A few years ago a hippy couple, bought a small house several hundred metres down the lane. Positioned in the middle of the most beautiful countryside they started renovating.
A few months ago a large coach appeared, in which a friend of theirs lives, and now three massive buses have materialised. I have also been told that soon, a large red english double decker bus is about to appear. All these vehicles have been converted into living (if you can call it that) accommodation.
It looks horrendous and yes there is the 'not in my back yard', situation occurring.
It is on their land and I suspect there is nothing I can do. It is looking like a tip for obsolete buses.
Is there anything I can do, without causing the most terrible problems for myself.
Very true Jane. But the Gendermes don't like grasses either, and I can assure you they will let the "Hippys" know who tipped them off !! Even if they do find canabis !!!
Lovely area..have two friends there...who bought the vineyard at the front of their property 3 years ago...only just over an acre..but a pinot noir garage wine that is heaven!
I know when we were looking 5 - 6 years ago..if you put in French property for sale it was one of the first to come up on screen....not found the swap site much cop though...sent off about 10 requests...and no replies...when I complained, I was told it didnt work very well...not only that.. contacted a couple of the properties that were on the Leggett site...who were also on another site...and they came back immediately and said they had received nothing from leggett.. complained...and this may be co-incidence...but they have a new person dealing with the swaps from last week!
We bought in South Burgundy in May of 2005, having previously looked in the Charente and the Perigord Pourpre.
There was a Scottish lady working for the french agent from whom we bought and another working for Burgundy 4U. There has been an English Agent in Cluny for a long time and he now has a tie-up with Sotheby's Real Estate.
Not looking to sell and, in fact, still putting the finishing touches to our gite and our own house, we are, nevertheless not so badly affected by the collapse of the British market, as the nearest low cost airlines flying into Burgundy are into Dijon and that flies from Southampton and Easy Jet into Lyon.
When calculating the prices for Burgundy as a whole, they are brought down by the price of property in the North, the Morvan and to some extent the Bresse. The Cote d'Or and, especially our area, the Clunysois, are both highly regarded and two houses are being renovated in our small commune.
Not just post! There is a general inclination towards rudeness and impoliteness today. The Brits are famous for it. Just one of the many reasons etc ................
My OH too Hayley. I also know which agent has that area and she is good, she and my OH overlap and show each others houses around Bergerac occasionally. Also, I am impartial by the way, but do know that the Leggetts do not accept nonsense or bad behaviour by agents, if you get my gist.
ok...to sell our house we are not using 'an agent' we are using 5 agents! local ones in our town..plus Leggetts who cover all of France, plus Beauvillage...which covers a sizeable chunk of this part of France..plus Greenacre all of France online! believe me we are marketed and marketed again! I am on swap sites...(3) this is in aid of selling here. We intend to buy a plot in the UK..prefer Devon...and am in touch with half a dozen agents there...looking at whats available and prices...so I am doing all I can..... I am doing all my homework regarding where we could get a good value plot...and what eco things we could use...from energy to loo's etc etc...
Actually David I agree totally with you. When we eventually move from here..we are planning a self build in Devon...the full eco house...have a list of must do's and in the middle of learning about reed bed toilets...
@carol; good on your "hippy" neighbours for building a reed bed system for dealing with their grey and black water. Reed bed systems are few and far between in France and the French have a lot to learn when it comes to "alternative technology". the members of the alternative travelling community I have met are generally not the dope fuelled dossers that play to the prejudices of the Daily Mail readership. I have usually found them thoughtful,resourceful and disinclined to join the search for state benefits. My nephew was a member of a travelling group which existed on street painting and fire eating shows. At that stage he had a professional qualification in photography; he went on to do a degree in Environmental Design. Recently he took a good degree in Archaeology from a Russell Group university. His former travelling companions who came to celebrate his wedding were a delightfful and talented crew. So for those who think their French rural idyll is being disrupted by a convoy why not get to know them. It might be more interesting than you think. And for those who say "it's alright for you they're not at the bottom of your lane" my neighbour in the village has established a totally unauthorised scrap dump at the bottom of the lane which runs into a very pretty valley. It's a total eyesore but as it's just over the departmental boundary there's nothing much our Maire can do about it and it's too far away for the Maire in the next commune to care about. However given the neighbouring Maire was happy to allow the ruination of the contryside with a golf course and some frightful houses on the golf course which even Donald Trump would be ashamed of there's not much hope until our local Steptoe shakes off this mortal coil. But then I guess it's different strokes for different folks and as one of my favourite books is "The Next Whole Earth Catalog" I might be expected to side with the hippies.