“Beautiful, discreet, even secretive,” La Drôme, France’s leading “organic” region, delivers 35 % of the national production of aromatic and medicinal plants. Situated between Les Baronnies and the Rhône Valley, the part tagged “Provençal” is one-third of the département, to the south, where the mountains give way to valleys and plains.

La Drôme Provençale is home to communes such as Montélimar, Saint-Paul-Trois-Châteaux, Taulignan, Grignan, Nyons and Suze-la-Rousse... Olive-trees, vines, truffle oaks, fields of wheat and lavender succeed each other below Mont Ventoux and the Dentelles de Montmirail. The site attracts outdoor enthusiasts. 45 minutes from Valence, 1 hour from Avignon, Montélimar has 36,000 inhabitants and hosts the famous “Voices and Guitars of the World” festival each year in July. Pierrelatte is popular among locals from Tricastin. On the banks of the River Eygues, Nyons deserves the title of “Petit Nice” because of its sunshine. Vacationers appreciate the Roman bridge, the feudal castle, the mills, the Porte de la Pomme and Porte de Saint-Jacques, but also the markets held every Thursday and Sunday. The population of Dieulefit triples in summer. This village of potters has a church very close to a temple, in memory of the coexistence of the two faiths.

“Locals are shared out on either side of the Rhône, near the access to the motorway or in the main towns,” says Christine Miranda of Christine Miranda Delta Immobilier. “They work in engineering or the service industry, sectors providing good salaries. Thanks to tele-commuting and today’s rapid means of communication, Parisians like to move here with their families, especially as they are only 2 hrs 40 by train from the capital. The opening of the TGV station at Allan should soon shorten the journey time. Buyers from Paris, Lyon, the Belgians and Swiss prefer the perched villages of the south-east.” Christine Miranda applauds the success of the “Drôme Provençale” label. The region offers an alternative to high prices in the Luberon. Village houses rise in value if they have a terrace or garden. Living space of 200 m2, extended by a garden big enough for a pool, starts at 300,000 €. A small farmhouse costs from 550,000 €, while a “mas” in good condition starts at 750,000 €. Modest accommodation for paying guests is being transformed into co-owned properties. An example is a building set in grounds of approx. 5 acres with a pond, split into six apartments. A studio costs 150,000 €, a 5-roomed flat 195,000 €, the main building 400,000 €. This type of offering works well for occasional residents. As for the basic villa, it finds takers at 260,000 € and more. Holiday rentals provides significant returns. Visitors will in fact spend 2,000 € to spend one week in a “mas”.

“La Drôme Provençale is of interest to two main groups : the first from the north, in search of the sun, the second from the south, in search of lower prices,” smiles Antoine Pernot of LCDI Le Comptoir de l’Immobilier. One often hears that the climate changes towards Loriol. “There where the olive-trees grow, that’s the beginning of Provence,” said Frédéric Mistral. After months of waiting and a drop in prices probably around 5-8 %, activity seems to be picking up remarkably well. Owners have finally realized that the over-evaluation was unproductive, even dangerous for market equilibrium. Today’s price-tags are becoming increasingly realistic. As evidenced by the fact that 80 % of transactions are still concluded below the 300,000 € level.

Ranging from 2,300 to 3,200 €/m2, new apartments are however selling less quickly than in the past. With a fast-rising population, Montélimar ranks second in the regional stakes behind Valence and ahead of Romans-sur-Isère. Similarly, it has just been awarded the tourist town label. In parallel, its commercial zones are mushrooming. Wurtz is setting up its second logistics platform here, drawn by the strategic position between Marseille and Lyon, and road, river and rail networks ideal for transporting goods. La Drôme Provençale remains relatively homogeneous, though Grignan and Nyons tend to stand out.

“The region is more authentic than the Luberon’s Golden Triangle, less built-up, crowded and ostentatious. Show-offs are replaced by genuine nature-lovers. Only Grignan might tend to suffer by comparison,” says Denis Allouche of Solis Immobilier. Furthermore, the southern part of La Drôme is lively year-round. This estate-agent readily admits that the Alpilles has the privilege of being the very heart of Provence, but there again : “It is at the expense of spaciousness, privacy and cost, 30-40 % more expensive. It’s harder to put the counterpart in the Vaucluse into perspective, as restorations there are of much higher quality than renovation carried out in the ’seventies here in La Drôme.” The comparison is, however, enlightening. With 300,000 € spent on a property and 500-600,000 € invested in renovation, you can get a “mas”. For 250,000 € and 300,000 then devoted to refreshment, you can live in a village house opening out to a garden of 800 m2. Finally, exceptional and extensive properties are available for several million euros. Living space of 2,000 m2 with about 200 acres of land will fetch 3.3 million euros. The richness of La Drôme lies in the diversity of its scenery and its warm hospitality.