breizh

Glad it helps. My wife is French, but lived in the UK for 10 years, so she knows how things are done in the there, and has learnt what her Consumer Rights are in France. I do try and avoid going with her to the SAV desk, to put it mildly there are often disagreements!! It also never ceases to amaze me how often my french family just accept whatever they are told, whereas the British would tell them what their Rights are, in no uncertain terms.   

Here we go again, you have my sympathy. Consumer Rights are well protected under French Law, however retailers in particular flout the law, or simply ignore it. Your rights are essentially the same as you have in the UK, the shops just choose to ignore the law. Art. L. 211-9 Code de la Consumation. En cas de défaut de conformité, l'acheteur choisit entre la réparation et le remplacement du bien. Toutefois, le vendeur peut ne pas procéder selon le choix de l'acheteur si ce choix entraîne un coût manifestement disproportionné au regard de l'autre modalité, compte tenu de la valeur du bien ou de l'importance du défaut. Il est alors tenu de procéder, sauf impossibilité, selon la modalité non choisie par l'acheteur. A free translation (I did Law at Uni, but never practiced!)I n the event of defective conformity (goods unfit for their purpose), the purchaser may choose either to have the goods repaired or replaced. However, the vendor is not bound to comply with the purchaser’s choice if such choice entails significantly disproportionate costs in comparison with the other potential option, taking account of the value of the goods concerned. The vendor is then obliged to choose the other option (ie, replace instead of repair or vice versa), unless this is impossible. You may well be dealing with a Franchise, but it doesn't matter. Tip from my MiL, who is a very senior french politician, if you want to enforce your Consumer Rights, or make any complaints about Service Apres Vent, write direct to the CEO at Head Office. Then something will happen, it seems to work.

For Bourganeuf/Creuse try http://www.pontnoir.com/

[quote user="Gluestick"] Please study the demise of Continental Illinois Bank in the 80s: and the comments from Paul Volcker. A classic case of Borrowing Short to Lend Long which nearly tripped the ultimate domino effect. [quote]in this case what happens if they can't roll over the loans?[/quote] Err, it has already happened! The Bank of England has had to bail out the banking sector: which in the end costs us all dear. They were stuffed with new un-securitised loans and couldn't package them: and couldn't borrow any more on the interbank market![/quote] That was my point, I did not go along with the herd, and we as a company have no non performing investments, absolutely none. Absolutely agree with you regarding Borrowing Short and Lending Long, pity NR, UBS and CreditSuisse didn't listen. However I do not accept the arguement that these loans are all 100% toxic. Deliquency rates in the US are currently topping at 5.3%, as an average, which would suggest a value of 94.7% of the original asset as more appropriate. You could make a damn good arguement that buying up these loans at the 95% discount rates currently being quoted would be the financial killing of all time! Not a bet I'm willing to take though. (Sorry currency markets are not my strong suite, I'll have to take your advise on that area, re the PetroDollars.)

I understand B&B are making a separate cash call in order to repair their balance sheet, something in the region of GBP250M, which in relation to it's mortgage book of GBP40B, and a deliquencey rate of 2.1%, is not a lot. TGP provide a strong partner which will provide the interbank system with a degree of comfort, thereby allowing access to funds at less punitive rates than B&B would acheive as a stand alone entity. Whilst I understand the arguements regarding encouraging borrowing short and lending long, I have never subscribed to them. "Worst case scenario, my boy, worst case scenario" as my first boss told me, in this case what happens if they can't roll over the loans? However, to date the biggest losers in the credit crunch by far have been the Germano/Franco bloc banks. The archtypel conservative Swiss and German bankers. The free-wheeling Brit and US bankers have got away relatively lightly, looking forward the profit warnings are thin on the ground, and the debt financed companies that I have (by necessity) a close symbiotic relationship with, are all bearing up well, with further funding being opened up to them, as and when, they need it. In essence some of the facts do not fit the standard historical financial crisis models. The interbank markets have all those PetroDollars looking for a home, so they can't stay tight for ever. The Chinese have turned themselves into international business lepars. They have a monoploy position in the supply of Phosphorus products, they upped the price by 200%, and stuck 200% export duty on the products in the space of 6 weeks. Net result, every customer of any Chinese product now makes sure they have 50% alternative supply, however low the Chinese price seems at the time. Would you bet your PetroDollars there? Talk about not understanding markets! (I admit a professional position as a Credit Analyst, based in France, for a German company)

I'm a bit confused. Is this aimed at foreign investers, US investers or TPG specifically? Considering UK holdings in foreign companies, US companies and TPG it would be somewhat disingenious to be critical. B&B's business model is centred of mortgage issuing, heavily reliant on external capital. In order to avoid another NR, getting on board a strong partner such as TPG has got to be a good move. You only have to look at what happened to the German Landebanks late last year to see that access to external capital requires a strong partner, or owner, to avoid that funding becoming too expensive, or even drying up. Are you suggesting that the UK Government prescribes who can invest in UK registered companies? I think that SOX shows what happens when over-zealous politicos regulate free markets, companies just up sticks and move to where the business environment is more amenable, I would suggest you only have to look at international shipping with it's flags of convenience to see where you could end up. However, I do agree with your Euro agruement, but I feel the political capital invested to date will prevent any change (big sigh!)

Mmmm, Parisians, only marginally less hated than the Germans in la France Profonde. I'm not sure my hamlet, (that's being generous, more like a lieu-dit) know the Euro has arrived, most of them still talk in old francs, never mind new francs.

Agree with you on points 4 & 5. Local architects tend to be a bit more than makers of pretty doddles in France, they tend to know what they are talking about. Our last move was to a different Department, our architect applied for all the Permissions, and got us nearly 25% rebates d'Impots of which we weren't aware, paid for himself 10 times over.  This thread has made me curious about something though, because in all the time I've lived here I can't remember a single conversation, initiated by a french person, about house prices. I rarely meet Brits, except through work, but it does seem from what I read here that they are somewhat obsessed by prices and market conditions! I've never known any of my family buy a house deuxieme occasion (!), they all build new, so maybe that is the reason they don't worry about the price of what they are buying. However, the french seem more obsessed about getting the best quality, price is not the main driver, maybe that is the reason. Anyway, I'm just musing, until the missus gets back from work, and I can ask her what she thinks.

We have always paid the asking price. As far as we are concerned a property is worth what we are willing to pay for it. Going back to the OP, if you want the house don't get hung up about if you got a bargain. Look at it this way, if there is a big discount that means no one else is interested in buying, do want something nobody else wants? I am curious about French people telling you that foreigners overpay for property, my wife is french, with 8 sisters, living in a big Brit area, they always say they won't sell to the British because they always argue about the price, and then pull out before signing the CdV. They much prefer French buyers, no timewasters.

The question of jurisdiction in respect of T&Cs is resolved by where the business is registered for tax purposes, England, Scotland, France, Outer Mongolia, etc. The term "business" is extended out to any organisation, company, partnership or sole trader. One of the benefits of paying tax is deemed to be the use of the country's legal system to resolve disputes, the fees paid to the Courts in no way reflect the true cost of maintaining the civil judicial system! Hope that helps.

Individual Voluntary Arrangement. A form of personal insolvancy agreement with your creditors.

I can only comment on my experience and that of my wife's family in other parts of the country, we have 5 or 6 success stories. I live and work in Paris, my wife's French, but I am English enough to begrudge paying for something I reckon I can do myself, however I couldn't see how I was going to find a good maitre d'oeuvre, and monitor him, from 300km away, and it was over 170m2 anyway. So I went the French route and employed an architect, recommended by several different sources, and negotiated the fees. End result project on time, under budget, no hassles----and us happy. He even responded to e-mails, whereas normally businesses in France think messages on computer screens are some sort of witchcraft. However I am aware that some Brits have had experienced problems with architects, maybe I'm just lucky. At our second meeting, he bought in an Assistant who had worked for 5 years in London to explain some of the more technical aspects of the work, I was struggling with the vocab, and my wife (bless her) is not technically gifted. There was absolutely no possibility of any misunderstandings, could this be where things have gone wrong for other people? I have PMed the OP.

I am surprised more Brits don't go the route of getting an Architect to Project Manage. Yes you pay the Architect, but in return he uses Artisans who he knows and works with regularly, so no trawling through Pages Jaune, missed appointments, waiting for devis, and then waiting forever for the work to be done. Yes the materials he sources may not be THE cheapest, but at least he knows what to use and where to get it. It seems common practise for my french family, and the MIL thought we were absolutely mad for trying to do it any other way as we had no family in the Department, she even threatened to pay an Architect herself if we didn't. The Architect easily paid for himself by the money he actually saved us, never mind the hassle and stress he saved us.

Bridge loans seem common practice in France. We had a similar situation where a house came up for sale which we wanted to buy but but didn't have the money at the time, when we discussed with the bank the first thing Credit Mutuelle offered was in effect a bridge loan, 2.75% for the first 12 month, with no monthly repayments for 12 months, no security required. Loan now repaid after the sale of a house in Valencia city centre last week, 8 months later. However a few pertainant points. Both my (french) wife and I have full time jobs here, we have a number of rental properties and the rents are paid into the CM account, the account has been active for about 20 years, and my MIL is the biggest employer in the town! However, I am no sure your friends would get a sympathetic interview at a french bank, they like to see income, the question of equity/security seems foreign to them. If your friends are British pensioners, ie asset rich, cash poor, they may be better off talking to a British bank.  

Sent you a PM.

Definitely not being picky, me being stupid and rushing. Let's move Creuse back to where it should be----East of Limoges!!!  

Currently we're living to the SW of Limoges. Try this local ex-pat website for good local info http://www.pontnoir.com/.

El Prat de Llobregat Yes, I did have a certain puerile pleasure explaining to any of my Catalan friends and colleagues what a prat was in english. They didn't think it was funny. No sense of humour the Catalans, fortunately I don't have to live anymore.

I hope someone can explain something for me regarding flight luggage. If you check in luggage at the desk, it then disappears. What happens to it then? The reason I'm asking is that I keep seeing BA blamed for the T5 problems, but Heathrow is owned and operated by BAA, surely they are responsible for what happens to luggage, between check in and the plane? I just have a picture in my head of the chaos 40-50 different airlanes fighting over "their" luggage after it disappeared down the conveyor belt, not necessarily at T5 but other Terminals. El Prat airport in Barcelona lost my luggage 8 or 9 times, over a 3 year period. The airline, Iberia, always blamed the airport. So is it the fault of the airline or the airport?

Being brutally honest it must be difficult for people who don't have the support network which we have. Any questions we ask one my wife's family there is a policeman, a politician, a builder, a banker, etc, even for my wife it is not easy getting through French bureaucracy, language is only part of the issue. Dominique has the same problems you all have!!

Leave it to the wife. She's French!!

I've negotiated a few CC deals in my time. Visa/Mastercard Interchange charges vary between 1% and 4% per transaction depending on the size of your business. LyingAir certainly would be at the lower end, so let's guess 2%. The rest is pure profit to Mr O'Leary. I'd be curious from a professional point of view where they are booking that profit. Maybe they are using it to inflate their passenger revenue figures? In my opinion it isn't passenger revenue, it should be classed as profit on financial transactions (usually loans). Also, if Mr O'Leary runs an Irish registered company I'm not sure the OFT remit can touch him. Anyone know for sure? Personally I use BA for business and EasyJet for everything else. BA for convenience and service. EasyJet for price and service.

  On the positive side. I love the €10 button on the petrol pumps. live football on TV Saturday night, and........erm.

I stayed out of this debate deliberately, but Logan has articled some of my experiences very well. In 2002 my company moved me to Barcelona for 3 years, I speak perfect spanish, and have easily transferable work skills. Language skills didn't help, everything is in Catalan, probably just to annoy the Castillano speakers, which is just about the whole of Spain. I can honestly say I have never experienced anything quite like it, I was amazed, nothing works, everything is just a facade! I have to say I no experience of Las Costas Ingles, this was Catalunya, maybe it is different in Andalucia. The cost of living there was astronomical, even compared to London. House prices are 25 (twenty-five!) times average local earnings, food costs were higher than the UK, even in the Hypermarkets (Auchan), water was 9 euros per cubic metre.....etc. Fortunately we had my expat multinational salary, and my french wife did her degree in spanish, so could find work as she could easily pick up Catalan.. I couldn't wait to leave. When I got back to the UK I realised why so many Spaniards from the Barcelona office always applied for any vacancies we had. Now I've been sent to France. It functions, maybe too slowly if you're in business, but I have a large french family to help us through the maze that is french bureaucracy, and of course my wife lived here for 25 years! Though I'm 25 years off retirement, when "Planet XXXXX" calls for my return I doubt I will heed it. One of the best things about Britain is just how easy it is to acquire wealth from property, so cash it in, and send the missus out to work!

Properties that the real French buy? Answer the standard modern beige boxes, or flats. The price depends pretty much on the employment prospects in the area. My wife has 10 sisters and a brother, so it's a pretty good sample. But, I doubt it's what you want to hear. You really need to sort out a budget, then see what you can get for your money, and also on what you will have to compromise. Ideally rent long-term in the area before buying, so you are totally sure. Stick to the French websites and Notaires if your french is up to it.