Elayne

There is one by the Petit Gare in Ploermel 56, even selling army vehicules  

at this time of year you are still probably better off using the autouroute. I would just allow yourself a little extra time to get there. You do not say what day you are going but obviously Saturday's are the worst. It gets snarled up at the peage at Lancon and also just before Frejus but all the others are ok. Getting off the autoroute to turn into nice airport can be snarled too but although it is slow going it does move. Suggest you use your credit card to pay on autoroute that way there seems to be less wait . good luck

yes but only if you had a clause suspensive put in that says the purchase is subject to mortgage - otherwise if this clause is not in as a suspensive one , then you cannot use it as an excuse to get out of the sale after the 7 day period.

I have lived in the south for over 20 years and it has not put me off yet. I find it almost impossible to believe though that they say it blows for 150 days a year - i certainly cannot remember it ever being that bad. It usually blows either just for one day or else 3 consecutive days. it is unusual for it to go more than 3 although in the old days they used to say it would be 1, 3 , 6 or 9 days. It seems over the last decade that it is rare for it to go more than 3. I guess it blows on average once a month and whilst it is a pain - especially if you are somewhere where it is dusty - and especially when you have plastic chairs outside and parasols !!! - it certainly has not and would not put me off being in the south. When you have bought in the south (I am close to Avignon) get in touch and come over and have a drink with us. elayne

i have had several clients use Olive Tree Mortgages. They have been very efficient - they are based in Provence but can get mortgages for all over france. their email is [email protected] telephone 04 94 70 11 28 MD is Paul Cronk good luck

A lot of estate agents do not like showing properties in july and august because they feel it is the "holiday" syndrome. i.e. lots of people - french just as much as english - are holidaying in a place and suddenly think - oh look , if we saved a bit, did this, did that, we could afford to buy that house - and go off on a viewing trip during their annual hols and get all fired up with the atmosphere of being on hols, etc etc and the reality kicks in once they are back in uk or paris or whatever and so it all falls through. I dont mean to generalise but on the whole , and i speak only of the south at the moment, but it is true that the majority of visits during july and august do not lead to real sales. so whilst agents might not all be on holiday - a lot do wind down during that time because their clientele is not always a serious one

where are you based in provence? I can probably send you some overlap of clients. kind regards

where are you based in provence? I can probably send you some overlap of clients. kind regards

i just wrote to my local urssaf office and told them what i was planning to set up and that i would like to do it under a micro entreprise and they sent me relevant forms and then informed everyone else concerned (tax office, caisse, etc) you are not allowed to earn more than 27000 euros per year though good luck

Like anywhere you need to look at the pros and cons. What is fabulous as a holiday destination could become a nightmare for day to day living. For example - if you fly in to NIce airport and take a taxi to your holiday accommodation and get around the town on foot or public transport - that is one thing. But havng to drive around the Blvd des Anglais - or the autoroute axes in rushhour is one of the worst nightmares i have ever encountered on the cote d'azur (and yes i did live there - for over 14 years) and i still go back to NIce at least twice a month and as much as i love it (think long leisurely lunches in the Vieux Nice) i have to grind my teeth every time i need to do business in the centre of town. Give it serious thought before you make the move - there are millions of lovely towns and villages within easy access to Nice - do you really want to do battle every day with that traffic and that noise. Having said that - Nice at the end of Feb, beginning of March when the Mardi Gras festivities (Nice carnival and Battle of Flowers) is on is fabulous

Not sure what area you are looking in - but someone that is based in south of france but liaises with her office in paris and london (and she also travels to those places) is Victoria Lewis. You can try emailing her in the first instance on [email protected] some friends of mine are using her at this moment - she is part of an organisation called European Business Network SA and is a financial consultant she is english so that helps with the language problem

Does anyone know of a website or a phone number that i can call to get a copy of the most up to date tax tables (bands) thanks

SHould be 100% because any long term illness like cancer is 100%. My husband had lung cancer and it was all 100% reimbursed (the only thing not reimbursed is the daily hospital supplement which is about 11 euros per day) The surgeons, docs etc should use special forms when giving you prescriptions or anything - these say that it is connected to a long term illness and that is what triggers your 100%. It is usually the hospital administration itself that applies to you caisse for the 100% confirmation

I called them on their usual number and although the message said closed at present , it was after hours. I will try again the 3 numbers i have for them tomorrow during office hours and keep you informed

Good for you - your local doctor should be able to give you the address of where to write - I know the central thing is in Paris somewhere. I don't know how it works in the UK but here once they have taken the bits from you that they want, your family have to come and collect you from them for burial. (I know of someone that thought by giving their body to science they could escape the costs of burial/cremation - but it doesn't work that way. Hopefully you won't be giving away any bits for a long time yet!!!