Topping this.

Hi, PB.

There are a number of factors driving my decision to sell the place in the Dordogne and move to La Rochelle or environs. Mostly, the Dordogne house is not a place to grow old in. It's big (4 bedrooms, two baths, large main floor), it has steep staircases (I had a bad fall last year and am acutely aware of steep stairs these days), it has a pool (who needs one at my age?), it has a bunch of land that needs to be cleared and kept tidy, it's got a garage and a veranda, and it's 7 kms in one direction and 5 in another to get to any commerce at all, even a café. Plus, it's on a steep hill, and in winter it can get dicey getting up and down on a slick lane. The prehistoric cave next door has become a bit of a commercial enterprise and all of a sudden there's a small parking lot just down the road from my house.

So those are the practical aspects. It was a paradise for me, especially when my kids were young. They're not anymore, and they're not interested in taking over the upkeep of the place. It's just sitting there, and I don't have the energy to keep it fixed up for renting from afar. It's time to move on. I can buy a small, practical place in/near La Rochelle for about 1/3 of what the Dordogne house is worth, and have money left over.

The expat community isn't really that big of a consideration, but as more and more foreigners have poured into the area over the 20 years I've owned it, it has diminished the original appeal of the place, which was a fairly remote area of France with exquisite scenery and a lifestyle reminiscent of France a century ago, a truly rural French experience. It isn't that anymore, and while that might be comforting to some folks, it's not to me. I like, relish even, having to make a stretch to integrate into another culture, even a big stretch.

I will always love that house and know I'll miss terribly the many magical things that came with owning it and enjoying it, but it's time to forge ahead and create a new experience.

Yes, I'm in DC. Went to college in the Philly area, though, and love that city!

Hope this answered your question at least in part. If you want to buy a house, let me know

Unless one uses a house for a considerable amount of time, or thinks that it is a good way of investing money, one should think hard about buying a house. I inherited a house built in 1971 from my parents. The annual cost in upkeep and taxes is far more than what I would pay for a 3 week rental of a gite, which is about the amount of time that I spend in the house every year.

I assumed an important element: the house is in the Dordogne.

Well, the La Rochelle area is excellent as well and at least the city of La Rochelle is one of the coastal cities that does not go into hibernation in the winter.

Hi SQ,

Thanks for the detailed explanation, it makes a lot of sense. Though this is an over-simplification, it seems that was once idyllic just turned into too much work, effort and expense. I can relate, on different level - our big house in suburbia, which we kept during my time commuting to the DC area, is tougher to justify managing now that the kids are grown and (almost) gone. We do still look forward to visiting the Dordogne on a future trip.

From reading your many posts over the years, I'm guessing that you've carefully researched the upcoming move, and you've picked the perfect area to re-locate to. I wish you the best.

Unfortunately, I'm not in a position to buy the house that's for sale.

If you don't mind me asking, where in the Philly area did you go to school?

Hi again, PB.

I went to Bryn Mawr. My SO went to Haverford. Not that I loved Bryn Mawr (definitely did not), and frankly I went into the city only rarely in college, but since graduation have gone back many times and developed a real affinity with the city.

Thanks again SQ, and happy house hunting!

Well I too have a house in the Dordogne, where I have lived for the last 18 years, and definitely don't intend to give it up. Not yet anyway, although 18th century houses really aren't made for growing old in .

The Dordogne over by Bergerac has a large expat community. East of Sarlat, where I am, there are fewer. We do have British and American and Canadian friends, but not in large groups. Had lunch with 20 of our French friends on Friday, and had a great time.

We still find this a magical area, and haven't regretted a minute of our move here. So come and visit it - you won't regret it.

(I should mention here that as a Canadian living in France, I dont think of myself as an ex-pat, but an immigrant. My impression of an ex-pat is someone who intends to go back to their original country. We don't. My parents left England when I was 3 and immigrated to Canada. Sometime later, I left Canada to come to France. I can't see why what we've done is any different, having left jobs, home and family behind.)