A property guide to Gascony

Gascony is one of the best-kept secrets for property in France

The rolling hills and forests of rural Gascony, sunny weather, the endless hay-fields criss-crossed by winding roads, the rugged, earthy terroir, hearty gastronomy and proud traditions. It’s not hard to fall in love with the land of Dartagnan, Cyrano and Armagnac. When it comes to finding your dream home, however, there’s something to be said for keeping a good balance between your heart and your head, so here is a brief outline of what the region has to offer.

Gascony

The boundaries of Gascony, or French Gascogne, don’t correspond exactly to an administrative department or region. It is a historical and cultural region encompassing roughly the southwestern French départements of Landes, Gers, and Hautes-Pyrénées and parts of Pyrénées-Atlantiques, Lot-et-Garonne, Tarn-et-Garonne, Haute-Garonne, and Ariège and coextensive with the historical region of Gascony.

The main towns are Agen, Pau, Tarbes, Luchon, and Auch. Gascony can be said to stretch north as far as Bordeaux, and south to Bayonne framed by the Pyrénées to the south and the Atlantic coast to the west. As soon as you leave the towns the landscape becomes very rural and breathtakingly scenic. The region is know for its bold red wine, floc aperitif, Armagnac, cassoulet, magret de canard, fiercely independent spirit, and a friendly welcome.

Property for Sale in Gascony

Gascony is a large area (from the West Gironde to the East Tarn et Garonne and from the South Lot-et-Garonne to the North of the Hautes-Pyrénées and, of course, including the western Landes and the Gers) and therefore it is difficult to give an overall idea of property pricing in the whole territory. The Gers is a large part of Gascony that still offers great value for money and is in general more affordable than some of its neighbouring departments such as the Tarn-et-Garonne or the Lot-et-Garonne. However, even within the Gers department there are important price disparities: places such as Auch, Lectoure or Condom are more expensive in general than the south of the department where town such as Mirande or Marciac offer great value-for-money.

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Climate in Gascony

Sweet springtimes, warm summers (without the stultifying heat found further south) and short winters – the climate in Gascony is temperate, more than agreeable and conducive to encouraging fine crops of fruits and flowers from the region’s fertile soil. Expect long Indian summers but do allow for more changeable weather the further you edge towards the far south, moutainous areas towards the Pyrénées and Atlantic coastal regions.

Below are average temperatures for Gers:

Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec
5	7	9	11	15	18	21	21	19	14	9	6

Gascony travel Guide

There are several airports that provide convenient access to Gascony, including Toulouse, a little further afield to the south at Pau and Carcassonne, Bordeaux to the northwest and Bergerac a couple of hours north.

Those travelling by rail can head to Paris Austerlitz, then take one of the regular trains to Toulouse (on average 23 per day), Montauban or Auch. See Voyages SNCF to book.

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Gascony property Guide

When you define your search area for your home in Gascony it is, as always, important to identify what you intend to use the home for, and how you see yourself living in it. If you are looking to make an investment, or planning to offer tourist accomodation such as gîtes or chambre d’hôtes, your main focus may be access to transportation and the main tourist sites.  If you are planning to move year-round, your checklist will look somewhat different with schools, health services and potentially access to an area where there are jobs available. Before you buy, make sure to check out the area in the low tourist season, to see if the quieter rhythm of life would still suit you. There is not a ‘one-size-fits-all’ answer to what is the best spot to buy property, and there are always areas where you can stretch your budget to find the best value.

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Gascony Property Styles

Gascony Half-timbered House

Otherwise known as the maison landaise this type of property is mainly found in the eastern Landes department, South Gers, and North Haute-Pyrénées areas. They are a legacy of the Middle Ages and of the oustaù which was the traditional house in the area before the use of bricks – they were made of wood and wattle and daub. These properties are sought after due to their traditional feel and depending on size and location they usually range from €200,000 to €400,000.

Gascon Maison de Maître

These appeared in the mid 18th-century to provide the upper middle class with suitable housing and a bourgeois lifestyle. They were built to show off the wealth and power of its owner to the village where they are set. Most of them are separate from the road by a large courtyard and some of them come with land. Their size and elegant architecture make them the perfect type of property to transform into a B&B. Again depending on where they are located in Gascony and the size of the estate, a Maison de Maitre can typically cost between €350,000 and €650,000.

Gascony Chartreuse

These stone properties typical from the South West of France are usually one storey, long houses with a tiled roof and sometimes come with a pigeonnier which can be an outbuilding. They are typically set in the countryside. If they have their original features they will often come with large stone fireplaces and feature use of wooden beams (some of them come with a mezzanine). These very spacious properties are rare and can range from €500,000 to around €1,500,000 depending on their state of repair, size and location.

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Frequently Asked Questions about Property in Gascony

We asked the FrenchEntrée Property Services team what the most common questions were from their clients interested in property in Gascony:

If you’ve got your heart set on a French property in beautiful Gascony a phone call to the FrenchEntrée Property team is a good place to start.

If you would like some assistance discovering this area of France and would like to find out more about what the property market has to offer please don’t hesitate to give us a call at +44 (0) 1225 463752 or email us at [email protected].

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If you can’t find what you’re looking for, or don’t have time to search yourself, FrenchEntrée has a dedicated Property Team to assist you in finding your dream property. Let us know what you are looking for and we will do our best to select properties matching your requirements.