IL Postcard

Your Home in a Wine Paradise for $36,000

Date: 10/28/2008 Author: Leigh Fergus

Tuesday, Oct. 28, 2008

Read more about France in International Living Postcards—your daily escape

Dear International Living Reader,

Imagine waking up in your own cozy 18th-century house, looking out over a green patchwork of vineyards. You stroll down to the medieval square for an espresso and gaze down from the ramparts at the Loire river and its ever-changing banks. You buy lunch from the local market, choosing earthy cêpe mushrooms, tender lettuce, free range duck, and fresh creamy cheeses just right for your crusty baguette—and, of course, a bottle of your favorite wine, cost price from the producer.

You don’t need to be a millionaire to live this life. You can rent a home in this corner of France from €330 ($415) per month, utilities rarely come to more than €100 ($125), and your groceries could be as low as €35 ($44) a week—without being frugal. You can enjoy a charolais steak or coq au vin out, with a glass of wine, for €10 ($12.50) or less, and still be able to stock that stone-vaulted cellar with good bottles.

Where is this little piece of heaven? It’s the town of Sancerre, just 118 miles south of Paris, a place where you can experience a better quality of life, a low cost of living—and get more property (and wine) for your dollar.

Sancerre has been inhabited since Roman times, and it’s easy to see why people through the ages have chosen to live here. From the top of the hill you can enjoy panoramic views of the surrounding farmland, woods, and vineyards, as well as the meandering Loire, and the climate is mild most of the year. The town itself offers cobbled streets, narrow lanes of houses decked with flowers, as well as a range of cafés, restaurants, art galleries, and the usual small stores, plus the Maison des Sancerre, a showcase for the wines of the region, housed in a 15th-century stone tower.

You can find your own historic home here—just needing a lick of paint—for less than $80,000. One that caught my eye is at the bottom of the Sancerre slopes, close to the canal that runs parallel to the Loire for a few miles. This 1,000-square-foot, three-bedroom townhouse, built in 1850, comes with central heating, exposed beams, a bathrooms, garage, and garden, for just €54,000 ($68,000), through the local Transaxia agency.

And it’s not a one-off—there are plenty of other houses at similar prices. I found a smaller two-bedroom village house with half an acre for €53,000 ($66,000) through Mahaut-Mathey agency. Monsieur Mahaut himself also showed me a charming four-bedroom house with an attic needing little modernizing for €50,000 ($63,000). And local property taxes are low, about €200 ($250) a year for such a house. Venture outside the town and property is even cheaper—how does €29,000 ($36,000) sound for a three-bedroom village house to fix up with outbuildings, cellar, and a garden?

Leigh Fergus
Europe Editor, International Living

P.S. I have spent the last few months traveling the length and breadth of France seeking the best deals in the some of the most-popular and less-traveled corners of the country. No stone has been left unturned in this updated France: The Owner’s Manual. As well as telling you how to make the move to France, I will show you where to find homes for less than $100,000. Find out more.

Read related IL Postcards:

- A River-view Apartment for $35,000 in a Lively 16th-century Town

- Bordeaux: Paris—Without the Label

- The Cheapest Homes in France’s Wine Country