British buyers of French property have said the move to the Gers area of Gascony has been a very good one for them, both financially and in terms of their lifestyle.

Speaking to the Daily Mail, Jayne and John McNish noted a number of advantages to living in the area after moving from the Wye Valley four years ago.

"The move gave us an appreciably bigger home and enabled us to knock several hundred thousand pounds off the mortgage," Ms McNish commented.

She also noted that while the cost of the euro has had some impact, local produce is still affordable, while for Mr McNish, travelling on business to the US is easy via a short drive to the airport, with £110 train journeys from Bristol to London a thing of the past.

The paper noted that the region has similar scenery to the Malverns, while the ski slopes of the Pyrenees are only 80 minutes’ drive away.

France’s property market may be boosted by news that the Bank of France is predicting a smaller economic contraction in the second quarter than previously forecast.

It now believes the shrinkage will be 0.6 per cent, compared with the previous prediction of 0.8 per cent, Reuters reports.

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