Dream property: cottage in Charente-Maritime

Every so often, we come across a French property that knocks us for six. This month, Eve Middleton falls for this village house in Charente-Maritime

Charente-Maritime, Poitou-Charentes

€135,000

One of the many joys of living in France is the relaxed pace of life – where better, then, to appreciate a slower rhythm than in my very own historic stone cottage in a pretty Charente-Maritime village?

The white-washed walls of this three-bedroom property are the perfect backdrop to taking it easy. In the main house, the front door opens into an enormous light-filled kitchen living area, with tiled floor and exposed stone walls, and characterful rough-hewn beams overhead. The enormous stone fireplace would be perfect for displaying home objects in summer, while in the winter months I could entertain long into the night with home-cooked dinners in front of a roaring log fire. On the first floor, the two main bedrooms are equally light and airy, with wooden floors and a stone fireplace in the larger of the two, while upstairs the attic space would make a lovely hideaway for whiling away languid afternoons with a novel in hand.

In addition to the main house, the adjacent stone outbuilding has a further bedroom on the first of its two floors, while on the ground floor the living area would make a great space for get togethers.

Beyond the main property, the two courtyard areas and a detached vegetable garden and orchard, all included in the €135,000 asking price, make this a pleasingly neat – and relaxing – set up for enjoying life in France.

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