I would like to find a place in Spain, (or perhaps the left bottom
corner of France) to purchase a second /holiday home.

I am in my thirties so would want access to a fairly lively area
whether by buying there or rurally nearby and also be able to drive
fairly easily to a decent ski resort so I could vacation there in
winter and in summer. Somewhere to go in summer for a tan and a lively
happening place and somewhere to go in winter for access to a Ski
area.
I looked on the Internet at Sierra Nevada but wonder if the France
/Spain border with access to the Pyrenees might not be a better mix. A
friend suggested Perpignan which sounded interesting.

I would want to live in a small to moderate size apartment that I
could leave safely unoccupied as I would not be there most of the year
and could perhaps rent out at other times. In fact I would like it as
an investment so would be looking to buy in an “up and coming area”
with a lot of liveliness such as a University town or  a lot of
character or both. I would want the facilities of good supermarkets
fairly nearby and internet access, preferably broadband.

I want the moon on a stick of course so how would I get the balance
right?
I am most interested initially in finding the area that fits the bill
best for these requirements in order to start my adventure then
finding the agents that would most help my quest to identify actual
properties.

Drydoc –

The two keywords for this project are "skiing" and "beach" – or more
appropriately "ski de fond" et "plage."

I'm going to outline the options in France (rather than across the
Spanish border) for several reasons:
1.	transportation is generally better.  There are more options and
less travel involved if you're coming from the U.S.  If you're in the
U.K., it's still probably more convenient to travel through Bordeaux,
Toulouse, Montpellier or Nice than Barcelona or Madrid.
2.	leisure travel is well-developed all along the French Mediterranean
and even in southwest France around Biarritz.
3.	high-speed communications technology is generally more-widely
available in French towns than in Spain.

The most beautiful and most-developed of the likely areas in France is
the area from Cannes to the Principality of Monaco, along the Cote
d'Azur.  The area is centered around Nice, which has good access via
an airport.  However, it is remote from the French ski areas of the
Alps, with the major expressways taking you west at least 75 miles
through Aix-en-Provence, then about 150 miles north to Grenoble, the
east for another hour into the ski areas.

The prime advantages of the Cote d'Azur would be well-developed
services; popular area; excellent museums; nightlife galore; easy
access to Italy; excellent beaches.  The prime negatives would be
distance from skiing and high cost of real estate.  Nor is it a
particularly good "university environment" and can be crowded during
holiday seasons.

A quick introduction to Nice comes from the Nice Office of Tourism and
Conventions:
http://www.nicetourism.com/GB/som.html

Another excellent way to look at each of these areas would be travel
guides such as Dorling-Kindersley's "France," which has excellent
regional guides and descriptions of neighboring towns.  I particularly
like the D-K travel guides because of the abundance of pictures and
maps.

Your friend's suggestion of the area around Perpignan is a good one. 
Though this part of the Mediterranean is less developed than the area
around Nice, in the past 20 years it has become increasingly popular
for its warmth, history and beaches.  Andorra is about 75 miles from
Perpignan and has 5 downhill ski areas (and one cross country area). 
However, the roads from Perpignan are smaller departmental roads, not
freeways.  And Andorra's tax-free status makes it a shopping haven in
summer and winter, so the roads can be jammed.

Here's an excellent guide to Pyrenees ski stations, and note that
there are closer downhill ski areas to Perpignan than the large
concentration at Andorra.  In particular Saillagouse is about 30 miles
closer.  If your French is weak, you can use Google's translation page
to get an English version:
Pyrenees Online
"Stations de ski"
http://www.pyrenees-online.fr/stations/

The prime advantage of Perpignan would be less expensive; it's the
home of the University of Perpignan; the Languedoc-Roussillon area of
France has a nice combination of rural and urban environments; and
it's a very historic area.

Centre Universitaire d'Etudes Francaises
http://www.cuefp.com/annuel_gb/ca.htm

Its prime disadvantages: more remote, being about 100 miles from the
regional airport at Montpellier; lack of the lively nightlife of the
Cote d'Azur.   That noted, the Irish airline Ryan Air does serve the
Perpignan Airport and has this excellent summary of skiing in the
area:
Ryan Air
"Ski Andorra" (undated)
http://www.ryanair.com/skiandorra.html

Office of Tourism, Perpignan
http://www.perpignantourisme.com/

Yet a third option would be southwest France, around Biarritz, which
is served by the international airport at Bordeaux.

The beaches are not as well-known as the Mediterranean and it is much
more remote; nor is it a university town.  In fact, about 25% of the
town's population is retired.  However, it is a well-established
tourism area and has access to the western Pyrenees (Pyrenees
Atlantiques).  Ski areas like Iraty are as less than 50 miles from
Biarritz.  The areas going east into the mountains and the Parc
National des Pyrenees, including Pau and Lourdes, have an outdoor feel
similar to the western states of the U.S.

The Biarritz tourism page has an excellent introduction in French;
unfortunately the English version is plagued by dead links:
Biarritz Tourism
http://www.biarritz.tm.fr/FRANCAIS/cadre_accueil.htm

Google search strategy:
Pyrenees + ski
Nice + tourism
Biarritz + Pyrenees + ski
Perpignan + university

The question of high-speed Internet access is one for which you should
consult with a real-estate broker.  However, access to excellent
markets and food is never a problem anywhere in France.

Good luck with the choice – it sounds like fun exploring the options! 
If any of this is unclear or you need assistance with translating the
French pages, please let me know before rating this answer.

Best regards,

Omnivorous-GA

---

Request for Answer Clarification by drydoc-ga on 27 Dec 2002 14:12 PST

Thanks for the answer. I am coming from the UK by the way.
Is the Spanish side not really much of an option? Do we think the
Sierra Nevada option is a little lame? Barcelona (easy to fly to) is
one of the world’s greatest cities. Is there no town as nice as
Perpignan looks to be between the Pyrenees and there ?  I prefer the
Spanish language and am looking for an excuse to learn it. (Although
the only language I have any schoolboy familiarity with is French).
The women in either place are equally attractive so I can compromise
on that point (!). Do you know what areas in this part of the world
lean more to being bilingual in French and Spanish?

Price of property (real estate as our American cousins say) is going
to be key as well. I think I have already written off the Cote D’Azur
for this reason. We can forget Nice etc which I have always found
overpriced even for a Coke on the beach so I dare not look for an
abode. The Internet access is a minor issue I just mentioned for
completeness but I take your point on the better French transportation
aspect of “communications”. A remote town with a train station would
even be an option. Perpignan  looks to be closest to my needs at the
moment apart from being in my second choice of country. Your Biarritz
suggestion was interesting but I think I am a Med guy!

For a complete answer I really need advice on where to start with
purchasing property and the best agents for doing this as I am looking
for an area which will grow in the next ten years. Where can I start
to look at properties and prices?

---

Clarification of Answer by omnivorous-ga on 27 Dec 2002 16:55 PST

Drydoc –

Predicting growth areas can be very tough, though something on the
outer edge of Barcelona's metro area is probably a more reliable bet
if for no other reason than population.

Though my daughter's godfather is the assistant consul for the Spanish
Consulate in Chicago, I recommended the three French areas mentioned
in the original answer because of personal travels there.  Please
recognize that whether you're learning Spanish in the northeastern
corner or French in the Roussillon, you'll be picking up some strong
local accent-ahs!

I'm going provide some links for real estate BETWEEN Barcelona and
Perpignan, and also recommend that you talk with a U.K.-based agent
about recommendations.  The Internet is useful for some things, but
you can't beat the personal experience with banks, closing agents, and
laws that a good agent near you will have.  And you may wish to use
them at some point to arrange rentals.

For France, there are several portals with groups of "immobiliers" or
real estate agents:
Portail-du-Roussillon.com
http://top.mylinea.com/conflent/

Agence Immobiliere Perpignan
http://www.acabat.com/tourisme/villages/perpignan.asp

Agence Les Orangers
http://www.odv.com/les_orangers/

For the Spanish side, I've put in a call to my Spanish friend to see
which town or two along that coast would be good to concentrate on. 
I'll include them in a further clarification note later this weekend.

Happy house hunting!

Best regards,

Omnivorous-GA

---

Clarification of Answer by omnivorous-ga on 01 Jan 2003 17:13 PST

Drydoc --

I've heard back from my Spanish friend about the Costa Brava area
north of Barcelona.  And in doing a search for "real estate" and
"Costa Brava," Google turns up an excellent directory of real estate
agents in the 2nd link.  I haven't placed it here because the link is
long and gets truncated.  However, if you enter the following
(including quotation marks) you'll get an excellent directory of
'propriedades immobiliarias' -- but in English:
"Costa Brava" + "real estate"

As it turns out, you can also get an excellent directory in English
for:
"Perpignan" + "real estate"

My Spanish friend recommended Tossa de Mar for the fine beaches in the
area, though Roses and La Escala (on the Golfe de Roses would put you
closer to the border and the mountains).

Best regards,

Omnivorous-GA

---

Clarification of Answer by omnivorous-ga on 27 Jan 2003 05:08 PST

Hello again Drydoc --

What should show up in the mail this weekend but a package from the
Spanish government's Tourist office.  Included are three small guides
to:
*  Barcelona
*  Catalonia
*  Costa Brava (Girona)

You may wish to contact the Spanish Tourist Office in London to
request copies.  They are well-illustrated and contain detailed local
maps.  My Chicago friend also sent along a variety of other
information, including a guide to hotels, camping and apartments in
Girona.

The London contacts are:
44207 486 80 77
Fax: 44207 486 80 34
londres@tourspain.es

Best regards,

Omnivorous-GA

Thanks for your ongoing updates - food (tapas) for thought...

On a side note, the skiing is much better in the Alpes. You should go
skiing in the Pyrennees before you buy anything down there.

Thought I'd add a comment to Omnivorous' good advice, based on
personal experience of north-eastern Spain, i.e. Catalonia
(Catalunya), in summertime. (Sorry - no knowledge of local skiing!)

You ask "Is there no town as nice as Perpignan looks to be between the
Pyrenees and there [Barcelona]?"
Not really. You'll find beautiful countryside, charming villages,
small mediaeval towns, monasteries etc. - but city life is in short
supply. You should also check routes from coast to mountains as some
roads are very slow - steep, winding and/or single-lane traffic.
  
"I prefer the Spanish language and am looking for an excuse to learn
it."
Catalan is the main language of north-eastern Spain and some public
notices and documents are published in Catalan only. Of course, most
people speak fluent Spanish too, but there is a widespread pride in
all things Catalan. For example, see this official website:

http://www.gencat.es/catalunya/turisme/webs/index_eng.htm

Good luck with finding the right place for you!

Hello again.
My previous comment was too hastily written and may be slightly
misleading. I didn't mean to imply there are no substantial towns
between the mountains and Barcelona. It's just that, in my opinion,
they are unlikely to meet your criteria of being "as nice as
Perpignan" with "lively nightlife".
Leli