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Everything you always wanted to know about France |
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The France Voila and French property newsletter.
News and information from the South of France - March 7 2004 1. Property Prices in the South 2. Education in France 3. Is The Grass Always Greener 4. Tax Threat on Empty Property 5. Advertise on the Worlds Most Visible French Rentals Site 6. A Gentle Look at Ex Pats in France 7. Capital Gains taxes Cut 8. Tiscali Time Bandits 9. Pride and Prejudice 10. Earning a Living in France 11. Farming in France 12. Landscapes and Lighting ======= The aim of this newsletter is to share information about visiting or living in France. There are over 1000 articles and comments in the archives of FranceVoila and in our Weblog at.... FranceVoila FBlog ======= 1. Property Prices in the South We keep being told that prices here are rising fast, but this email we received today really brings this into focus. Hi there, We are 2 Australians in our early 50s who have a dream (along with half of the world so it seems!?) of owning our own little part of France. Not knowing France very well, we spotted a house for sale in Nizas, on the net, and then found your website as we explored the area further, and we're in love with the area already! At this stage we would only be able to stay a short time each year, and perhaps let it for the rest of the year. To read the rest of this story, please go to this page Property Prices ======= 2. Education in France A contribution from Helena - a charming neighbour and Journalist. I was hauled up in front of the headmistress last week. I had done nothing wrong, although it’s amazing how a headmistresses’ office can make you feel guilty whatever your age. The problem was my four-year old daughter, Olivia. She had apparently bitten a classmate’s bottom. To read the rest of this story, please go to this page Education in France ======= 3. Is The Grass Always Greener Tony, This may be a strange question, but one I am curious about. My wife and I live in the USA and both read your newsletter. We have noticed the large number of inquiries to you from people wishing to leave England and resettle in France. Just what is it about England that so many people want to leave? Is it the cost of living? Weather? Crime? To read the rest of this story, please go to this page Leaving the UK ======= 4. Tax Threat on Empty Property "In a bid to reduce the number of empty properties and provide for some of the housing shortage Prime Minister Jean-Pierre Raffarin has announced that he aims to introduce a tax on vacant properties. Announced at the recent Home Buying conference and possibly due to come into effect from 2005 the 15% tax on the rental value may be what is needed to free up more houses for sale and should have a positive affect on the market." We have received a huge number of emails about the implication of this simple statement - does it mean that holiday properties will be considered "empty" unless they are declared as having a rental income and therefore paying taxes anyway? Does it mean that an owner who only uses the property for a few months or weeks each year will have to pay an addition "empty property tax" on the remaining months? We have no idea of the answers and we are asking everywhere for more information - if anyone has some knowledge of this please write to me at... tony@pezenas.com ======= 5. Advertise on the Worlds Most Visible French Rentals Site Our vacation rentals websites have been in the top of the main search engines (Google, Yahoo, MSN etc) for over 6 years now. We have over 50 websites offering a wide range of holiday villas and vacation rentals in France. Our sites are simple and friendly and our aim is to give an effective way for renters to find and select from the best value properties available in France. We work closely with the leading travel companies who can give ABTA and IATA guarantees as well as offering the best properties available from private owners direct. With our new websites you can now make you own pages, load as many photos as you wish and chose our pre-payment or our unique "Pay As You Go" plan. The "Pay As You Go" plan is copyright to us and gives an owner the opportunity to see have really effective we are for them without risking a penny. To start, go to.... RentalsFrance.com/rentals/ and register a new account - you can set your password for access to your own site and create your own web pages. Once we have approved these you can be on-line in minutes. If you select the pre-payment plan and pay by Paypal you can be renting your home immediately. ======= 6. A Gentle Look at Ex Pats in France This is a bold attempt at compiling the stories of Ex Pats who have moved to France. Produced by Total France here is their own introduction... To read the rest of this story, please go to this page Sharing France ======= 7. Capital Gains taxes Cut Some real good news - let's hope this is the beginning of a change in the wind. Capital gains tax on property for a non resident is now cut from 30% to 16%, for a resident it is however now 26%. There is no relief of this for the first 5 years of ownership - after that it reduces by 10% each year so is zero after 15 years. ======= 8. Tiscali Time Bandits Getting acess to the Internet in France is still one of the most expensive there is - I blame the overweight civil service that France Telecom still is - independent companies like Tiscali are breaking in but they are using bully boy tactics to get customers and hi-jack revenue. To read the rest of this story, please go to this page Rascally Tiscali ======= 9. Pride and Prejudice I have enjoyed and very much respected your newsletter for quite some time - you obviously put a great deal into it and you also obviously very much enjoy the benefits of the French way of life, with all its ups and downs. Nobody could accuse you of a rose-tinted outlook! However... To read the rest of this story, please go to this page Jingoistic ======= 10. Earning a Living in France Tony I'm a house painter high end 20 years New York ,Westchester, Dublin. I have no formal Qualifications,can I register as a painter based on experience or do I have to do a course (CAP Metier).Or can I register as a handyman and specialise in painting. To read the rest of this story, please go to this page Working in France ======= 11. Farming in France Hi Tony I am another of your far-flung readers who laps up your information while planning a long sojourn in France. Thanks you for all the very interesting and practical help you provide. I have a question about spending time in France that I am hoping you can help us with - even if it's to say, no, you have no hope; try another tack! To read the rest of this story, please go to this page Farming ======= 12. Landscapes and Lighting Hi Tony As a subscriber to your great newsletter, I am looking to move to France in the near future. When you have time would you be kind enough to look at my website Lansdscapes and Lighting... as I would like to bring part of my business with me and would like to know if you think there would be a call for my expertise or if any of your other members maybe interrested in my services or maybe would like to get involved in the business. Best Regards Mick ======= |