Provence Property
Buying advice for French property in Provence
Aix is one of the loveliest cities in southern France, with beautiful architecture and excellent cultural and artistic activities. It is a young, vibrant and cosmopolitan city with over 30,000 university students. Paris is under three hours away by high-speed train and the new low-cost terminal at Marseille airport is close at hand.
Aix:
Quartier Mazarin
There are several quarters of the city which are worth considering for those looking for a pied-à-terre or a more permanent home. The most attractive is possibly the Quartier Mazarin, located between the Cours Mirabeau and the Boulevard du Roi René. Designed by Cardinal Mazarin’s brother in the seventeenth century, it is a symetrical network of streets which was built for the wealthy middle classes of the period. There are many beautiful small squares, the houses are of dressed stone, the roads are narrow and not ideal for cars, garages are rare, but this is a residential neighbourhood of great charm and is much sought after. The quarter is essentially residential but the shops and cafés are only a few minuteswalk away on Cours Mirabeau or in the Old Town beyond. A town house here is the tops.
Cours Mirabeau
Running alongside the Quartier Mazarin and separating it from the Vieille Ville (Old Town), the Cours Mirabeau is one of the most beautiful streets in southern France. The side opposite the Quartier Mazarin has the sunshine from midday onwards and here you can sit on the broad pavement outside the cafés and restaurants, crowded until well after midnight during the summer.
Vieille Ville
Here you can not only buy every kind of food but also visit the art galleries, the luxury clothes and shoe shops, and the dozens more cafés and restaurants. Tiny squares are home to typical Provençal markets. The large square in front of the Law Courts houses a big market for food and antiques – an absolute must on a Saturday morning. This is perhaps more an area to visit than to live in.
Outskirts
Around the centre of Aix are several neighbourhoods which offer a combination of tranquillity, lovely old houses and comparative proximity to the amenities of the city centre. Some are amazingly rural, like Les Pinchinats, still within Aix but with vineyards producing excellent wine. Slightly further afield but still within a few minutes of the centre (outside rush hour), other towns such as Puyricard are well-known for the lovely properties overlooking the Mont Sainte Victoire – the local equivalent of a sea view. It is, however, important to avoid some areas, often those where the roads suddenly change from quiet byways to long lines of traffic as the tourists flood in to see the sights. Most prospective buyers will seek a country house with easy access to the city centre, the TGV high-speed railway station (three hours by train to Paris) and Marseille international airport. Property Vision France are regularly acting for buyers seeking town houses in Aix, estates in the neighbouring villages and AOC vineyards.
The Alpilles and the Lubéron are two of the most beautiful areas of southern France. For many people they are the epitome of Provence, conjuring up images of olive trees, lavender fields, vineyards and bustling markets where the smells of basil, coriander, mint and oregano mingle and the bright colours of fresh tomatoes, aubergines, courgettes, figs and melons draw the eye from stall to stall. The thought of a shoulder of lamb, barbecued with rosemary, eaten on the terrace beneath the shady mulberry trees, washed down with light Provence rosé (perhaps produced on one’s own vineyard!) is the idea of heaven to so many lovers of France. Where better to enjoy it than here?
The areas are similar in some ways, but have their own particular characteristics which will attract different buyers.
North of Aix-en-Provence a long loop in the river Durance marks the southern boundary of the Lubéron named after the two ranges of hills which dominate it. Here luxurious country estates rub shoulders with working farms and vineyards. To the west Avignon and Cavaillon in the Vaucluse; to the east Manosque and Forcalquier on the ramparts of the Alpes-de-Haute Provence; and to the north, Apt.
The area has long been popular with French personalities, film stars, cinema producers, and writers, and there are some spectacular properties which have been beautifully restored by these and other talented owners.
For those seeking true Provence, it is still possible to find properties with lots of land, some with vines and olive groves and very occasionally one to restore. It is, however, a fairly rustic area in the winter. Temperatures drop, restaurants close and the wind can blow. This is not a place for those craving a tumultuous night-life, but, is the perfect stress-free summer destination. Out of season one can go to Aix, usually less than an hour’s drive away.
There are many pretty villages, often built high for protection during the Middle Ages, each with its own style, charm and appeal. Most have at least one or two very good restaurants, but this is also an area where a lazy lunch by the pool is often the preferred choice in the height of the summer. The best-known villages, and the most expensive, are ones such as Oppède, Ménerbes, Bonnieux, Gordes, Joucas, Lacoste, the Petit Lubéron hills being more sought after than the Grand Lubéron hills to the east.
It is important not to fall in love with something too far away from a village, too far from the closest baker and butcher. Isolation may seem a boon at first sight, but soon becomes a blight for many. There are many isolated properties in the Lubéron and our advice would be to think carefully about location, however pretty the property may be.
It is also important to know that some of the villages are completely dead outside July and August, that some are invaded by tourists to such an extent that the locals cannot park, shop or even move around without difficulty. Choice, as ever, is vital, and should be made with a maximum of information.
The Alpilles lie to the west of the Lubéron, between the Durance and the Rhône, broadly inside a triangle formed by Avignon to the north, Arles to the south west and Salon to the south east. Again, the name comes from the hills which dominate the area, but the Alpilles are quite different from the Lubéron hills. In contrast to the gently rolling, green hillsides of the Lubéron, the Alpilles are jagged, sharp and dramatic. The daggers of rock stand out against the blue sky and this is the view to look for when buying property. Around the hills, the land is very flat and fertile, usually with plenty of water. This has encouraged the establishment of large farms producing fruit and vegetables and some of these agricultural areas lack charm – they should be avoided, especially as some of these plains are criss-crossed with electricity pylons and cables.
It is, on the whole, a wealthier area than the Lubéron, although the number of best locations is more limited. The villages to be close to include Eygalières, Maussane, Paradou; some others are definitely to be avoided.
The star of the area is St-Rémy-de-Provence, situated almost at the centre of the triangle. With around 15,000 inhabitants, this is a busy and dynamic market town, a sort of mini Aix-en-Provence. The old quarter in the centre is lovely with excellent shops, great restaurants and some night life. St-Rémy is very stylish and one is just as likely to find a very elegant Parisian lady shopping here as in the Vieille Ville of Aix or the 6th arrondissement in Paris. Whereas the Lubéron out of season is a little wild and woolly, and Aix is where the action is, St-Rémy is very much alive right up until Christmas and again from Easter onwards. Avignon is only 45 minutes away by car.
In both these areas, Property Vision France assist buyers looking for country houses and wine-growing estates. There is less choice in the Alpilles and the good territory is smaller which means, of course, that prices tend to be higher than in the Lubéron. However, one definitely gets more for one’s money here than on the Côte d’Azur!
For more information on buying advice and property searching in France, contact the Property Vision France, property search and advice team.