September in Mazamet. A House of Substance

Thank goodness for September, the cool nights are back. This month and October are some of the best months in Mazamet. Lovely sunny days punctuated by cooling rains. Skies that could make the career of any painter or photographer — and the summer buzz is mostly over leaving the parking places and streets free for those of us who live here.

A beautiful 19th Century house has come on the market one block down from us. It’s one of my absolute favourites in town. We’ve had the great pleasure of being invited there by the incredibly lovely couple who owns it. Sadly, the mistress of the house passed away three months ago and her husband prefers to move. She was by far one of the most stylish women in town. Everything about her screamed good taste, and the kind with wit — by no means a copy of what one sees in magazines. She had her own voice, the house reflects that.

Of the grand houses in Mazamet, it’s one of the more compact, which makes upkeep all that much easier. It’s about 25% smaller than number 42. The great thing about it apart from manageability, is the beautiful garden, about the same size as ours.

They’ve modernised everything from adding new bathrooms and kitchen installations to a new slate roof, so the only changes one would have to make are adapting it to a person’s own decorative style. From the pictures you can probably tell that as a canvas the house allows you to go as classic or as modern as you choose.

The only note I’d make is the owner is a notary so he knows exactly how much houses sell for in the area so he won’t be swayed by low offers.

The agency in charge is Agence Mercure in Toulouse and the full description and pictures can be seen here in Le Figaro. The price is 890k EU which is about one million fifty thousand US dollars.