I sent an article to the property editor of the Mail on Sunday last week... "Most amusing" he said. And we batted a few e-mails backwards & forwards But, and here's the thing...he didn't publish it. So I thought I'd do it myself on my own little piece of the planet.
A Norman Invasion...
followed by the formation of an orderly queue snaking toward Northwest
France
Recently, as exhibitors, we attended, The Normandy Property Show...a small regional affair, not supported by any of the high circulation monthlies or coffee table titles that are usually the key to making the escape to life in another country possible for those entrepreneurs or empty-nesters who usually spearhead a migration.
You'd have to regard this little show...this 'Norman invasion', as a barometer as to how us Brits view the current political scene and how well our new PM and his pocket Chancellor are handling things.
And I have to tell you boys it's a grim message. The place was packed. Although local PR and advertising was shared amongst the websites and advertisements of the organisers and their exhibitors working as a network - the turnout was much better than anyone expected. It was great. The place was rammed with would-be escapees. Just 15 or so exhibitors illustrated how life in Normandy offers so much more than the good ship GB seems able to match. The property prices (you'd have to say that was the main attraction) are around two thirds (often a lot less) of what you might expect to pay for a comparable property in the UK and a wealth too of what you see very little of here; beautiful houses ripe for renovation - where the prices do not (as they seem to in UK) reflect the 'potential' value when done up... and so they are very, very reasonably priced. There were taxation experts and Currency Exchange specialists there too who can help improve the prospects for those eager to buy that dream home just a few hours away.
And, whilst the topography of Normandy does remind you of Hampshire, Sussex & Kent, the weather is a little improved and the temperatures, on average, a degree or two higher. How much more of an incentive do you need? Normandy is far enough away to be very different...yet near enough for family and friends to still be a source of annoyance! You won't be alone for long! Why, we even know people who commute!
The venue for the show was Shoreham-by Sea's beautiful art-deco Airport terminal between Brighton and Worthing...a brilliant jumping off point for Normandy because flights from the airport (via SkySouth) start at around £70...and, just up the road, at Newhaven, LD Lines/Trans Manche operate very reasonably priced ferry crossings to Dieppe and Le Havre.
In a nutshell it seems to me that Gordon Brown and Alastair Darling (hereafter known as the Dynamic Duo) have revived the overseas property market... blighted by the bouncing Euro to Sterling exchange rate for too many months. Remarkably they have increased the market's desire to leave the country whilst doing little (for the moment) to improve the sales prospects for UK vendors. It seems they are (in spite of our prior knowledge of them) the best salesmen we in the business may ever find. So, long may they reign (well actually "No" because the UK will be almost empty and in tatters).
Normandy (and for me you can include Brittany in this too) offer already low, but further falling property prices and an opportunity to enjoy a matchless, quiet life. Not only are the house prices a delight but you can still enjoy a 4 course lunch (including wine or cider) for around £6.50. Refreshingly there's a lack of youth hostility and lawlessness...and you can't find a tatoo or body piercing parlour or nail bar for love nor
money...Bliss!
Within 24 hours of the show's end we were arranging viewing trips for the
first escapees. The Normandy Property Show, it seems, is destined for bigger things next year. A larger venue is a start. In the meanwhile I'm getting together an escape committee. We'll start digging the tunnel just outside Eastbourne and we'll be hiding the entrance under a vaulting horse and getting rid of the excavated soil down our trouser legs...
