The 3rd Arrondissement Takes Center Stage with the American Community

Every day I thank my lucky stars I landed by sheer chance as a resident in Paris’ most ‘movin’ and shakin’ arrondissement…the 3rd. With “Les Nuits Americaines” kicking off Friday afternoon at the Mairie, a weekend long list of cultural activities designed to explore American culture (in order to help the French understand it better!), the city hall and immediate environs take center stage.
Tuesday night, Mayor of the 3rd Pierre Aidenbaum held open the door of Chez Omar (favorite restaurant in the neighborhood) for me and friends as he was leaving where there was standing room only — Omar politely hustling out loitering diners to make room for all those waiting. (The couscous is great, but his grilled meats and fish even better!)
Later today I’ll attend a meeting at the Mairie with Paris Mayor Bertrand Delanoë and Friday I hope to have a few words with Mayor Aidenbaum during the festivities celebrating Americanism and the presidential election. My goal is to let him know how much I and the other residents, particularly the American community, appreciate all they are doing to raise our quality of life and that me and others like me would be delighted to liaison between the communities — all in the interest of building solid Franco-American relations.
Property values are rising steadily as the arrondissement is gaining in popularity and improvements are being made — such as the renovation to rue de Bretagne I’ve written you about before. No one seems to mind the big mess the sidewalks are in, knowing that by the end of November, we’ll have sidewalks double in width, 60 new trees and new elegant street lamps the entire length of the ancient street. I’m the last to voice a complaint…my apartment has tripled in value since I bought it four years ago.
When you scroll down, you’ll find lots of reasons to fall in love with the 3rd arrondissement…it starts with a complete list rental agent Pascal Fonquernie’s favorite shops (http://www.parismarais.com) and a step-by-step guided stroll through the Marais I wrote very recently for inclusion in a soon-to-be-published guidebook.
On a practical note, we’ve devised a method to help you narrow down your property needs and desires by asking yourself some very important questions. Since there is no MLS (Multiple Listing Service) in France, and thousands of agencies all after your same euro, you cannot depend on one agent to find you the property of your dreams. That’s why there are property consultants like us helping you narrow down your choices…”boutique” vs “department store” shopping.
And on a humorous note, American some-time resident of France enlightens us with her ingenious way of creating something from nothing…from discarded “cageots” on rue Montorgueil to chic French “commode.” Her tale was worth a tell — and fills us with ideas on how to make the most of just about any situation.
A bientôt,

Adrian Leeds
Editor, French Property Insider
Email: [email protected]
P.S. Before you start your search, be sure to talk with the lenders about a pre-approval for a mortgage, so that when you do find your dream home, nothing stands in your way. Visit https://adrianleeds.com/wp-content/uploads/newsletters/frenchproperty/loan to make contact with our favorite lenders.

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Volume II, Issue 42, October 14, 2004

In this issue:
* Making the Find Easier by Narrowing the Search
* Geraldine’s Shabby-Chic Short Term Solution
* Shop Till You Drop in Le Marais
* Step by Step Through Le Marais
* Currency Exchange Update
* Hot Property: Perfect Pied-à-Terres in the 3rd
* Classified Advertising:
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Narrowing Down the Search
By Adrian Leeds
Whether your heart is set on a pied-à-terre in Paris or
a stone cottage in Bretagne, your search will be more successful if you NARROW it rather than BROADEN it. Often this is no easy task, since just about every arrondissement in Paris seems so appealing and there are too many regions with too many special attractions to make a decision simple. Nonetheless, with 2500 real estate agencies in Paris alone, all vying for your property euro, if you don’t get down to the specifics, you could be visiting apartments and homes your entire lifetime, never to find the perfect fit.
To help you narrow your search, your property consultant should be able to advise you based on the answers to some simple questions. Pose them of yourself first, even before speaking to your property consultant to save time and hone your ideas. We’ve devised a way of helping you organize your needs and desires. Make note:

1. What are your investment goals? Do you want to live in it and not worry about its investment potential? Or have it generate a little income? Or a lot? And is appreciation very important to you?
2. How much cash is available to put as a down payment and pay Notaire fees? Keep in mind that most mortgages in France will make 80% available and Notaire fees can easily be as much as 10%, therefore allow 30% in cash to be safe.
3. And with mortgages and down payments in mind, what is your maximum budget? How much are you willing to pay every month?
4. What are your mortgage requirements? Do you prefer a fixed or variable rate? How many years do you have the right to borrow or what term do you wish to secure? Your age may limit what the banks are willing to do, as many loans require a maximum age of 70 to 75.
5. What areas of the city or what regions are you interested in? This may be your toughest question to answer, although prices may have a lot to help you decide, or at least eliminate areas you can’t afford. We highly recommend that you spend lots of time in all areas you are considering to know if it just plain feels right!
6. How much space do you need? How many bedrooms? How many bathrooms? Home-office space? What other kinds of rooms are important to you?
7. What type of building are you interested in? New construction? Older than 100 years? Pierre de taille? Half-timbered? Stone?
8. If you’re looking at apartments, would you like to be on one level? On two (duplex)? Have high ceilings as in a loft or atelier?
9. What level are you wanting to live on? Ground floor? Very high with lots of light and rooftop views?
10. How important is having an elevator to you?
11. Do you want to be on the street? The courtyard? A village house? A country house with lots of land?
12. Do you want to face south? West?
13. Do you care if you have privacy from your neighbors?
14. How much work are you willing to put into the apartment or home? Move-in condition? Just redecorate? Completely renovate?
15. Don’t forget to think about gas vs electric heating. And do you like parquet floors? Or tile or carpeting? Do you want a fireplace or don’t care to carry in wood? Do exposed beams make you feel warm and cozy? Do impressive views make you sing? What about a balcony or terrace? Parking? Double-paned windows? Skylights?
16. And on a very practical note, what kind of professional advice or services do you need? Legal? Tax? Banking? Architect? Contractor? Decor? Child care? Housekeeping?

If you can answer all these questions with confidence, and your property consultant fully understands your needs and desires, than you’ll have a much easier time finding the French property of your dreams much faster.
Editor’s Note: The French Property Insider team provides complete consultation and search services, including assistance getting a mortgage. We’ve helped dozens of our readers find the perfect home in France. Visit https://adrianleeds.com/wp-content/uploads/newsletters/frenchproperty/insider/propertyconsultation.html for complete information or email us at [email protected]
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How to Turn a Poorly Furnished Paris Apartment into a Financial Success…
Geraldine’s Shabby-Chic French Dresser
By Adrian Leeds
Gerladine Kaylor has been coming to France for years. She and her math professor husband have lived in several different apartments in all parts of Paris…le Marais, le Quartier Latin, the 13th arrondissement and this year…in the Sentier, just off rue Montorgueil, the oldest shopping street in Paris.
Past apartments were either glamorous or at least adequate, but for a rental of only three months, there weren’t many available. They ended up with two choices: one large apartment in Vanves (suburbs) and another in the center of Paris, but much smaller, about 30 square meters. Living outside Paris wasn’t Geraldine’s idea of Paris heaven, so they opted for a less-than-perfect space and immersion in Paris life.
The Montorgueil apartment was owned by a friend and not normally rented to outsiders, so it was inexpensive, but not outfitted as well as a professional rental apartment would be. No problem for Geraldine — she’d just buy a few things to make it feel more like home and the investment would be well worth it, particularly for a friend who would end up enjoying her purchases later.
One main item clearly missing was a dresser for her clothing. There were closets, but they were stuffed with things like Granny’s fur coat, with little space for her belongings. So, she went off to a few stores to find a dresser that would function temporarily, that wouldn’t cost a fortune, but would make her stay there more convenient. She checked out the BHV, Habitat, Conforama, Pier Import…and found that for 200 euros, she could get a junky dresser that just didn’t seem worth it.
Being a resourceful American, she pondered the problem on the way home…how could she create a make-shift dresser without forking out 200 euros? Now, if you’ve ever walked down any shopping street in Paris, you may (or may not have) noticed the lightweight wooden crates, the French call “cageots,” that are filled with today’s fresh lettuce or cabbage or other produce. They are emptied into the display bins and then piled up alongside or out front the shop. On the sides are stamped the name of the “primeur,” some with designs of cabbage or beets. Geraldine spotted them…a stack marked with the name “Daniel Behuret” — and realizing that they were just the same size as a standard dresser drawer, thought maybe one would be a good receptacle
for her favorite sweaters. She carted one home.
Just like in college days, when bricks and cinder block became make-shift bookshelves, Geraldine’s cageot could double as a dresser drawer. Once in the apartment, she realized that if she took off one slat from the side and added a few more stacked one on top of the other, she could have the perfect dresser. Sure, the “drawers” wouldn’t slide, and she’d have to reach in for every item, but it was a small price to pay for something that cost nothing and didn’t require waiting at home for the delivery men.
Back on the street she searched out more that were exactly like the first and brought home four — now she had four to stack and one to turn upside down to make a top. With the slats she removed from the sides, she tacked them to the sides to hold the cageots together. Once in place, Geraldine realized that the rough staples used to construct the cageots would be dangerous to delicate French lingerie and set out once again to find a solution.
After dinner, she and her husband went for a walk in the neighborhood and collected scrap cardboard, lots of different pieces of varying sizes and thicknesses, until they came upon a thick folded box that would be plenty and perfect for lining the bottoms of each “drawer.” Dump the scrap, haul home the box, cut to fit and voila! — a dresser was born!
But it wasn’t complete. What could she cover it with? Inside the closet, among the coats and sundry of items, Geraldine discovered a grass mat, the exact width of the “dresser.” It seemed that it had been waiting all it’s life for this very moment, when it would have a new and more exciting existence. Draped on top, held by a large geode also just gathering dust in the closet, the grass mat turned a stack of discarded cageots into a shabby-chic French dresser! Within minutes she had the drawers filled with all her favorite things.
The rewards? Well according to Geraldine, not only was it totally cost free, but she didn’t wait for the delivery men, she can leave it or move when she goes, or can put it back on the street…or she can turn it into big business where she can make a fortune in America selling shabby-chic!
Geraldine’s other shabby-chic successes include a lampshade made of tissue discarded from the packaging of a new telephone and turning cheap wire clothing hangers into precious padded coat hangers (expensive at the BHV!) by strapping on strips of new-found poly-foam.
What a great way to turn a poorly furnished short-term Paris apartment into a new business success!
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Paris Marais Shopping Guide
By Pascal Fonquernie, Creative Director of ParisMarais® Web site
http://www.parismarais.com
The Marais is Paris’ only neighborhood with shops open on Sundays. For shopaholics, this is a big plus! No one can enjoy all the treasures of the district only six days a week!
Here’s our selection of favorites — only because we love them and recommend them, not because they paid anything to be listed here…So trust our recommendations and rest assured that they are some of the best addresses in town and not the typical tourist traps.
Health and well being
Favorite Spa
Les Bains du Marais
31-33, rue des Blancs-Manteaux 75004
A Moroccan-themed Turkish bath. For 30 euros, you access the “hammam” dressed with a robe, towel, and slippers. Another 30 euros will buy you a vigorous scrubbing and massage. Call for a reservation 01-44-62-02-02 and to find out what days are reserved for men or women.
Favorite Perfume Shop
Esteban
20 rue des Francs Bourgeois
Home and body perfumes and scents for the mind. Just spend 5 minutes in the shop and you will already be relaxed !
Favorite Beauty Shop for Men
Nickel
48 rue des Francs Bourgeois
75003 Paris
01-42-77-41-10
Massage, skincare and perfume only for men, unique design and unconventional products.
Favorite Pharmacy
Pharmacie
40 rue des Francs Bourgeois
75003 Paris
Unique decor that has not changed for 300 years, but you’ll find all today’s medications to take care of you!
Favorite Flower shop
Aux Fleurs de France
15 rue de Bretagne
75003 Paris
01-44-54-08-69
Affordable and friendly…The best choice in the northern Marais.
Food
Favorite cheese shop
Jouannault
Maitre fromager affineur
39 rue de Bretagne
75003 Paris
01-42-78-52-61
Mr Jouannault is a professional like no one else…The choice of hundreds of cheese and special packaging to allow you to bring them abroad!
Favorite Tea house
Altea
41 rue Charlot
75003 Paris
Over 150 inventive kinds of tea and so many teapots to match them.
Relax in summertime is the peaceful back garden…
Favorite Coffee House
Comptoirs Richard
Rue de Bretagne
75003 Paris
Fantastic selection of ground coffee to choose.
Favorite Fruits & Vegetables Shop
Open Air Market des Enfants Rouges
Rue de Bretagne
75003 Paris
Over 20 stalls to find the best products from the countryside…Also the oldest market in Paris opened in 1615!
Favorite Wine Ddealer
Julien
50 rue Charlot
75003 Paris
Julien speaks perfect English as he’s been in the wine business in London for many years. He will advise you on what to choose with the meals you plan and will offer you a great selection of Burgundy, Bordeaux, Loire Valley and Alsatian wines…
Favorite Pâtisserie
Brocco
178 rue du Temple
75003 Paris
Some of the most sophisticated and delicious cakes in the area. Try the Arlequin or The Foret Noire or even the Fraisier…Let your diet wait!
Favorite Chocolate Maker
Jadis et Gourmande
39 Rue des archives
75004 Paris
Some of their chocolates are crafted into letters so you can write your own messages and have them packaged in a box “I love Paris,” “eat me,” “Wonderful Marais”…The choice is yours!
Favorite Honey Shop
Les Ruchers du Roy
Rue du Roi de Sicile
75004 Paris
A unique shop decicated to “grands crus” from the bees! Delicious products direct from selected French producers at top quality.
Fashion
Favorite Kid’s store
Calesta
23 rue Debelleyme
75003 Paris
01-42-72-15-59
Why kids would not deserve the best style from Paris? Check it out!
Favorite Upscale Clothing Shop
L’ Habilleur
Rue de Poitou
75003 Paris
Men’s and women’s designer clothing at discounted prices! Everyone can afford big labels at low prices there!
Favorite Teddy Bear shop (and only one in Paris)
L’Ours du Marais
18 rue Pavée
75004 Paris
01-42-77-60-43
A fantastic shop with hundreds of Teddy bears for you, your children, your friends, your parents…A wonderful flashback to childhood.
Culture
Newsstands
Agora Presse
Rue des archives
75004 Paris
All the world’s newspapers are there — a selection of the most fashionable lifestyle magazines like Wallpaper and a wide range of books in English.
Historic Bookshop
Bookshop of Bibliotheque Historique de la ville de Paris
Rue Malher
75004 Paris
The place to buy copies of old historic maps and all kinds of books about Paris history. Try to pick up one the many maps of Le Marais they have there…
Discount bookseller
Culture!
17 Rue Pavée
75004 Paris
Welcome to Ali-baba bookstore! On 4 levels, tons of books in many languages that have been taken out of the main shops because they where not the latest edition…but are still wonderful and sold at 50% off or even less. Why not bring back a book on Paris that costs less than 10 euros?
Cook Book Store
FOOD
Claude Deloffre welcomes you in her designer bookshop: All the books you need to prepare your French dinner…A lovely place that is also an art gallery set up in the magnificent Hotel De Sauroy,
58 rue Charlot
75003 paris
01-42-72-68-97
Home design
Favorite Baroque Antiques Shop
Et Caetera
Rue de Poitou
75003 Paris
The shop scenery itself is like a small museum, worth visiting…A pleasure for the eyes and a trip to the 18th-century in a minute.
Favorite Fabric Shops
Le Monde Sauvage
21 Rue de Sévigné
75004 Paris
Elegant, stylish and baroque accessories and curtains to match every kind of decor.
Dominique Picquier
10 rue Charlot
75003 Paris
Creativity at a high level to furnish your home…
Favorite Tableware and Design Shop
Bô
8 Rue St Merri,
75 004 Paris
01-42-72-84-64
Affordable and original home selections, fantastic lights and glasses…
Favorite Decoration Shop
Villa Marais
Rue des Francs Bourgeois
75004
Beautiful baroque home furniture, worth visiting.
Also a café and terrace on first floor to rest your feet.
Favorite Concept Store
Le Boudoir et sa Philosophie
18 rue Charlot
75003 Paris
01-48-04-89-79
Carla Vizzi invites you to discover the first Museum Boutique of living History. The Boudoir Philosophy is to allow us to rediscover the Art of Living in the 18th-century around the daily activities of the Boudoir and in so doing to create one’s own intimate space around oneself.
Favorite Xxth-Century Art Shop
Anne Vignal
60 rue Charlot
75003 Paris
Arts and Crafts, statues, tableware, unique pieces from the early 20’s to the 70’s and a warm welcoming from Anne, the Owner.
Favorite Christmas Shop
Comme une Etincelle
9 rue Elzevir
75003 Paris
(closed on Tuesdays )
Everything for Christmas and tableware, stylish and surprising, even for everyday or all year!
Favorite Department Store
BHV: Bazar de l’Hôtel de Ville,
On the rue de Rivoli, 75004, facing the City Hall is our favorite department store where you can find a wide choice of design for home furnishing. BHV is Paris’ biggest space for decoration and DIY on basement and level 4. Do not miss the convenient and inexpensive restaurant on 5th floor and roof terrace to overview the fantastic Renaissance Hôtel de Ville.
Editor’s Note: Pasqual Fonquernie manages nine beautiful Marais apartments for short term rental. Visit http://www.parismarais.com and please be sure to tell Pascal French Property Insider sent you.
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A Stroll Through Le Marais
By Adrian Leeds
Strolling through Le Marais is more than just the physical experience of putting one foot before the other and taking in the visual pleasures along the way. Le Marais is a miracle in itself – that it even exists in today’s Paris thanks to – at least – one very influential Frenchman – for as late as 1962 it was a slum ready for razing. André Malraux, de Gaulle’s Minister of Culture, was responsible for the passing of a bill in August of that year to safeguard certain historical sectors and protect the old centers of towns threatened by real estate promotion. Today, Le Marais is one of Paris’ chicest neighborhoods where real estate prices continue to rise substantially.
No matter what turn you take, what courtyard you venture into, what hôtel particulier you stop to admire, there is a sense of more than just the profound history, but also of the thousands of lives whose spirits live on in the Marais. I, personally hope to be one of them -as the longer I live and work here – the more attached I become to its little idiosyncrasies and distinctive personality.
About ten centuries ago, the swamps (marais) were drained by religious communities and later, by royal deed of Louis VII, Le Marais became the “kitchen” of Paris — where fresh produce was grown and sold. In the 14th-century, royal homes began to be established there and the first street was paved now called “rue Pavée.” In the 16th-century, streets were laid to cross the fields: rue des Francs-Bourgeois, Sainte Catherine (Sévigné) and Payenne. The 17th-century is considered a golden age for the Marais when Henri IV, the first of the French town planners constructed the Place des Vosges. Between the 18th and 19th-centuries, the Marais was sadly neglected and in the 20th-century, it was planned to raze all the center of the Right Bank and to widen rue de Rivoli. It wasn’t until the classified Hôtel de Vigny on rue Parc-Royal became scheduled for demolition that immediate intervention was necessary. The movement and creation of the “Association pour la Sauvegarde et la Mise en
Valeur du Paris Historique” encouraged Malraux to make a study and save Le Marais from destruction.
Le Marais consists of both the 3rd and 4th arrondissements of Paris, the 3rd being the northern part bordered by rue des Francs-Bourgeois on the south, boulevard Sebastopol on the west, boulevard St. Martin on the north and the boulevards Temple, Filles du Calvaire and Beaumarchais on the east. I live in the most northern section, a quartier called “Temple” because of its history when at one time it was a state within a state owned by the powerful order of the Knights Templar founded in the Holy Land to protect pilgrims. It is here where you can start your exploration of what I consider to be the most fascinating part of Paris. For a very in-depth historical account of the Marais and all arrondissements of Paris, I recommend having Thirza Vallois’ Around and About Paris (Volumes 1, 2 and 3) at your fingertips, but for a casual stroll to take in the spirit of the lives of which I speak, you can follow my lead to my favorite spots.
Begin at Place de la République and walk down rue du Temple, turning left onto rue du Petit-Thouars. This lovely tree-lined street leads to the Carreau du Temple, an iron structure once a marketplace and currently under renovation as “Un Espace Pour Tous” as was voted by its inhabitants — the first vote of its kind in Paris.
Turn right on rue Eugène Spuller to visit the Mairie de Troisième (town hall of the 3rd) and Square du Temple, one of Paris’ prettiest parks. Continue to the corner of rue de Bretagne, the 3rd’s main shopping street. Just there across from the Mairie at number 47 is Chez Omar, one of the neighborhood’s most popular restaurants, famous for excellent couscous and an incomparable ambiance, thanks to Omar and his jovial personality.
Turn left and continue down rue de Bretagne until you arrive at an intersection where several streets meet: rue Vieille du Temple, rue de Turenne, rue Froissart and rue des Filles du Calvaire, not hesitating to take a left or right turn down any of the narrow streets that cross: rue de Picardie, rue Charlot, rue de Saintonge and rue Debelleyme. These streets are mostly residential with a variety of uzines (factories), grossistes (wholesalers), art galleries, boutiques and craftsmen on the street level. Many of these maisons (houses) are 17th-century and 18th-century, with a smattering of pierre-de-taille (cut stone) 19th/20th-century buildings, too.
While rue Vieille du Temple is one of my favorite streets to stroll, I’ll take you right on rue de Turenne instead, heading south straight for the Place des Vosges, a few steps to the left from the corner of rue des Francs-Bourgeois. It’s not only Paris’ most elegant square, but is the city’s most expensive address. Circle it under the arcades, admire the shops, visit the House of Victor Hugo (number 6), have lunch at Ma Bourgogne (number 19), and duck into the magnificent courtyard of the Hotel Sully. It is impossible not to be enchanted.
Rue des Francs-Bourgeois is the Marais’ finest shopping street, shop after shop, in one straight stretch, always open on Sundays and always quite busy, too. Take it going west and venture up any of the streets that cross it: rue de Sévigné, rue Payenne, rue Elzévir to discover the Musée Carnavalet (23-29 rue de Sévigné) and the Musée Cognacq-Jay (8 rue Elzévir). At Place de Thorigny, where rues Elzévir and rue du Parc-Royal meet, on the left you’ll find the Musée de la Serrure (1 rue de la Perle) and straight ahead, the Musée Picasso (5 rue de Thorigny). These are all situated in magnificent 16th-century hôtel particuliers worth learning more about.
Behind the Musée Picasso sits the Jardin de l’Hôtel Salé with an entrance on rue Vieille du Temple. Turn left on rue Vieille du Temple walking south past the Hôtel de Rohan (number 87) back to rue des Francs-Bourgeois and right again to rue des Archives, turning right to visit the Archives Nationales and Musée de la Histoire de France (60 rue des Francs-Bourgeois) and the Musée de la Chasse et de la Nature (number 60).
At the corner where the museums site starts rue des Haudriettes which will take you west to rue du Temple. If you turn left, you’ll find the Musée d’Art et d’Histoire du Judaïsme in the Hôtel de Saint-Aignan at number 71 and if you take a right, then a quick left onto rue Montmorency, you will find the 15th-century house at number 51 (built 1407) of the legendary French alchemist, Nicolas Flamel, now a fine restaurant.
Circle the block to the parallel street, rue Chapon, behind the Flamel house to discover passage des Gravilliers and take it to rue des Gravilliers, a narrow street bustling with wholesalers. Just in front of you at the corner of rue des Vertus, a pedestrian street, is a 16th-century house with the classic angle of the side walls, from narrow at upper floors, usually no more than four, to wider at the first level.
Rue des Vertus will take you north to rues au Maire and Volta. These two streets constitute a small “China Town” lined with Chinese restaurants, markets and merchants. At 5 rue Volta is a Tudor house rivalling the age of the Flamel house it’s unknown as to which is actually the elder. A “Soupe Pho” restaurant occupies the street level space, and it’s known to be quite good, but my favorite Chinese restaurant there is Chez Shen at 49 rue Volta.
Chez Shen is a step from rue Beaubourg and the Conservatoire des Arts et Métiers at 60 rue Réaumur/292 rue Saint-Martin. Behind the museum, take rue Vertbois going east to pass one of Paris’ finest, funkiest (too old-world to be true!) and expensive restaurants, Chez l’Ami Louis, at number 32. Past it to the next corner, take rue Volta to the left and up the stairs through passage du Pont aux Biches to rue Meslay, the longest street in Paris of wholesales shoe sellers. Take a right to arrive back at Place de la République.
Of course, there are dozens of other streets and hundreds of other curiosities to discover along the stroll, if you have the time and wherewithal to leave no stone unturned. So, don’t hesitate a moment to take all the time you want to venture into a courtyard, visit a museum, read a historical plaque or purchase mementos in the shops. And all the while, open your heart to the hundreds of thousands who have experienced Le Marais before you, whether for a lifetime or a fleeting moment. I promise, it will never leave you, even long after you’ve left it.

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TODAY’S CURRENCY UPDATE
A service of http://www.xe.com/
Subscribe for free at: http://www.xe.com/cus/
Live mid-market rates as of 2004.10.14 06:37:16 GMT.
1 U.S. Dollar equals 0.809531 Euros (0.813536 Euros last week)
1 Euros equals 1.23528 U.S. Dollars (1.22920 Dollars last week)
1 U.K. Pound equals 1.45346 Euros (1.44875 Euros last week)
1 Euro equals 0.688014 U.K. Pounds (0.690249 Pounds last week)
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SEEKING A MORTGAGE IN FRANCE?

Let us help you secure a mortgage in France with interest rates as low as 3.35%.
Visit https://adrianleeds.com/wp-content/uploads/newsletters/frenchproperty/loan for more information
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FOR SALE: FPI HOT PROPERTY OF THE WEEK
Each week French Property Insider features a range of properties which we believe are on the market at the time of writing. These properties are featured in order to give readers a sample of what is currently available and a working example of prices being asked in various regions of France and districts of Paris.
As we are not a real estate agency, these properties do not constitute a sales listing. For those readers seriously interested in finding property in Paris or France, you can retain our services to do the whole thing for you. For more information, visit https://adrianleeds.com/wp-content/uploads/newsletters/frenchproperty/insider/propertyconsultation.html
*Paris 3rd Beaubourg, rue de Montmorency
Beautiful 2/3 rooms, 70 m2, perfect condition. Grand salon, kitchen entirely equipped, one bedroom, two possible. On the 3rd floor on the courtyard, elevator voted, quiet, double exposure, wood beams, parquet, fireplace, cellar.
Asking Price: 440,000 Euros + 2% Finder’s Fee
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*Paris 3rd Marais-Temple
60,50 m2 on the 3rd floor with American kitchen, living room, two bedrooms, bath. Sunny, recently renovated, tomette tile flooring, double-paned windows, building renovation foreseen.
Asking Price: 343,010 Euros + 2% Finder’s Fee
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*Paris 3rd rue Charlot

100m² on rue CHARLOT in a beautiful building from the 18th-century, 5 rooms, on the garden and grand courtyard, paved and flower-planted. Includes a large salon with fireplace, two bedrooms, two baths, individual gas heating, parquet flooring, sunny, quiet, perfect condition, guardian.
Asking Price 682,000 Euros + 2% Finder’s Fee.
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*Paris 3rd Architect’s Home
Exceptional architect’s apartment, quiet on a courtyard, equipped kitchen, two bedrooms, lots of cabinetry, office, bath.
Asking Price: 495,000 Euros + 2% Finder’s Fee

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PARLER PARIS APRES MIDI
EVERY SECOND TUESDAY OF THE MONTH, 3 p.m. to 5 p.m.

NEXT MEETING: Tuesday, November 9th, 2004
This is your opportunity to meet every month, often with local professionals who can answer your Working and Living in France questions. You are invited to come for drinks and share your questions and comments about what it takes to create a life here, own property and enjoy what France has to offer. It is also an opportunity to network with other Parler Paris readers.
LOCATION:
Upstairs at La Pierre du Marais
96, rue des Archives at the corner of rue de Bretagne, 75003 Paris
Mtro Lines 9, 3 et 11, stations Temple, Rpublique or Arts et Mtiers
For a detail description of the past meeting and for more information
about Parler Paris Aprs Midi, visit:
https://adrianleeds.com/wp-content/uploads/newsletters/parlerparis/apresmidi.html

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INSIDER PARIS GUIDES DISCOUNT FOR FPI SUBSCRIBERS
Don’t forget that with your FPI subscription you are entitled to a discount on the purchase of any Insider Paris Guides. You’ll find details of the guides at http://www.insiderparisguides.com/. When ordering, a box will pop up allowing you to enter the following username/password
Order more than one guide at a time and you will receive an additional discount!
Username: propertyinsider
Password: liveinfrance
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RENTING AN APARTMENT IN PARIS OR HAVE AN APARTMENT TO RENT?
If you are seeking to rent a furnished apartment for a week, a month or a year or
you have an apartment you wish to rent, visit https://adrianleeds.com/wp-content/uploads/newsletters/parlerparis/apartments
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THINGS YOU NEED TO KNOW

– To access this password protected page:
The username is: fpisubscriber
The password is: paris1001
If your computer utilizes cookies, once you log into a subscriber only section, the login information will remain active for seven days, after which you will have to login again.
– Past issues of FPI are available on the website. You will find the “Past Issues”link on the left under “Subscribers Only”or by going to https://adrianleeds.com/wp-content/uploads/newsletters/frenchproperty/insider/subscribersonly/pastissues/index.html
– To receive your free French Leaseback Report or the Paris Property Report, click on
https://adrianleeds.com/wp-content/uploads/newsletters/frenchproperty/insider/subscribersonly/reports.html
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CLASSIFIED ADVERTISING
==APARTMENT RENTALS==
For all International Living managed apartments in Paris, take a look at https://adrianleeds.com/wp-content/uploads/newsletters/parlerparis/apartments or https://adrianleeds.com/wp-content/uploads/newsletters/frenchproperty/insider/longterm.html for long term apartments.
==APARTMENT RENTAL==
For rent by the week or longer

Two lovely 2 or 3-bedroom apartments — 1st arrondissement, same building. Just minutes away: the Louvre, Tuilleries, Place Vendome and more. French style gives you a true taste of Paris. Fully equipped makes your Paris stay effortless, comfortable and memorable.
Complete information at http://www.youlloveparis.com


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HELPFUL CONVERSIONS FOR REAL ESTATE
1 square meter = 10.7639104 square feet
1 hectare = 2.4710538 acres
For more conversions, refer to: http://www.onlineconversion.com/
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SUBSCRIBE TO PARLER PARIS
If you’re not a regular reader of the Parler Paris daily e-letter, and would like to be, simply enter your e-mail address here (it’s free!): http://www.adrianleeds.com/parlerparis
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Copyright 2004, Adrian Leeds Group, LLC