zeb

We just opened a separate account at La Poste which we use as a business acount but it's a personal account in my partner's name if you see what I mean, tetley. We were warned that there are much higher charges for a business account.

I know that you've been here years Val, but, just out of interest, how long before you became fluent in French?

LOL ......and many "English" food shops in France sell Stilton

Have a look at www.gites-de-france.com for gites in your area. 3 epie gites usually have heating and all mod cons (the ones we've rented have been excellent). You should be able to negotiate rent for the winter months quite cheaply as most gite owners like to have tenants! It probably wont have English TV but you may be able to get permission to fix a sat dish temporarily. Good luck.

It has to be done by a qualified translator. Your Mairie will have a list. Afriend here in Charente has just had his letter from an ex-employer done and it cost 9euros!

Wen, go to www.shopi.com Choose what you want from the on line catalogue, then ask for it at your local shopi.

We bought one recently (rather than installing an aerial) so that we can receive French terrestrial channels. It's working OK here in Charente!

Oh b****r - missed it again!

[quote user="Bugbear"]Would it be possible to have a single button click to identify who is currently online ?[/quote] But, who really cares???

[quote user="Chris Head"][quote user="icmenuiserie"]HI, not sure about the whole job, but if you need any type of wood, window, doors, shutters solid oak or chestnut flooring get in touch with me and we can talk about your requirements.....March 2007 is possible for the things I have listed, but for us, not the whole job! Hope that helps[/quote] Hey there ic menuiserie! First post and you're trying to harvest work? I'm guessing things might be a little tough for you at the mo or you're just starting out and doing some market research? Got a siret number? edit; agree with you Hugh but equally we could be looking at an unregistered rip off merchant with a laptop trawling for business. My alarm bells always ring at posts of this type. Perhaps I'm just a cynic but my life experience leads me that way. [/quote] What's your problem CH? Emma, asked for artisans and icmeneuiserie offered! When we were looking for work years ago, we happily trawled the websites for business and many of our best clients (who are now friends) came to us via this route. Is there some green eye going on? zeb Edit: sorry about the quote format - perhaps it's my old iMac!

Mark - A change of address will probably give you more hassle than it will be worth - all the paperwork involved in changing it with everyone. Also, you really don't want to register until you start work as you'll be paying cotisations from that date. Are you registering as an artisan? If so, it will be with the Chambre de Metiers and you could arrange to go on the course (stage) before you move (you don't have to be registered to do that) so that will be one thing out of the way. Suggest you make an appointment with them for a chat.

But Hoddy, surely this would give them an insight into other cultures at an early age, and respect of the differences, even if they don't agree with them. Edit: sorry - Ian got a post in before me. I hope mine makes sense!

Sorry, but I fear your wife may be right! In some areas I've heard that taxes on second homes are higher than those due on primary residences. You should have had your bills in by now (payment for taxe d'habitation was due on 15th November). On the reverse it lists those exonerated from the taxe but only for maison principale - over 60s, infirm, handicapped, widowed or those in receipt of RMI.

Well, I found the whole process really easy which is quite surprising as I have an old (very pretty but quite useless) iMac! Signing and sending off the RIB does seem a bit mad but I don't think French banks will make any prelevements without signed authorisation. Just look at it as extra security.

Gail - when you get your next bill, it gives payment details on the reverse. We pay all our taxes this way, spread over the year, as we did in the UK. No nasty surprises in October/November!

Sorry, haven't had time to read right through this thread and it may have already been said but, you can pay monthly on line for 2007 if you have a French bank account. You have to register by 15th December for your first monthly payment to be made on 15th January. Go to www.impots.gouv.fr You can also pay your 2006 bill on line (plus foncieres, taxe professionelle and your income tax) and with taxe d'hab which was due 15th December, if you pay on line you get an extra 5 days!

Definitely best to be two singles!

Well, if it's any help to anyone I've just worked out the total of our annual household bills - this is for two adults both with vehicles living in a very rural area in well insulated house with c/h and all mod cons. It does not include food, clothes, holidays or pet expenses (we run a business but I haven't factored in any of the associated exhorbitant costs!). Obviously in we lived in Paris, Toulouse or Provence our rates would be much higher. Tax d'hab 430 euros Tax fonc 225 Vehicle insurance 648 Electricity 420 Oil 1000 (approx) Wood 200 Bottle gas 150 House insurance 350 Water 300 Top up 960 (this was before we had business) Telephone 360 Internet 228 Like Dago, I shop for basics at Lidl, great! I've only recently discovered Lidl and really think it is part of the French experience around here!! I refuse to pay Intermarche prices when I can get the like for like goods (same quality) much cheaper and I love their promos. Pet food stuff is bought at the agri co-op in huge sacks and toiletries are bought in Intermarche (Lidl's smell a bit industrial). I reckon on spending 150 euros a week on food, fags, booze and pets etc (and we usually have folks round to eat here once or twice a week), but very occasionally I skip a weeks shopping and live from freezer and garden. Clothes (twice yearly splurge) are generally bought at Geant, Tesco or eBay! Books and CDs are bought on eBay. If we're flush (taking a break means loss of a week's income) we book a flight back to the UK or rent a gite in another part of France but if we're not we happily spend months at home. I think you just cut your cloth accordingly and if you're happy with that, so be it. For what it's worth, our French neighbour has a widow's pension of 380 euros a month to live on and tells me that she can save some!!

In the Charente Libre the other day, it said flights would start in September 2007!!! So......who knows?

Yep, Tresco - I always thought of Mazan as female - don't know why!! Anyway, I really miss her, and her anti-chasse and techie posts. She sometimes opened up about personal stuff and said that she had a cat, so you could wander around Mazan looking for an English speaking cat owner who's been living in France for donkeys years and sorts out computers in her spare time, Lori! Dare I say it, but I also miss TU!! Hope she's well and happy now that she's back in Blighty. regards........zeb, who has probably been here longer than is healthy!

Sorry, didn't realise that Lidl offers are regional. We are in Charente 16. They have a website www.lidl.fr so that you can keep track of offers at your local store. But you have to hurry as the goods are only there for a few days until the next promo is there. But things usually come around twice a year. The plasterboard props we use (from Lidl) are spring loaded on telescopic poles and lighter than a home-made one. They can also cope with sloping walls and ceilings. Apart from the concrete mixer (!) they have been my best buy since renovating! J.R. - at what working height can you use the leve-placo thingy? Our ceilings in the barn/sitting room slope up to seven metres. It was too scarey getting plasterboard up there so we used a product which many have used for high ceilings but last time I mentioned it on here I got slated (building regs - probably UK ones....are there French bulding regs on line?) so can't recommend it in public!

Thought I'd spread the good news for those of you who are plasterboarding ceilings. They are available this week at Lidls, dirt cheap and worth their weight in gold, so hurry. I know....I bought some for my partner 4 years ago when I got fed up of being a human plasterboard prop!

Can anyone tell me how much the average handholding fees are which agents such as VEF, Papillon etc charge on top of their normal agency fees? PS I don't need opinions, good or bad, about either of these or similar companies, thanks. Oops - and it's not for the book I'm writing either!

quote -Funny thing is, I thought it was two years and a while back I posted that, but I got shouted down that it was three years, so this time I posted three years...unquote If it's really important to you, Dick, this may help: http://www.conseils-infos-batiment.fr/fiscalite/tva-5,5.php

StA, why don't you shut up shop and have a holiday in Nimes whilst OH is working? It's a great place.