HOUSE AND LAND

[Rosemary J]

I have had my house on the market in the Auvergne for two years now but no buyer as yet.  The house is totally renovated, barn to be renovated and the land around the house is 1.04 hectares.  I have been approached by a local farmer who would like to buy the land but I am unsure.  Do people want a house with land or house with a small piece of land (garden). The house is situated down a country lane surrounded by fields and fields. 

Secondly, can vines thrive in the Auvergne?  I have an enquiry from someone who wants to create a vineyard near Commentry.

 

Bonne journee

 

Rosemary J

[Benjamin]

Welcome to the forum Rosemary J.

I would adopt the approach of doing nothing. If you get a buyer who wants that much land then fine.

If you get someone who is put off by the amount of land then either yourself or your potential buyer can approach Farmer X to sell. This way you keep all your options open and you will not risk losing the buyer who might want that much land.

As far as the vines go then you should be able to see if any are being grown locally. Unless your enquirer is an absolute novice (in which case be it on his own head) then they should know if a vineyard is a possibility.

Bon courage.

[Gemini_man]

[quote user="Rosemary J"]Secondly, can vines thrive in the Auvergne?  I have an enquiry from someone who wants to create a vineyard near Commentry.[/quote]

Apparently yes - have a look here:- http://www.cantal-walking.com/wine.html

not sure where Commentry is near though.

[Dave&Olive]

hi

ok donnot want to be a bearer of bad news but ,if you have more than 3000m3 (think it`s that figure)  does it not have to be posted in the mayors office to give the local farmers first option on the land ?? did you  not go through the same process when you bought it .

 I remember when we bought ours we paid a small fee so it was X weeks instead of Y weeks , 4 years ago now so ??? 

if you have a buyer that wants the land he could be gazzumped by a local

  Dave

[Kitty]

Rosemary asked: Do people want a house with land or a house with a small piece of land (garden)?

I asked myself this question when I was buying a house a few years ago.  I came to the conclusion that the Brits fantasise about having a house in France surrounded by land but that the reality is that when they come to buy, they have a modest garden because of the upkeep.  Am I right?

[BJSLIV]

Have you or your agent been noting the reactions of potential buyers?

If you haven't even been getting viewings it suggests that there is either a major problem with the locality or you have overpriced the property.

I hope you haven't made the mistake of over improving , such that you have  priced yourself out of the local market. If you are relying on a sale to a UK buyer unless you have really unique property things are not going to get any easier as the credit squeeze tightens.

 

[Steve]

It's probably overpriced, as most property is now. Having land is good - there are fewer buyers but there is almost nothing available with more than about 5000sqm. Advertise it on green-acres, where buyers can specify how much land they want.

http://www.green-acres.com/en/advanced_search.htm

I've been looking for a year for a place in Normandy, and when I find something I like, offer about 60% of the asking price. Some places are so ridiculously overpriced I don't bother. I've looked at hundreds or thousands of places on the web and via agents and notaires, and very few prices are realistic. There are still stupid people who will pay silly prices but not many. As a guide, I value an ordinary 3 bed farmhouse (which is what I'm looking for) in reasonable condition at about 90-100K euros. Outbuildings at 5K unless large or in /very/ good condition. Good (not scrub/vertical/swamp) land is 3-5K. Location matters, but only as a carrot to buy. Busy roads are out, as are nearby dead villages/towns. Ignore what the estate agents tell you - in fact ignore estate agents altogether - they'll add 10-15% to your price making it even less attractive. Advertise on the web (totalfrance is free).

I've just arranged to buy a nice house in good condition, with 2.5 ha of good land and four good  outbuildings, for 130K.

I'm currently living in a semi-converted barn in Indre, and although I've spent over 100K euros on buying and renovating it, I have to accept that it's worth only 80K, which is what I advertised it for, and I have two buyers at that price

[tracteurtom]

Dream on Steve, its all about location location location no matter what country you're in.    Indre, well, thats just my point.

[josephine]

Where is your house?   Sounds great to me.

[Mr Coeur de Lion]

Don't know why Indre is so low in price. To my mind it has a fantastic location in that it is very, very central. Paris only a couple of hours away, easily accessible to other regions and not to mention lovely countryside. Guess the unemployment rate is high which could have an impact.

[Matt]

Shhh,don't tell everybody .We are in the Cher and its wonderful.Beautiful countryside,friendly locals and very few non French,just proper France.

[Mr Coeur de Lion]

[quote user="Matt C"]Shhh,don't tell everybody .We are in the Cher and its wonderful.Beautiful countryside,friendly locals and very few non French,just proper France.[/quote]

[:)]

[cooperlola]

Maybe an ad' in Horse and Hound in the UK? (No, that's not a fatuous suggestion.)  Also, perhaps try approaching some specialist estate agencies in the UK aimed specifically at horse owners - your property sounds as if it might appeal to them

I agree about the Indre - if Le Mans had not been a little too far away, we would certainly have considered it.

[Patf]

I was going to suggest something similar to cooperlola - when we were trying to sell our house with land we were going to advertise in some of the smallholder magazines in UK. There are, or were, people desperate for the country life but as you know the prices for that kind of property in UK are prohibitive.