I have spent a long time looking at properties,prices ect.I keep coming back to Gers.It seems so reasonable and everything i have read about it all seems positive.We are looking for rural location.Is there any reason it's so cheap or any tips people have regarding the area.
We are lucky enough not to have to worry about working/finding jobs,so thats not an issue for us.
many thanks
Thank you for your Insight.It just seems the right place for us on paper.Cant wait to get out there and see for myself :)
The Gers has been our home for 27 years. While on holiday the previous year, we fell in love with the area and something deep within resonated to give us the impetus for change and hope for raising our young family in breathtaking surroundings where we could practice sustainable living, alongside building our home, running a business (with the system taking 68%) and we've remained happy with our choice, which we believe has been a healthy choice too. We do not aspire to living until 94, but if it happens then this is a good place to grow old. Everyone's reasons for why they're here (or wherever they are) are personal and what they enjoy is also subjective. Some people come for a while, others stay indefinitely. I wish you the best in your relocation and bringing your project to fruition. As part of your due diligence, do come and see if Gers resonates with you.
And thanks for filling me in on a part of horse care about which I knew very little ! Good luck with your project, I hope it works out !
Retirement Livery consists of two option really.You have the 24 hour turnout option where the horse lives out all year around,had hay/feed ect when needed.Plus extra for Vet and Farrier fee's.Also checked and groomed everyday.Then you have the stabled option where in the field and brought in and stabled at night,or if weather is bad.Plus rug changing,feed/bedding/hay ect.and extra for vet/farrier care.It's something ive always wanted to do,after many years working in horse racing and other equine industries.But with my bone condition i rarely ride anymore,so want to do more on the ground with horses/ponies.Ive looked into the cost's ect of Retirement Livery and it's viable for us.We are not looking to make millions,we just want enough to survive out there.Ive checked which area has demand for it,and which has to many retirement places.My friend has a few of her ex polo ponies retired to france,so it's an up and coming popular thing with older horses nowadays.Thanks again everyone for advice,so grateful
Now why doesn't 68% surprise me...?!!! ;-)
At my last calculation, 68% Andrew :-( and don't get me started on the RSI/CIPAV/URSSAF and other obligatory contribution schemes we have here ;-)
Just a heads-up on the financial side: don't under-estimate the costs of running a business here in France, Roxanne, you can usually kiss good-bye to 50 to 60% of what you earn :-(
How does retirement livery differ from, say, a normal equine stable business, where people pay to have their horse fed, tended, exercised and (optionally) ridden in classes ? I know a bit about the normal business, and what you can charge for it here in France, having had a daughter with the riding bug from an early age, but I'm not sure what you could charge, other than for the keep of the horse itself ?
Yes that's my next stage is the Retirement Livery an Option in this region.I have seen the odd one advertised on pages online.i need to see if there is a demand for it out there.We have also considered having a gite/yurt option.
Im very much like you,im a worrier.I need everything to be right,and i dont want to be moving around forever.This need's to be MY perfect(and the otherhalf and animals) :D
Ive been in devon for over 20 years,cant stand it but it's the cheapest place for me at the moment to save for france.Im looking into every option.Like i said 3 years in the making so far.Ive discounted many place's with advice and studying them.Ger's just keep's coming back to me.I want RURAL,not into bright lights and cities.I want a slow relaxed life.I want to enjoy my time in the country.I very rarely get a day off to go anywhere.My animals take up alot of time,so not interested in going far often.Thank You for your Help :) :)
Im lucky as my horses and other animals keep me very occupied im lucky if i ever get a day out anywhere.Im not looking for somewhere hot all year around,just want a bit more of a spring,summer and autumn.It feels like winter last so long here,the horses are sick of being in mud for 6months and so am i.lol..I want to grow my own hay/barley so need good pasture arable land.Thank you for the head's up on The valleys.This is why i love this page,so helpful on advice you would not know unless you ask
Thank you for the information :)
Thank you for giving me an insight to the life there :) The more i hear the more im sure its the right region for us.We are not looking for a rat race,im not into shopping in big cities often.I just want a relaxed life for myself,my fiance and my animals.
Oh thats good to know. :)
No Motorways in the Gers and average life expectancy of 94 !!! must count for something
Hi ladies, i have lived in the Gers for 10 years now with my wife and daughter! It suits me just fine have taken myself out of the rat race of big city life, and now surrounded by nature , big skies, 90 minutes from the Pyrenees etc. I did use a local person in the begining a women named P. Bergoes who has a business called Feet in France shes fluent in French and English and knows tons of info on all the practical aspects of starting a new life in this rural oasis! ps i agree with much of pauls info, so its not necesary to repeat that, i know many French themselves no little of the Gers due to the fact no highways cross thru it only route nationals and one lane roads, just known for its armagnac and duck products, good wines and a 2 week long Jazz festival in Marciac. Good luck Charles and Caroline
Gers is a very attractive area, in particular, the town of Lectoure is a lovely spot, famous for the paint "Blue de Lectoure", used on many shutters and the dye used for fabrics and cosmetics.
Hi We moved to the Gers in 2011 having bought the house in 2001. I noted one of the ladies said there is not much to do.....so wrong, we have never had as much choice of things to do and places to go. You could if you chose go out every week to something different, you just have to get your nose to the ground. The countryside is beautiful, the people friendly, food delicious, we have a view of the mountains every day - almost. We are less than an hour from ski-ing or just the mountains which are spectacular. We currently live just on the edge of a small village, which has it's own boulangerie and small restaurant/bar - heaven!
Yes we have 10k to the nearest shops, but being able to go to a local market every day of the week if you want or choose your favourites is blisss
That's a plus for the Loire then, no Jazz lol