No problems Brian… you go and sign-up… we are all very excited for you.
cheers 
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Afterwards go and have a good lunch to celebrate.
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Brian… please… you are on your way to sign-up for a wonderful adventure…
Please take our best wishes to heart… and tomorrow… breathe a great sigh of relief and contentment when you have both finally signed everything…
We have given you stuff to think about… and some good advice… but, when all is said and done… the future is yours… so, grab it with both hands and, please, let us know how you are getting along… (if not I will come and haunt you 
)
Brian please continue to post I would love to see how it all turns out
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Brian, if you notice there has been some of us who are also in confusion over this persons post.
Don’t take it to heart, I think the person concerned hasn’t been reading your posts properly. I for one have commented to her.
Please do continue to share your story with us, it’s so exciting and we are rooting for you both.
Look forward to hearing how the signing goes, cheers 
Thank you very much, I’m trying not to take it to heart as I don’t understand the context. Almost without question you have all been very helpful and supportive. It could be worse I could be Theresa May after all! 
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wash your mouth out with soap… no foul language here please… 
Jacqueline is ill in hospital and has asked me to bin her posts…
Let’s all wish her a speedy recovery, back to full health asap…
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Thanks Hilary, I’ve done my weather research, the average temperatures are actually better in Mayenne over the season than the Dordogne over the year. The growing season is longer also I checked. The area we are in still feels the effect of the bottom of the gulf stream so whilst wetter it is warmer. Which for growing purposes is fine for us. I was a meteorologist in the Royal Navy so checking the weather was one of the first things I checked. I’m not a huge lover of real heat so the climate in Mayenne will suit me. David May need some thicker jumpers I think! Lol
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There is also the ‘local weather’ too. Sometimes the weather here bears no relation to what is forecast. Believe it or not my partner’s house is 1200 metres away BUT I can have thick white frost on my garden whereas he has none. I even took a photo one morning and sent it as he said “Ce n’est pas possible”, it was 
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That’s OK then…
Good luck with it all !
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That’s a great project…
If you are planning to use french artisans (and I hope you are) our experience has been that you have to forget UK timescales amd customs. The good artisans have enough work, so they don’t rush to do estimates for you and you have to plan a long time ahead for the work actually to be done. We had to wait over a year for the roofer - but we had looked at a lot of the new rooves locally and his were the best.
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Good advice for the future Jane, thank you. We are really hoping to do much of the work ourselves, yes even the roof! I figure if it’s going to take a year to get a roofer in I could do it myself in that time lol even though it has probably 20,000 plus tiles currently!
It’s worth going to your mairie and asking them to give you details of local trades to come and quote … they will be happy to find artisans in your commune and it goes in your favour that you’re supporting local businesses. We’ve always been happy with our mason, our plumber and our roofer - all local and excellent service.
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15years later not one regret. We were both committed worked very hard for ayear renovating despite never having done this type of work. We had each other and two children. Now we have a micro Enterprise that supports our lifestyle. Only thing I would do different move earlier. Every good wish to you enjoy and intergrate.
If you really are capable of doing the roofing work yourself then you will save a lot of money BUT, not to put a dampner on things do please think of the safety aspect.
My neighbour is a professional and worked with his father and brother in the family business. His brother (late 30’s) made a mistake and fell to his death last New Year’s eve.
My nearest neigbour (52) was repairing his hanger roof 18 months ago, made an error and fell 8 metres to his death.
Now the gloomy bit is out of the way, do think also that with professionals you will be covered by the 10 year building guarantee.
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Stella is right, the SPANC staff will visit the site and advise, taking drainage angles and distances into account along with wells etc. When we were installing a new septic at a rental property 5 years ago SPANC were also very helpful discussing the most suitable type of installation then recommended the best local installer who was a landscaper too. BTW we went for the Eloy OXIFIX 6EH for a 4-bed house and it’s been totally trouble-free.
The Eloy septic tank and accessories cost 5,700 euros, and was installed for another 3,300 including the installer having to excavate, run all new pipes etc.
Having done a lot of work ourselves (a barn conversion and large parts of a house renovation inc walls, windows etc) but also paid for work on our own house over the last 25 years I would recommend that you take a day going round Castorama, BricoDepot and similar to write down the prices of materials and then get a trailer or Luton to take down a load or two before Brexit!! Paint can be as much as 3 times the price in France yet plasterboard about the same…tools often much more in France too, but then you need a good lock-up too.
Just a bit of advice as we have found massive discrepancies in prices over the years, mainly paint and tools. Hence my car is often rammed to the roof as I head down each summer! I suspect that will be problematic after Brexit.
First of all, congratulations! What an amazing adventure you are going to have.
Your property looks lovely, bags of potential.
I know the area pretty well, and live about 40 minutes away. The town has a good market and nice restaurants & shops.
I also have friends out near Laval who renovated a similar plot some years ago, and have an incredible garden now, with it’s own micro climates.
There have already been lots of solid practical replies, I would probably add that if it is going to be your main residence then you may well be entitled to grants towards some of the work. Possibly including the fosse as government money became available this year. Well worth checking with your local Marie who will usually be happy to point you in the right direction.
Use registered builders for essential stuff, then you can offset against capital gains and get a hefty reduction in TVA on building supplies. The rules are ‘fluid’ and each area will have it’s own list of criteria.
I’m slightly behind the times in the thread, I hope the signing went well.
Really, the best of luck with such an exciting project!
Not sure where you are coming from with this advice Paul… can you give some clarification… please… ??