Property

It Uzës potential

By Anthea Masey

Evening Standard

Homes & Property

9 April 2003

In less than three years, Sally Doyle from Kennington has transformed a semi-renovated house in a tiny hamlet close to UzËs in the south of France into a stylish holiday home. Sally came to the area when it was still cheap and not yet "on the map". The house cost her £33,000, including agent's commission, and she has spent about the same amount doing it up. "Friends recommended the area, and I fell in love with Uzës as soon as I saw it," says Sally. "It gets a lot of tourists in the summer, but for the rest of the year it is very French."

French-speaking Sally found a reliable builder, Thierry Evrard, who has been working on her home ever since. "I could see the house had potential, but I had to undo a lot of previous work," she says. "I moved the kitchen from the first floor to the ground floor and created a terrace with a small pool leading out from the kitchen. The sitting room is now the whole of the first floor and has lovely views over the surrounding countryside."

Sally, an artist and script reader, is able to work anywhere, and adds: "I'm fortunate to own this place. I hope to spend half my time here - it provides me with the perfect balance of town and country."

It has proved a good investment, too. House prices have risen sharply in the area since she bought. Cheap flights to Nimes and a TGV link from Paris have made it much more accessible.

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