Saint-Paul-Trois-Châteaux, a major attraction in the Drôme Provençale

By Laetitia Rossi - 22 June 2010

At the southern tip of the “département”, this locality surrounded by hills is not far from Le Tricastin, an important source of employment and consequently a magnet for many people who move here from all over France. In parallel, the region also boasts properties of character, to the taste of holiday home seekers from Lyon, Paris, Belgium, Switzerland and Luxembourg.

The post-war period was a decisive turning-point which radically changed the region’s structure. It saw the creation of the CEA, Eurodif, the EDF power station and the Donzère-Mondragon canal. If Tricastin underwrote the region’s future, the Romanesque cathedral, shady squares, ramparts and 18th-century mansions still evoke a colourful history. Farmers and craftsmen rub shoulders with workers employed by companies specializing in farm machinery, precision tools, floor coverings and nuclear power. There are many opportunities to test the locals’ friendliness, including various markets, a Youngsters’ Book Festival and the famous truffle omelette, in February. The town's array of shops is as dense as its network of associations, for both culture and sports, while the bountiful soil produces AOC Coteaux de Tricastin wine, black truffles and wonderful olives.

“80 % of my clients are looking for permanent homes,” says Joëlle Kaczmareck of Idimmo Kaczmareck. Generally, first-time buyers can afford up to 200,000 €, focusing, for example, on the “Grand Porte” development of terraced houses from 83 to 90 m2 with garages and gardens of 300 to 450 m2 seven km from the town, currently selling from 157,000 to 162,000 €. As for apartments, a 2-bedroom unit costs 110,000 € in an old building, 180,000 € in a more recent residence. Though apartments are really suffering from competition with detached houses that start at 200,000 €. After moving here three to five years ago from northern France, engineers and technicians, more inclined to buy than rent, aim for homes costing around 300,000 €. Recently, a house of 130 m2 in good condition, in grounds of 1,800 m2 with a pool, found a taker at 320,000 €. The market is active in the 300,000-500,000 € bracket. Below that level, it is rather sluggish. Despite extremely low interest rates, a loan of 200,000 € implies monthly repayments of over than 1,000 € for 25 years. The future of the bottom end of the market is closely tied to the health of the local economy. “As for high-end properties, they are still struggling to find a point of convergence between supply and demand,” adds Denis Allouche of Solis Immobilier. Saint-Paul boasts a wide choice of properties. A village house of 120 m2 without a garden but properly restored ranges from 180,000 to 220,000 €. Mansions and desirable residences of 230 m2, which need freshening up and are extended by courtyards, cost from 350,000 to 450,000 €. Once they have been refurbished and open out to gardens of over 800 m2, these same properties are worth 700,000 to 800,000 €. “20 % of my clients are foreign. Three years from retirement, they start looking for a natural setting of quality and choose the Drôme Provençale in which to enjoy this time of their life,” resumes Denis Allouche. The majority have comfortable budgets. Despite the crisis, two properties in fact broke the record for sales in the southern part of the “département” in the last 6 months. And while everyone first targets Grignan, many then fall for the charm of Saint-Paul, 10 minutes from the motorway, less than a 7-hour drive from Belgium or Luxembourg, 3 hours from Geneva, 2 hours from Lyon, 35 and 45 minutes from the TGV stations in Avignon and Valence. Some buyers hope to find a property they could run as a guest-house. An example of 300 m2 on at least 5 acres of land costs around 750,000 €. A similar surface area, perfectly restored, in about 25 acres of land with vines, lavender and truffle oaks, can attain 1.5 million euros, exceptions aside. Most transactions concern “mas” of 250 m2 in the 700,000 to 1 million euro bracket, characterized by typical architecture with contemporary finishing touches. In Saint-Paul, buildings are perhaps more distinctive than in the Luberon. On the other hand, renovations cannot compete with their counterparts in the Luberon, as enthusiasm for “département 26” is a much more recent phenomenon.