Location
Barely 60 km from the French capital. Very easy to reach via the A4 motorway, followed by the N4, just 10 km from Coulommiers, with all shops, a hospital, a train station, etc. In a hamlet of just a few houses.
The setting is rural, with an unobstructed view extending over bocage countryside, fields and meadows with a single village bell-tower in the distance.
Description
The house
This old farm building was acquired in a sorry state by the owners, who were supported and advised by a master craftsman, prior to redesigning and restoring the carcass. The roof was removed, the lintels and the rafters changed, the local, “Old France” flat, concrete tiles replaced, the quoins positioned in accordance with craftsmen’s advice, picture windows installed from floor to ceiling, making it possible to gain between 5 and 10 degrees of heat when the sun shines. The facades including the gables feature large picture windows (100 m²) giving the impression of a light-filled, glass house. Apart from the walls, the interior has been completely dismantled. The house is now sound. Floors have not yet been laid in some of the rooms. There is no stairway. Two rooms used for bedroom purposes are reached via ladders.
The ground floor
This level can be reached via several French and picture windows. It comprises a first room (former bread oven) no doubt once a kitchen. This room (23 m²) is not currently used and features two picture windows, one of which slides open. The floor has only been levelled and not finished. Another room (23 m²) has hardcore foundation, awaiting the laying of floor tiles. A ladder goes up to the floor above. Next, a room (22 m²) with hardcore foundation as flooring opens into a bedroom (12 m²), with a lime-rendered floor as well as an area housing a shower and a toilet. An immense, luminous living room features a kitchen area (89 m²). Hardcore foundation as flooring. A ladder standing in the living room goes up to the level above.
The first floor
This level, under the rafters, is intended to comprise two rooms, used as bedrooms (approx. 20 and 28 m²). Currently non-communicating, they are each reached via a ladder. The effect produced by the picture windows is reminiscent of treehouses.
Our opinion
A magical and almost surrealist house, constructed by enthusiastic people, its design reflecting a radical, ecological turning point, a return to nature with the benefit of modern techniques.
The house virtually heats itself through the copious amounts of sunlight penetrating the interior. The latter, minimalist, once again reflects a return to one’s roots, to the essential and the rejection of anything that is superfluous, a new ideal, a return to somewhat forgotten values. The current owners like it this way and have therefore left it to new owners to add their own personal touches to the premises.
Furthermore, the section of building land provides another, highly appreciable asset.
478 723 €
Fees at the Vendor’s expense
Reference 240212
Land registry surface area | 4544 m2 |
Main building surface area | 200 m2 |
Number of bedrooms | 3 |
NB: The above information is not only the result of our visit to the property; it is also based on information provided by the current owner. It is by no means comprehensive or strictly accurate especially where surface areas and construction dates are concerned. We cannot, therefore, be held liable for any misrepresentation.