Lovely residences in Provence
It’s as popular as ever. Provence enchants and entices tourists in search of the sun, olive-trees and lavender. Its picture-postcard image is the stuff that dreams are made of…
What exactly is a lovely residence in Provence ? It won’t look the same depending on its precise location. In the Luberon, it will be a “mas” of at least 300 m2, beautifully restored. In the Alpilles, houses are more elegant and you can find superb oil-mills, 17th- and 18th-century properties with magnificent façades. When they’re close to villages, these desirable homes do not come with extensive grounds (rarely over 5,000 m2), but as soon as they’re more off the beaten track, they benefit from several acres of land. Le Ventoux and the area around the Dentelles de Montmirail are highly sought-after by buyers looking for security and quietness. For 2 million euros or more, they acquire houses of 350 m2, or even 500 to 600 m2, with 5 to 7 bedroooms, swimming pool and summer kitchen, all set on about 5 to 7.5 acres of land. A guardian will live on the premises year-round, keeping an eye on the comfort of tenants who pay from 5,000 to 7,000 € per week. 60 % of these properties, often long owned by the same family, belong to the French, company directors, industrialists or professionals in the financial sphere, with the remaining 40 % owned by Germans, Swiss, English or Belgians. Tenants are foreigners, either Belgian, Swiss or American. “Demand outstrips supply,” says José Canadas of the agency Lord and Sons. When a property is put up for sale, if its value is correctly estimated, it thus finds a taker without delay. In Gigondas, for example, a property of 700 m2 is already sold, though it hasn’t even been offered on the market. Often, buyers opt for properties on rural land, which makes them eligible for tax benefits. They thus become owners of 12.5 to 15 acres of vines which they entrust to a service supplier, and thus escape wealth tax.
Highly-prized in Provence, guest-houses are certainly not lacking and compensate for scarce hotel accommodation. In Gordes, for instance, the largest hotel only offers 22 guest-rooms, a blessing for those who have always wanted to run a B&B. “Quite frequently, these owners have run their own businesses before changing their life-style and enjoying extra income or a prolonged social life when they retire,” comments Marie-Madeleine Nelson of Un Mas en Provence. They then willingly act as guides, suggesting good addresses to their guests, advising them for excursions and entertainment. For here, fans of culture are really spoilt, especially during the Festivals held in Avignon, Orange, Aix-en-Provence… Other owners are 50 year-olds, from Paris or Lyon, who give up traditional careers to take on a new activity for five to ten years while developing human contacts in a pleasant setting. Most of them, about 80 %, do not provide meals for their guests. Experience has proven that occupancy is definitely higher with a “table d’hôtes”, but it requires completely different management, and those who have tried it out without any real professional background end up abandoning it. In Provence as in other regions, “tables d’hôtes” worthy of the name are run by former professionals in the restaurant trade.
If it is already up and running, the price of a guest-house will be at least 1.2 million euros and can soar to 2.5 million. It will include private accommodation, 5 guest-rooms maximum and possibly one or two extra “gîtes” (modest self-catering accommodation). Buyers pay cash, a fact explained by estate-agents very simply : on average, a guest-house chalks up turnover of 100,000 € a year, enabling the owners to maintain the property but not repay a loan. While owners are 50 % French, their clients are mostly foreign. French-speaking Belgians, Luxembourgeois and the Swiss tend to head for the Luberon, whereas Italians, the Spanish and English prefer the Alpilles. They pay 100 to 250 € per night for a prestigious bedroom, breakfast included. The masters and mistresses of these addresses like to lay on homemade jam, locally produced honey, sachets of lavender… Little details that contribute to the success of their guests’ stays ; these same items are often on sale, so that they can enjoy them back home. Substantial residences are rented out from June to September, while guest-houses are active from Easter to October. People stay for shorter periods, and often travel as a couple. Rooms are usually booked in advance and, in Provence, they make up for the lack of beds, especially for large family reunions such as weddings and christenings…
Currently, demand is there, and supply is having a hard time keeping up. Though we’re a long way off from the boom experienced by B&B establishments seven or eight years ago. They are no longer “in fashion”, and only those that can stay the pace survive. Statistics prove the point : on average, people run this type of business for about ten years. When they come up for sale, guest-houses pursue their careers or are retransformed into family homes. The reverse is also true. Finally, there are people who come to test the temperature : “Often, the tourist opts for a “maison d’hôtes” long enough to explore the region and select the area in which he would like to invest. Anyone reserving a guest-room is a potential client for the estate-agent,” says Philippe Debord of Patrimoine en Provence.
By Cécile Olivéro
