communaute universelle est donc en majorite choisie par des personnes de plus de 60 ans sans enfants ou avec des enfants autonomes. Jusqu'au 31 decembre 2005, la loi de finances pour 2004 offre la possibilite d'adopter ce regime matrimonial, ou un autre regime communautaire, sans perception au profit du Tresor." Ah ha, we thought, super we thought. But could some kind soul please give the translation of the last six words, so that we are like the Irishman, to be sure, to be sure. Thanks.

In the on-going saga of CU and its benefits, we have recently read a small snippet at the bottom of page 2 of our BNP magainze: La communaute universelle est donc en majorite choisie par des personnes de plus de 60 ans sans enfants ou avec des enfants autonomes. Jusqu'au 31 decembre 2005, la loi de finances pour 2004 offre la possibilite d'adopter ce regime matrimonial, ou un autre regime communautaire, sans perception au profit de Tresor. Ah ha! we thought, super, we thought, but could some kind friend please indicate what is the literal translation of the last six words? Thank you in advance, and let us hope this helps others in a similar situation. Have a peaceful Sunday.

Sam Firstly, we are going to live at Evian on Lac Leman, but have toured the area extensively. I would assume you could survive in Annecy without a car - in fact parking is always difficult and expensive. Public transport all right. Not as expensive as the Riviera but then very little is! Chambery is smaller - perhaps not such good PT facilities. As said, both are gorgeous in lovely settings.

Speedferries are super if they are on time. Meaning, both our sailings were delayed, from Boulogne and from Dover. Not by too much, I admit, but others have posted horrendous stories of day-long waits. Hope yours turns out all right.

Both are lovely. Both are relatively expensive. The lake is a major attraction of course. Annecy is, I think I am right in saying, rated the 5th most attractive town in France for amenities. It has a superb old town full of interest. But if your intention is to master the language, I personally would go for the best course. Good luck. BTW we are going to live further up the lake eventually at......... guess where!

Just a thought this, but would it be permissible by FA to have a heading Accommodation for sale/rent/swap? Does this already fall under another heading perhaps? Wouldn't it be interesting to see who has what for sale/rent etc.: it would also be beneficial for those looking around in any particular area but not wanting to enter into the three year rental situation. Of course, legalities might be a nightmare..... but one never knows. Look on the bright side of life. 

Don't want to disillusion you, but our sale took 14 months because it was a very complicated deceased estate. As it was, the notaires only wanted us to sign in July but we managed to finally sign at the end of May. Viewed the house originally on 2 March the year before. Good luck!

Later Oh HOWWWWWWWWW we agree! But then racialist remarks are not permitted on the forum, so wont add anything more....

We once posted a thread 'who settles best' which obtained a great many responses. We have lived six years in Switzerland, eleven years in South Africa, six years in Australia and now twelve years in Belgium. We are going to live in France in two years time because we no longer have a 'home' anywhere. Looking at all options, GB, Oz, SA, Cyprus and noting 'fors' and 'againsts' on lengthy lists, France came out on top for very many reasons. But the later one leaves a big move, the more difficult it is to settle, especially if one has never had this gruelling experience before. Think carefully and do your homework.

TU Thank you for the address in Lille. We contacted them and are within our rights to give six months notice at the end of the lease. We probably wont have to, and certainly would not want to do this, it is just that we now know our rights within the law. We are tenants here in Belgium - my goodness, how laws change with just a border in between! Here, the landlord has all the rights and the tenants virtually none. Just goes to show it is not a perfect world.

Here in Belgium, we have an organisation called Taxistop. I believe there is something similar in France. Once you are a member, you type in your details under 'lift wanted' and drivers contact you to offer places. Works extremely well. We use it all the time on our frequent trips from Belgium to Switzerland. Ask other forum members for the name, as unfortunately I don't know it.

A colleague in my husband's office commuted from Antwerp to Hornchurch each weekend. He used Eurostar of course, but booked at least two weeks in advance, received a good discount and also collected 'frequent user' points. Good luck.

Oh my goodness. What a lot of negative feedback. Wished we had never asked! Has no-one anything positive to say? BTW, we cannot contact ADIL as we do not live in France yet (nor in the UK either actually). Whatever happened to 'think positively'?