In this short guide we’ll take a look at property for sale in Poitou-Charentes region of South West France. We’ll examine what makes it so enduringly popular with property buyers.
Depending upon which survey you read (we have read a few!) the Poitou-Charentes region tends to come out near the top (along with the Dordogne, Brittany and the French Riviera) as one of the most popular property hotpsots in France. It brings together everything that appeals in France. Miles of sandy beaches on the Atlantic Coast, rolling countryside and stunning vineyards, quaint French villages with rural property for sale and cute French cottages, as well as chic towns and cities. Combine all of that with one of the sunniest and most reliable climates in France, and you have a pretty successful recipe.
Talking about weather for a moment, the Poitou-Charentes region genuinely has one of the best sunshine records in France. It is second only to the Mediterranean coast. Typically, there are around 2,500 sunshine hours per year, with mild winters, thanks to the Gulf Stream. If you want to avoid a bitterly cold winter then stick to this area, as the weather is pretty consistent without some of the wild variations you might experience further South.
Whilst there are areas within Poitou-Charentes which command high real estate values, notably on the coast (La Rochelle, Ile de Ré and Ile d’Oléron sping to mind), property for sale in Poitou-Charentes region represented excellent value for money. If you are property-hunting and relatively agnostic about which part of the region you want to buy in, there are still pockets of rural property for sale where house prices are some of the cheapest in the country. Cheap french property can still be found in abundance. The post-2008 recession hit property values in France hard, and whilst there are signs of green shoots, it is still a buyer’s market.
If you are buying french property and looking for barns or cheap property for sale, the Vienne and Deux-Sevres departments, as well as parts of the Charente, still offer some bargains. Many of our local French Property Agents have plots of land for sale under €20,000, barns to renovate for less than €50,000 and pretty substantial houses or stone properties under €100,000.
Read More: Property for Sale in the Charente for less than €100k
The Poitou-Charentes region has four departments. The Charente-Maritime has the beaches and resorts of the Atlantic coast, which is a huge pull for both tourists and French property hunters, and is as a 
result the most expensive of the four departments. The Charente is rural yet lively, and allows property owners to benefit from Dordogne-style countryside without having to necessarily fork out for the Dordogne premium. Vienne has vast expanse of rural countryside and is ripe with smallholdings for sale as well as barns, houses and châteaux. It is also home to the capital city of Poitiers. The Deux-Sèvres has lovely rural landscapes and the unique and fascinating waterways of the Marais Poitevin, also known as “Green Venice” – a huge tourist attraction for this part of France, and useful to be near if you are looking for a B&B for sale in France, or perhaps a gîte business.
The Marais Poitevin is not the only attraction for tourists. The region is perfect for those who love being outdoos all-year-round, and activities such as horse-riding, golf, fishing, swimming and sailing are in abundance. Fanatical cyclists (or ‘MAMILS’ – Middle-Aged Men In Lycra) will love it, as there are hundreds of miles of relatively flat or gently rolling countryside.
If you’d like to get in touch with details of your French property search in the Poitou-Charentes region so we can come up with a shortlist of suggestions for you and arrange a viewing trip, please get in touch using the contact form or drop us an email.
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