Alpine Angels Property Blog

Political instability in Italy and growing concerns over the rising price of Italian debt has weakened the euro today. Currently GBP/EUR is trading at its highest level since January this year.

This is good opportunity for buyers of the euro to purchase at significant highs ahead of the Bank of England MPC meeting tomorrow. An announcement of further QE from the BOE could bring levels back down again.

Please contact Alpine Angels on 01225 442128 and we can ask our partners Currencies Direct to get the best deal for you.

On 8^th September 2011 the French government changed the law regarding Capital Gains Tax on secondary residences. Prior to the change capital gains tax liability would slowly decrease after 5 years of property ownership, 10% each year, for 10 years at which point, the 15^th year onwards, the property became exempt from capital gains when it came to be sold.

This timeframe has increased to 30 years

- There will now be no deduction under 5 years of ownership

- There will be an allowance of 2% for each year of property ownership beyond the 5^th year

(between 6 and 17 years)

- An allowance of 4% for each year of ownership beyond the 17^th year (between 18 and 24 years)

- An allowance of 18% for each year of ownership beyond the 24^th year (25 to 30 years)

- After 30 years of ownership, the sale of the property will be exempt from payment of capital gains tax

To avoid being affected by the change in tax laws it is recommended that property owners sign an agreement to sell during the month of November 2011. They would need to sell their property and have the Compromis de Vente signed by February 2012.

Example:

Mr Scott purchased a property on 1st April 1998, an apartment for 400,000 euros.
He now wants to sell it for 1 million euros.

For more information contact your accountant or solicitor. For a valuation on your French property contact Alpine Angels.

Each year, as we edge closer to the winter months, Alpine Angels begin wondering what the weather will bring this winter. Will there be a bumper snowfall or the challenge of last season’s tropical winter climate? So who is the best person to ask?

Over the years we’ve heard an eclectic mix of old wives tales professing to predict the weather.  Here is a selection of our favourites: some tried and tested, and wholly questionable methods of snow prediction:

Watch your wasps – the more wasps buzzing around in summer the snowier the winter

August is telling - if the first week in August is unusually warm the coming winter will be snowy and long

Know your onions – if your onion skins are very thin a mild winter is coming. If the onion skins are thick and tough, the coming winter will be cold and rough…

Talk to the animals (or at least watch them) as they behold many an important message:
- lots of wool on the sheep means a hard winter
- if you find lots of field mice in summer then winter will be snowy
- if your squirrels’ tails are extra bushy then snow’s a comin
- Squirrels Part II – if they gather their nuts in a flurry snow will gather in a hurry

Noisy November – if it thunders in November expect snow 10 days later

Check out a local caterpillar – some people believe that the wider the brown part of a caterpillar, the colder the winter. Others believe the wider the black part, the colder the weather. We thought caterpillars were green …

And last but not least …

Obtain the breastbone of a recently deceased local goose – Yes you read correctly. The length of the breastbone indicates the length of the coming winter while the colour of the breastbone indicates its severity. A plain white breastbone means a mild winter. A mottled breastbone means a severe winter. The more mottled the more severe.

Should a goose’s breastbone be hard to come by fear not, observe the moss growing on a local tree. The more moss on the south side of the tree, the harder the coming winter. While you are there you could also check out what the squirrels are doing, count the field mice, and see if the caterpillars are wide and brown …

So, now you have all the tools for prediction, the accoutrement of the Alps. Pick your favourite, make a note of the number of thunderstorms or wasps or mice and let us know if your old wives tale really works. And for those of you with a positive disposition, who assume there will be heaps of snow this winter, make sure you have a lovely Alpine retreat to warm yourself after your days on the mountain. All our currently available Alpine Property can be found here – www. alpineangels.net

One of our clients, Philippa Langrish,  who bought through Alpine Angels several years ago, has recently launched a great new venture in Morzine called Creative Kids Morzine

If your little ones are too small for adult mountain activities, they want a break from the cold or you want a break from them then Creative Kids Morzine offers a brilliant alternative to traditional childcare.

Creative Kids provide creative workshops for children aged between 3 – 14 years old all in the comfort of your own chalet. Combining childcare with imaginative arts and crafts workshops both indoors and outside, this truly is a fantastic and inspiring alternative to childcare and nanny services.

Creative Kids Morzine offer either two hour or half day workshops including activities such as outdoor photography, making hot air balloon sculptures, puppet making and show, or even making dream-catchers. The spectacular alpine surroundings of Morzine offer the perfect backdrop to inspire children’s imaginations so whether it be an antidote to a rainy mountain day, or simply a wonderful creative alternative for your holiday give Creative Kids Morzine a call.

They are currently running Saturday morning workshops for local and visiting children of Morzine.

For more information go to – http://creativekidsmorzine.com/

Some train for years to develop it. Others buy expensive equipment to create it. I think you are born with it. Whatever the case, the perfect picture for most of us is as illusive as a mountain tiger. Not so for Jacquie Cutler.

In 2006 Jacquie moved to the Alpine village of Morzine to fulfil her joint passions of skiing and photography. Initially she specialised in action portraits for skiers and natural portraits. But over the years Jacquie has captured some truly unique and beautiful images in and around the Alps. She is now a familiar sight at weddings and local events, frequently asked to capture someone’s special day. Canvasses of her photographs adorn the walls of most local businesses, and Chalet companies call upon her to take those all important shots of their Ski Chalets (the ones that entice you to look more closely booking a two week catered ski holiday before you can say ‘cheese’).
Throughout her success Jacquie has remained as accessible as ever feeling that no job is too big, or, too small. To see more details of her work and get in touch go to -

http://www.jcutlerphotography.co.uk/home/

Catharine is the founder of Alpine Angels and the first ever Alpine Angel. She has owned a chalet in the French Alps for over 9 years and set up Alpine Angels back in 2003.  The family moved to the village of Morzine when their three children were aged 5,8 and 10.

“We moved to the Alps initially for a one year “interlude” but soon realised we wanted to stay longer.  We felt it was a perfect place for our children to spend some of their childhood. We liked the fact that outdoor sport and activities interested the kids here more than TV and computers – that’s what we wanted for our children. We spent three years in the Alps as a family before moving back to Bath”
Catharine set up Alpine Angels because she wanted to establish an independent and honest property company to help clients through the complexities of purchasing abroad. For Catharine, client recommendation and an impeccable reputation became the foundations of Alpine Angels.
“Setting up Alpine Angels was a logical development for me. We could definitely have done with more help when we first arrived in France as a family, so it seemed a good idea to set up a company that could help people through all the different stages, from initially finding a property to buy, to helping them with all the steps involved in completing the purchase, to helping with all other necessary stages from setting up bank accounts, applying for mortgages, organising builders and decorators, finding schools. One day I found myself sat in the Morzine branch of Credit Agricole helping an American couple open a bank account and arrange house insurance for their newly purchased home and the woman turned to me and said ‘It’s like having a Guardian Angel with us’ And so it began… !”

Catharine and her family have continued to spend much of their time in their chalet in Les Gets.

“We have all developed a love of the mountains and enjoy lots of family holidays in our chalet in Les Gets, summer and winter – Now that the boys are at an age that they are travelling on their own and with their friends the chalet in the Alps is the place where we all love to gather – they never say no to the suggestion of a holiday in Les Gets!”

So what would Catharine’s top tips be for a family moving to the French Alps?

1.      No more school catchments areas! If you move to France you won’t need to spend lots of time worrying about choosing the right Primary school for your children. In France all the schools are a very similar standard, which leaves you free to think of other priorities when choosing a place to live

2.      Prepare yourself for a more laid back approach to life. Shopkeepers in France take their time and like to chat to customers. Don’t expect to be served quickly and remember that the French quality of life is probably one of the reasons you have chosen to move there. So embrace it!

3.      Take French lessons. Any and all efforts to speak French are really worthwhile and appreciated by people living here

To speak with Catharine regarding her experience in the Alps or for help beginning your Alpine journey call +44 1225 442128

They say that Brits are pet crazy. We buy our pets clothes. We send them to the hairdresser. We feed them organic chicken before putting them to bed in bespoke baskets to the sounds of whale music. OK, so maybe you haven’t gone that far but many of us like to take our pets on holiday with us. A two week trek across the Alps is so much better with your dog running alongside you. Why shouldn’t your pet cat come with you when you pop to your parents in the Italian lakes?

Thankfully as of the 1st January 2012 the UK Government will be introducing new rules making it easier for you to travel with your pet. Under the new arrangements all pet dogs, cats and ferrets from the EU can enter or re-enter the UK without quarantine as long as you adhere to certain rules concerning your pet passport.

A pet passport is a way of allowing your pet to travel between certain qualifying countries (mainly within the EU) as often as you please during the life of the passport. With a valid pet passport you can avoid export certificates and quarantine.   All that is required is an identity-chip and a rabies vaccination. You are then issued with a passport 21 days after the vaccination and you and your pet can go, and come back again, and go again and come back again …

Steps involved in getting a pet passport:
Day 1 - An identity-chip** is inserted (if required) and the first rabies vaccine given.
Day 14 - The second rabies vaccination is given*.
Day 21 - You are free to travel between participating countries.
(*Please note that although the second rabies vaccination is not an absolute requirement it is highly recommended it)

(** If your pet already has an identity-chip the vet will simply check the chip at each stage of the above process)

For more information go to www.defra.gov.uk/pets

Happy Holidays!

The Swiss Franc just keeps making headlines; never more so than when the Swiss National Bank set a ceiling on the value of its currency. The Swiss Franc had skyrocketed this year as traders worldwide searched for a safe haven from volatile markets. The Swiss National Bank said it would spend whatever necessary to keep the Swiss franc from strengthening beyond 1.20 francs per euro. The markets temporarily bounced back. The Swiss got in their cars and headed for France.

Swiss number plates have always been a familiar sight in the French Alps. Once upon a time they were going on holiday. Now they are going shopping. They are crossing the border to buy their groceries from French supermarkets. Then they are heading to French estate agents and buying up French property. A combination of the strength of the Swiss Franc and the cost of living in Switzerland has pushed the Swiss residents to look outside their own country to spend their money. And Alpine property is top of their list.

Estate agents in resort such as Chamonix say that enquires from Swiss residents have nearly trebled in recent months. Property experts think that the Swiss Bank’s aggressive monetary policy will further intensify this Swiss shopping spree. As foreigners are buying up assets in Switzerland the Swiss are buying assets abroad. Countless Geneva residents are selling up then buying property just across the French border. With the demand for French Alpine property growing perhaps mountain top chalets are the new gold? The affect of this shift on purchase prices of alpine property is yet to be seen. Is it the moment to sell your French chalet? Should you be buying another Alpine property before the Swiss? Why not contact the office to find out what the Alpine Angels are up to during this Swiss invasion.

A little out of our region but well worth a visit, British sculptor Antony Gormley has created 100 life-size human figures and installed them high up in the Austrian Alps.

The project, put together by the Kunsthaus Bregenz Museum, will see the figures dotted across the dramatic alpine landscape near the ski resort of Lech. They will be left there for two years exposed to the sun, wind, rain and snow. The cast iron figures stand at 2039 meters above sea level and gaze out over the mountain peaks. The Austrian Army, mountain rescue and helicopters were all involved in moving the sculptures. Gormley wants the sculptures to make us question how humans fit into our natural landscape and the natural world and how sustainable our future is.

Art in Alpine locations is becoming more and more common. In 2010 Serre Chevalier had art installations created at the side of its pistes, allowing skiers to literally ski through an exhibition. And Megeve has long since been known for its impressive arts and cultural programme.