Have You Ever Thought of Living in France?
Gensac · Bordeaux · Saint-Émilion
A rare opportunity.
A very well-maintained home 20 minutes to Saint-Émilion — yours to share with just two other families.
A New Way to Own in France
Not a Holiday. Your Actual Life in France.
This isn't another Airbnb or a holiday let. It's a very well-maintained home in one of France's most beloved wine regions — and you can spend several months here each year without carrying the cost or responsibility of owning it alone. We're looking for just two couples who've asked themselves the same question: why not actually do it?
Where You'll Be
Why Gensac?
A charming, tranquil village perfectly placed near Bergerac and Bordeaux — home to a welcoming English-speaking community, alongside true French locals.
Cafés, restaurants, a pharmacy, the boulangerie and a tennis court are all a short walk away.
In the Village
Everything Within a Short Walk
Gensac is small, but it isn’t sleepy — the square has a bar, a brasserie and a tabac, and lunch rarely troubles a €20 note.
Three courses. Melon and jambon, rôti de faux-filet de bœuf, seasonal vegetables, dessert of your choice.
Restaurant, brasserie and bar.
Bar-bistrot, with tables out on the square.
Tabac, presse and loto.
The village supermarket, for everything between market days.
Pharmacy, parapharmacie and medical supplies.
The village health centre — GPs, nurses, physio and more, with an English-speaking doctor.
The village town hall, tricolore flying on the square.
The old village butcher and grocer — no longer open.
The Property
The House
A warm, welcoming home designed for long, comfortable stays.
Four Bedrooms
Three king-size bedrooms, plus a flexible fourth room — comfortable for up to eight.
A Pool That's Always Ready
Professionally serviced and waiting for you the moment you arrive — no set-up, no maintenance to think about.
A Kitchen for Slow Mornings
A Siemens oven, induction cooktop, Siemens dishwasher, a large fridge freezer and a well-stocked pantry. Every utensil you could need is already here — right down to the air fryer and the Weber for lazy weekend barbecues.
The Wine Cellar
A cool, quiet spot for the Bordeaux you'll bring home from the vineyards next door.
The View from Bed 2
Open the shutters in the second bedroom and this is what's waiting — the pool below, terracotta rooftops, and the church spire above the trees.
Secure Parking
A recently built garage on site — somewhere safe to leave a car between visits, with room for the bikes and the pétanque set too.
The Unglamorous Essentials
De Dietrich central heating with an oil burner keeps the whole house warm through the cooler months, and there's an LG washing machine and an Electrolux dryer for everyday use — so a long stay works like living, not camping.
- 4 Bedrooms
- Private Pool
- Wine Cellar
- Chef's Kitchen
- Gardens & Veg Patch
- Garage
- Fully Furnished
- Fibre Wifi
- English TV
- Linen Included
- Tennis Rackets
- Golf Clubs
- Pétanque Set
- His & Hers Bicycles
- E-Scooter
- Central Heating
- Washer & Dryer
The Lifestyle
Imagine Arriving Home
Not a hotel check-in. Just the shutters, opening onto your own morning.
Wake to Church Bells
Open the shutters to morning light and the sound of the village waking up around you.
Walk to the Boulangerie
Fresh croissants, a coffee, and absolutely no rush to be anywhere else.
A Morning Ritual
Breakfast in the Courtyard
Coffee on the terrace, roses climbing the old stone wall, and the crape myrtle in full bloom overhead. Some mornings, there's nowhere else you'd rather be.
An Afternoon Beside the Pool
Or at a nearby vineyard, for a long lunch in the sun with a glass of something local.
Dinner in Saint-Émilion
Good food, better wine, and friends who feel like family by the end of the evening.
You don't have to leave in a few days. This is what it feels like to actually live here.
How It Works
Simple, Shared Ownership
Owning a home overseas can be expensive and complicated. Splitting it three ways isn't. Each owner holds a near-equal share with exclusive use during their allocated time and a house that's properly looked after all year round.
One-Third Ownership
Purchase a one-third share — alongside two other couples who'll love this place as much as we do.
Three Months, Every Year
Each owner takes a three-month stay each year, booked in advance. The blocks rotate, so the prime months come round to everyone in turn. Winter sits outside the rotation, free for any owner to use.
One Annual Contribution
Around €2,500 per owner, per year — covering everything it takes to keep the house ready for you.
How the Year Divides
Nine months, three equal blocks — one each per owner, rotating every year, so a summer comes round to everyone in turn.
| Year | Mar – MaySpring | Jun – AugSummer | Sep – NovAutumn |
|---|---|---|---|
| Year 1 | Owner A | Owner B | Owner C |
| Year 2 | Owner C | Owner A | Owner B |
| Year 3 | Owner B | Owner C | Owner A |
December – February sits outside the rotation — free for any owner to use
The Annual Fee Includes
Simply arrive with your suitcase — everything else is already taken care of.
- All French Property Taxes
- Water Rates & Sewage
- Pool Servicing & Chemicals
- Gardener
- Insurance
- General Maintenance
- Rubbish Collection
- Internet Connection
- Electricity Supply
The Structure
Owned Through an SCI
The arrangement is written down properly, so everyone knows where they stand — before anyone signs anything.
The SCI Owns the House
The property is held by a Société Civile Immobilière — a French property company created for exactly this purpose. It's the standard, well-trodden way families hold property in France.
Shares, Not Bricks
You own shares in the company rather than a specific part of the building. The three stakes are near-equal: 33%, 33% and 34%.
Costs Follow the Shares
An annual budget is agreed each year and paid into the SCI's own account, so bills are settled centrally. Contributions are proportional to shareholding.
A Reserve Fund
The SCI holds a maintenance reserve for planned works and the occasional surprise, topped up annually and reviewed by the owners together.
An Agreed Calendar
Each owner books a three-month block each year — spring, summer or autumn — rotating annually, so nobody keeps the best of the year every year. December to February sits outside the rotation, free for any owner to use.
Never Rented Out
The statutes prohibit renting or leasing to paying third parties. Your family and guests are always welcome. This is a home, not a yield.
Leaving Is Clean
If you want out, you'll need to find a prospective purchaser who is approved by the other two co-owners. If one partner is deceased, ownership reverts to the surviving partner or their beneficiary.
Big Decisions Need More Than a Majority
Selling the house, major structural work, or borrowing require a higher majority or unanimity, so nothing fundamental can be pushed through against you.
This is a plain-English summary. The formal statutes will be drafted by a French notaire — the working document below sets out the proposal in full.
A Closer Look
Gallery
Click any photo to look closer.
Beyond the Garden Gate
The Region
Everything Bordeaux wine country is known for, right on your doorstep.
Saint-Émilion Grand Cru
Bordeaux City
Local Markets
Bastille Day
14 July
Cycling Country Lanes
Atlantic Beaches
A Weekend in Spain
The Owners
Meet the Owners
We’re Kevin and Michele — and like many people, we once found ourselves asking, “What would it really be like to live in France?” Instead of wondering, we decided to find out.
Originally from Perth, Western Australia, we’ve been living in France on and off since 2014. Kevin retired from the building industry, and Michele from her career as a pharmacist. When we bought this house, it was already comfortable and liveable, but over the years we’ve renovated, upgraded appliances, redecorated, and maintained it to a standard we’re proud to call our French home.
Now, we’d love to share it with two other couples who are ready to stop dreaming and start living.
Life here has a rhythm that’s hard to describe until you experience it. Mornings often begin with a short walk to the boulangerie for croissants still warm from the oven. Lunch might be a relaxed menu du jour at one of the local restaurants, where €18–€20 still gets you a proper three-course meal. The local supermarket and tabac are just a stroll away, and everything you need is close at hand.
One of the things that surprised us most was the sense of community. The village has a lively calendar of events — Bastille Day celebrations, gourmet markets, summer concerts, brocante fairs — and the town square regularly fills with communal meals, food trucks, and music. There’s a natural blend of locals and English speakers, and it all comes together more easily than we ever expected.
Another unexpected benefit is just how accessible everything is. Within an hour, you’ll find bustling markets, great restaurants, and brocantes worth spending an afternoon exploring. And when you feel like going further, cities like Bordeaux and Bergerac make for easy day trips. This year alone, we’ve travelled to Madrid, Malta, and Corsica — a reminder of how well-connected life here can be.
And still, most evenings, it’s the simple things that stay with us — sitting on the edge of this medieval hilltop village, looking out across the valley as the light fades.
— Kevin & Michele
Who We're Looking For
- Retired or semi-retired couples, broadly 55+
- Ready to live in France for longer stretches, not just holiday stays
- Community-minded — happy to join village events and exchange everyday bonjours
- Easygoing, considerate, a team player happy in a shared home
- Hands-on — happy to fix or repair the everyday things
- A can-do attitude when something needs sorting
- Responsible — reliable with shared costs, upkeep and commitments
- Non-smokers, moderate drinkers
- Comfortable walking around the village and using stairs
- Fond of simple routines — boulangerie runs, market mornings, long lunches
- See southwest France as a base for wider European travel
- Open to using both English and French, and mixing with locals and expats
Good to Know
Frequently Asked Questions
You and two other couples hold near-equal shares in the company that owns the property — 33%, 33% and 34%. Usage is arranged through a shared calendar, and running costs are shared in proportion to those shares.
Around €2,500 per owner per year covers all French property taxes, water and sewage, electricity, internet, insurance, pool servicing and chemicals, the gardener, rubbish collection and general maintenance — so the house is ready whenever you arrive.
The year divides into three equal blocks — March to May, June to August, and September to November — and each owner takes one block a year. The blocks rotate annually, so a summer comes round to every owner once in every three years, and nobody keeps the best months for themselves. December to February sits outside the rotation and isn’t allocated to anyone — any owner is free to use it.
No — the house is fully furnished with quality linen included. Arrive with your suitcase and everything else is taken care of.
In Gensac, a quiet village in the Bordeaux wine region — about 20 minutes from Saint-Émilion and an hour from Bordeaux itself.
Send an enquiry below and we'll arrange a conversation to answer your questions and share more details about joining as an owner.
Get in Touch
Interested in Joining Us?
We're currently welcoming expressions of interest before finalising the ownership group. Tell us a little about yourselves and we'll arrange a time to talk.