Lesley MASON's selection of French property for sale

About my area

My area spans the South West Charente and nudges into Charente Maritime. In South West Charente, on the border of the Dordogne, sits Aubeterre Sur Dronne, one of the prettiest villages in France. The Village is built primarily on a hillside and is great fun to explore its winding ancient streets and alleyways. There is a shady tree filled square in the centre with a choice of restaurants and on the outskirts a lively river beach. Also worth a visit is the underground monolithic church and the Saint-Jacques church, classed as a historical monument because of its Roman-Saintongeais style façade. The chateau is privately owned and not open to the public. Chalais is the largest town close by and offers a large traditional French market on a Monday morning. Larger supermarkets and a DIY store can be found here. There is also a chateau where you can dine in style. There is also a river beach at St Aulaye in the Dordogne and a lake beach resort on the outskirts of Brossac

About me

It’s the old cliché I guess about being disillusioned with life in the UK, myself and my husband started to look at a new life in France after I took voluntary redundancy from Royal Mail in 2007. We looked in the Limousin and the Pyrenees before falling in love with South Charente. Our house needed (and still needs!) a great deal of renovation but it was definitely a case of “Location, Location, Location”. Unfortunately for us, our house in the UK took 3 years to sell so we did not move here until 2010 but can honestly say we haven’t looked back. We spent the first two years working on the house but funds did not permit us to do so any longer. My husband is a plumber so his fate was sealed but I always worked in Sales and Customer services in the UK so I looked for something that would tap into my previous life but also my new-found passion for all things property and interiors and here I am…… ready to help you achieve whatever French dream you may wish to follow, whether it is a bolt-hole for your holidays or a permanent move to the land of fine wine!