homeagain

As an average Jo, by the time I have read and understand the market and its twists and turns, the house will likely be sold, hoorah.  Better get reading

Yes, indeed, that was all the news we wanted, over-inflated by the media as usual and bound to work everyone into a frenzy.........

I did, just forgot to commit the sign in to memory...........russet houses are sheltered housing, just for info, [:)]

[quote user="jon"] Good arears...like Russets houses part of the world will still achieve easy sales. But agents still need to be sesable with their pricing [/quote] Am not familiar with Russets houses, will have to trawl the net, for sure they won't be in the northwest.......

  I quite agree and it is at that level, slightly less, since we lowered the asking price.  One agent did set a price that was way over the odds and said it will be sold in no time...........yes, sure and I will be winning the lotto jackpot on a weekly basis, like you say, be realistic, which we have been.

[quote user="inkflo"]Thanks everyone, looks like I would have to bake on an industrial scale to cover the set up costs & be legal. I'll keep trying though. [/quote] Very true, from the word go they will be sending out the bills..........one native French guy did say, whilst taking our cotisations that we could not afford, "you should always set up your business in England, like many French people do.  He also said that the French will have you closed down in three years and he was right.............Enough of the doom and gloom, good luck to you..........maybe you could supply a local shop, French or English, the brits love their pies apparently.

You managed to do very well and I am pleased for you.  It does depend where you are, here in the north west things seem different.  The market is, like many places, saturated with buy to let properties.  Prices are incomparable to those in southern areas, but, it is no use saying, if our three bedroomed terrace was in London it would be worth a Kings ransom........if's and buts.  One can only tempt the market by the fact that it is completely modernised, contemporary interiors, light, bight, super clean and ready to go.  Doing all the things that the programmes tell you will sell your house.  Anne Maurice would have nothing to do here [:D]  We had various guideline prices from local agents, two of which did not know that there was actually a world outside of the village, hence the low end value.  We seem to have settled on a "reasonable" figure, but it is frustrating at times, when you wish to move to be within closer proximity to ailing parents.  C'est la vie, we will just have to hold out and wait for the market to pick up.  Gone are the heady days of the late 80's when I sold my first house in 24 hours. 

[quote user="Russethouse"]Prices might be more realistic but here properties are selling very quickly, even two properties that have been on the market a couple of months have sold in the last fortnight, two other properties close to me sold within a week a my hairdresser sold his house the day it went on the market.[/quote] By "here", is that in the UK, I am presuming it is.  The prices are more realistic, I agree.  Ours has been marketed since November and not one pair of feet has crossed the threshold to an immaculately presented home.  We too, have sold houses in the past, in less than a week.  Times seem to have changed in 5 years.

Sounds quite personable, your old landlord.  Didn't pubs and bars have smoke eating machines, AC units and extractor fans, therefore limiting the amount of "passive smoking" that others had to endure?  I see no warm braziers here on the west side of the Pennines, howling gales and lots of wetness, so if you can actually light your cigarette, it is gone in a flash, blown away or soaked through, lol.

Very true, plus, the weather eases the situation, certainly from springtime onwards, you can sit outside the bars and restaurants in France, here you see everyone standing in the street, freezing cold and usually soaking wet, huddled round a tin box on the wall.  We did visit one posh establishment and they had a rather nice shed and seating area, next to a babbling book, it was called the "puffers lodge"............People have said "Why DID you come back"? 

They do say it is a buyers market.......and very little seems to be selling, ours included.  Every street seems overloaded with sale boards and to let boards on top of them, to cover all options.  The HIPS, which is such a waste of time and money will also put people off maketing their homes.  £400 for a few searches, that are all done by tapping a few keys, then someone coming round to check your energy saving light bulbs annoyed me greatly.  "your walls (which are two feet thick) don't seem to have insulting materials inside".........No, they are two feet thick, much like yourself!!  The market seems to have the jitters, but, everyone says that "after Easter it will pick up".  We will prepare for the rush after Easter Monday, please form an orderly queue...........[;-)]

Having returned to live in the UK, for family reasons, after 5 years en france. I was wondering how the smoking in public places ban had gone down.  Smoking seemed so much a part of the social culture.  There are endless bars and pubs up for sale in the UK now, wether that is due to banning smoking inside or how easy it is to buy alcohol from bagain booze, to drink at home, I am not sure.  I don't want to start the usual smoking row, for and against, just curious as to the changes it has made.  Perhaps I should have put this in general discussion, apologies in advance.