A British couple have revealed how they clubbed together with grandparents to buy an entire French hamlet – so three generations of their family could live the expat dream together.
During the pandemic, Liz and Dave Murphy decided to accelerate their vague retirement plans of moving to France and swap their Manchester semi for six houses and two barns on three acres of land in a rural part of Poitou-Charentes, in west-central France.
Liz, 49, tells the Daily Mail that time off during the Covid outbreak offered some much-needed clarity on the fast pace of their lives at the time.
She said: ‘Both Dave and I were working full-time in radio, the kids, then 5 and 9, were in school, and we were taking them to before-school clubs and after-school clubs because of work.
‘And then Covid hit and we were furloughed. We realised we were missing out on so much with the kids growing up.’
Liz says Dave had always been keen on the idea of moving to France but during a lockdown BBQ at their family home in April 2020, they made the decision to go for it – but the prospect of being separated from family was one major sticking point.
Et bonjour! A conversation during lockdown saw the Murphy family, pictured, decide to stop daydreaming about a new life in France – and make it happen
Count us in! Liz’s mum Helen, 77, and step-dad Terry, 76, agreed to make the move to France six years ago – and told the Daily Mail: ‘It’s been lovely being so close to family’
‘We couldn’t invite all of our grandparents but my mum and my step-dad had always talked about moving to France – my mum, in particular, was a real Francophile. We decided to broach the subject and see whether they’d be interested.’
Not only would it increase the family’s budget of what they could afford in France, but it would also, says Liz, ‘be fantastic for our kids to have the grandparents so close, because we lived in different cities.’
After asking the question of her mum, Helen, 77, and step-dad Terry, 76, who lived in Nottingham at the time, the couple let the idea sink in.
Says Liz: ‘We left it with them for a week or so, and then they rang us back, saying: “We’re in, let’s do it”.’
Terry admits the couple were ‘completely surprised at first’, saying the offer ‘came out of the blue’.
He adds: ‘After a bit of thought, we said: “Why not go for one more adventure?” We’ve always loved France and it sounded like a very appealing idea.’
How did the kids feel about leaving their friends behind?
‘The kids were really excited. It was just a new adventure, like an extended holiday. We wanted to give them the opportunity to be able to speak two languages.’
By January 2021, they’d swapped their semi-detached home, worth around £400,000, for the entire hamlet of Lac De Maison, with enough property for both themselves, Helen and Terry, and plenty left over to run as holiday lets.
Fate though, threw the expats a curveball, as Helen, previously in good health, was diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease just as the family were settling into their new lives.
The hamlet the family bought, including six houses and two barns, in Poitou-Charentes, in west-central France
‘Within a couple of months of being here, my mum’s health massively deteriorated but one of the amazing things about France is the healthcare – it’s absolutely amazing.’
Liz says she had a frank conversation with her mum about whether the family should return home but says the older couple ‘were really adamant’ that their new lives continued ’till whatever happens.’
The original plan was that both couples would help with the day-to-day running of the holiday lets business but that has fallen more to Liz and Dave as the years have progressed.
‘Dave and I do a lot of it but to be honest, it doesn’t really matter. What is lovely is having them here. For our kids to grow up with them has been amazing.’
The family have been in Lac De Maison for six years but have just put the property on the market.
‘We don’t want to leave France, we love France but we need somewhere that’s easier for mum to get to hospital appointments, and somewhere to live that’s a bit more accessible because we’re an old farm building, so it’s not really ideal with her limited mobility.’
Living right next door to her mum and step-dad has actually been a blessing considering Helen’s health trials.
Says Liz: ‘It worked out better that they’d come with us. Had we not brought them with us, and they were in England, my brother lives down in London, they were in Nottingham and my other sister lives in Bulgaria…we would, I think, have felt very pressured about getting back to England.’
With Helen’s health issues, the family are now moving closer to healthcare facilities, but say they have no plans to move back to England after six years across the Channel
The children have flourished, she says. Both now speak French so well, nobody knows they’re English…until they meet their parents.
‘Their school assigned a child for each child to look after them and help them, and they were so welcoming and so lovely, and within six months, the kids were jabbering away in French.’
The region the family are in is rural but with a ‘big, bustling village’ close by – with plenty of English speakers nearby. While Liz and Dave aren’t fluent in French – yet – the couple say they make the effort to converse in the native language.
‘The French are really family-orientated so everywhere you go, restaurants or activities are all about the whole family. You go as an ensemble, which is lovely, and it’s allowed our kids to have a bit more of a longer childhood, if that makes sense.
‘Being here doesn’t feel that remote, because it’s only a five-minute drive, or a 15-minute bike ride, to the village and in the summer, it’s so lovely, because you’ve got hardly any cars on the road, it’s really safe for the kids.’
Liz hopes another family will snap up the ‘ready to go’ holiday homes that they’ve created; there’s three properties – sleeping 20, a heated pool, football pitch and a trio of goats to hang out with.
Would she recommend others move three generations at once? Yes, as long as you factor in privacy.
‘Because we’ve got separate houses, you can go a couple of days without seeing each other, or you could just pop over if you need a spare egg or whatever.
‘It’s as much as we all want it to be. If they need us, we’re there. If they want their privacy, or we want our privacy, we’ve got it.
‘Having my mum on the doorstep, especially with her health diagnosis, it’s lovely to know I can be involved with the care and or just pop over for a cup of tea and have a chat. I’m glad I’ve got that opportunity.’
Last word to mum about her later life move ‘au continent’? Helen tells the Daily Mail: ‘It’s lovely being so close to family and being able to help with school lifts and things like that.
‘What I’ve really liked is the wonderful peace and quiet of the countryside – and the birdlife. It’s beautiful.’
Source link
CHECK OUT: Top Travel Destinations
READ MORE: Travel News
