Investing in a farmhouse in the sun
Are you in love with the sound of cicadas and the fragrance of lavender ? Then it’s time you also fell in love with a farmhouse in Provence. These houses speak with a distinctive local voice.
An historic farmhouse at the foot of the Dentelles de Montmirail mountains, a 19th century Provençal house with two beautiful mazets (small farm cottages) or an 18th century aristocratic fortified mansion. The Provençal term mas shares the same Latin root as maison and manoir. It is a large stone- built property whose purpose was primarily agricultural. The original owners of these farmhouses in Provence, the Camargue and the Luberon were essentially wheat and vegetable farmers. So it’s not unusual for these buildings to be surrounded by large expanses of farmland.
A Provençal mas to renovate
These farmhouses share a common feature with the fortified mansions known as bastides: they are sometimes accompanied by a hamlet with a number of other houses. So it’s not unusual to see advertisements for property sales that include a number of separate buildings, offering potential buyers many different opportunities. For example, it might be possible to connect these buildings together to create a new layout for a single large family home, or take advantage of them individually to accentuate their independence. This configuration of small houses could be ideal if you plan to rent out the main house or convert the outbuildings into gîtes.
Period appeal with contemporary comfort
Often centuries old, these Provençal farmhouses were designed to cope brilliantly with the region’s climate. Often facing south for shelter from the Mistral, most have only small window openings to keep the interior cool in summer and warm in winter. When restoring them, yielding to the temptation of enlarging the windows can have a significant impact on thermal insulation.
So the best route is to involve an architect or other expert to make sure that you successfully create a modern home with an effective heating system, roof lights and generous glazing without compromising period cachet.
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