How many different styles of French houses do you know? Here’s our top 10:
I feel most privileged to have a job that allows me to indulge my passion for property, design and
architecture. I get to see the details of pretty much all of the houses that we sell on behalf of clients
and when you consider that we have upwards of 7,500 listings this means that I come across a huge
variety of styles and sizes.
The French take design and architecture very seriously indeed – perhaps it’s an extension of their
love of fashion and “haute couture” (it was only recently that I found out that this fashion term is a
protected name that can only be used by firms who meet high & exacting standards).
Indeed, in 1671 the French people founded the first European Academy of Architecture and since
then have inspired architects around the world.
Of course, being France you will find that different regions use different names and terminology for
house styles but I thought that readers of French Property News might find it useful if I described ten
of the more common ones that I come across every day.
1. What better place is there to start than the world famous French Chateau. France is renowned
for the beauty and history of it’s castles – indeed our Leggett Prestige team is currently marketing a
magnificent Chateau (26331TS16), with moat, just outside Cognac in Charente. It is on the market
for €2,940,000 and has been subject to extensive renovation. The grounds of almost 18 hectares
come with a gatekeepers lodge, stables and various barns. The Chateau itself has ten bedrooms, six
bathrooms and 1,100m2 of habitable space.
A Chateau is actually a manor house where the Lord lived with his family and servants but most
people, including myself, tend to say chateau when describing a castle (which, strictly speaking, is
actually a Chateau Fort).
We are marketing many amazing chateaux throughout France but, to see the very best examples,
you should visit the Loire Valley which plays host to over 300 of them.
2. Maisons a Colombage are most distinctive and can be found in northern France. They are half
timbered houses where the wooden framework is prominent. Techniques used date back to the
stone-age but half timber houses became popular in medieval times when timber was in good
supply (the wood is often called colombage, hence the name). If you have €738,000 to spare you
could buy a beautiful Colombard house with stud farm set on 33 acres of post and railed paddocks.
The main house has retained its character and comes with a second cottage, 18 stables and
garaging. It is set in the beautiful Calvados countryside and is an exceptional example of this genre.
3. Right at the other end of France you will come across the Mas, particularly if you are in or around
Provence. It’s a generic term for a traditional, stone, country property that used to be smaller than a
farm but which allowed the owners to be self sufficient. They nearly always face south to protect
occupants from the the mistral and are generally full of character. We are currently marketing a
beautiful and authentic 300 year old Mas, in rural countryside close to Aix en Provence. It has seven
bedrooms, three bathrooms and three shower rooms as well as three working fireplaces. It has
landscaped gardens of 6,000m2, shaded terraces and a wonderful pool area (22959CLD13).
4. One of our most popular requests is for a country estate or what the French call a Domaine. This
is usually used to describe a prestigious country house (or indeed houses) with extensive grounds
that are used for a specific purpose such as hunting, fishing, golf or wine production. We are selling
a fabulous 18th century estate (28423CJ33) with 60 hectares of parkland, within which are 20
hectares of vineyards, for €6,360,000. Set in the heart of the Gironde, close to St Emillion, the Louis
XV style house was built in 1782 and has six bedrooms and three bathrooms. The wines from this
Chateau are actively marketed and have won several medals with around 120,000 bottles being
produced every year.
5. The Maison de Maitre is popular where I live in south west France and literally means “masters
house”. The properties are uniform and well balanced with high ceilings and they tend to dominate
the surrounding houses. We are marketing an outstanding Maison de Maitre south of Angouleme in
the Charente (24677JB16). It is set within eight hectares of landscaped grounds, designed by a
prominent local landscape architect, and the house was built around 1850. It has five bedrooms, five
bathrooms and a total of 430m2 of habitable space.
6. We have all come across a French Longere which is one of my personal favourites as they tend to
be full of nooks, crannies and character. They are long, rectangular houses, built on one storey and
usually have their back to the prevailing winds. You can find them throughout France but are
particularly popular in Normandy and Brittany. Indeed, we are selling a beautiful Longere on the
Cotes d’Armor near Bourseul. It has been nicely renovated with all of the character retained. The
house has six bedrooms , there is a separate workshop & artists studio and the lovely gardens has
plenty of fruit trees and an above ground pool. The owners are asking €367,500 (28496MLG22).
7. There is a huge demand for farms (or Fermes) at present as farmland is seen as an ideal
investment. Farms tend to be smaller than in England but you’ll usually come across plenty of
outbuildings to renovate. Prices range from a few thousand euros for a renovation project in the
heart of France up to a many hundreds of thousands for a renovated farmhouse. We are marketing
a working sheep farm with four bed farmhouse in the Haute Vienne for €278,200. It has 48 hectares
of land, including a small lake and is suitable for carrying 300 ewes as well as having land for cereals
and winter feeding (20714CA87).
8. The next category is a bit of a cheat as it’s the contemporary villa. Of course many of these have
been built in a bespoke style by individual architects but they are such a feature in the south of
France that we had to include them. One shining example is the simply stunning designer home we
are marketing near Valbonne. The three bed house is surrounded by gorgeous gardens and has
huge windows that let the light flood in and allow you to watch family and guests enjoying the pool,
terrace and 1,380m2 of grounds. The owners are asking €1,281,000 (14460GG06)
9. In a similar vein is the Ski chalet which can come in many shapes and sizes. It’s one of the most
popular search terms on our website though so we had to include it. Both the Alps & Pyrenees offer
excellent skiing and we have a whole host of well located ski chalets that are so good at holding their
prices. One excellent example is this seven bed chalet (with three bed apartment) right in the very
heart of Meribel. Designed by a famous local architect it has a whopping 351m2 of accommodation
on four levels as well as a garage and three private parking spaces. The bars, restaurants and
nightclub are all walking distance and the owners are asking €2,300,000 (24619TCF73).
10. Finally we’d suggest looking at a typically Charentaise style house. Situated in Poitou Charentes
on the western side of the country they are big, stone, properties, typically rectangular with uniform
features and a central doorway that leads to a hallway with big, identically sized, rooms either side.
They too tend to dominate the landscape although they are not as grand as a Maison de Maitre. We
are selling a magnificent, grand Charentaise home with 6 bedrooms, swimming pool, pigeonnière,
outbuildings, courtyard and walled garden . Close to the market town of Aigre in the Charente it is
on the market for €439,900 and sits on a plot of 1,533m2 (21573SBY16).
These are our “top 10” of the traditional architectural styles available in France and we don’t have
room to include a mill, a bastide house or an equestrian property – we do hope that it has been
enjoyable and informative though!
Joanna Leggett is Marketing Director of Leggett Immobilier.
To view Leggetts’ full portfolio of properties visit www.frenchestateagents.com