An 18th-century farmhouse with a garden, a pool, dry-stone retaining walls
and stunning views, just west of the city of Toulon in south-east France
and stunning views, just west of the city of Toulon in south-east France
Le Beausset,
VAR
provence-cote-dazur
83330
FR
Location
The property lies on the wooded hills of the town of Le Beausset, between the Mediterranean cities of Toulon and Marseille. The undulating landscape is structured with dry-stone retaining walls, which are characteristic of Provençal farmland. The natural backdrop is unspoilt, yet the site is close to urban hubs of activity along the coast. You can reach shops and amenities in the local town in just a few minutes. The seaside resorts of Bandol and Sanary-sur-Mer are 15 minutes away by car. Via the A50 motorway, you can easily reach Toulon, 20 kilometres away, and Marseille, 45 kilometres away. Toulon’s high-speed train station offers regular rail journeys to Paris. And you can take both national and international flights from Toulon and Marseille airports.
Description
The estate is arranged around a former winegrowing farmhouse. Made of stone, it dates back to the late 18th century. It stands in the middle of a 3,888m² plot of dry-stone retaining walls. A gate leads into the property. A secondary entrance, higher up on the plot, has an area where several vehicles can be parked. The house has a ground floor, a first floor and a second floor in the roof space. It offers a floor area of around 200m². It is rectangular in shape and follows the natural slope of the land with intermediate levels. The elevations are punctuated with small-paned windows fitted with painted wooden shutters. The house is crowned with a gable roof underlined with a double-row génoise cornice. From the facade, you reach the home’s interior and a separate vaulted cellar. A paved terrace in the shade of a pergola on the east side edges the house and stands in front of a grassy and gravelled space. At the back, a section beneath a single-slope roof adjoins the swimming pool’s technical installations room. You enter this extra section from outside. A former barn with a 40m² floor area, a vaulted cellar and a wine vat room complete the collection of buildings. A flight of stone steps climbs up alongside the eastern elevation and leads to a terrace, which takes you to one of the bedrooms, and then to the swimming pool further up. The eastern dry-stone retaining walls are punctuated with pines and Mediterranean vegetation. On the west side, there are fruit trees and an orchard.
The house
The ground floor
You step through a small-paned glazed door fitted with a pair of shutters forming an arch. On one side, a staircase leads upstairs. On the other side, facing west, there is a vast dual-aspect kitchen with south and west windows. Beside it, beyond a few steps, there is a long dining room in which a former feeding trough has been preserved. Lower down, the room connects to a lounge, at the end of which there is a former stone pig room. Red square terracotta tiles covering the floors, white roughcast covering the walls and exposed beams running across the ceilings provide aesthetic coherence and continuity between the spaces.
The first floor
A staircase with terracotta steps and wooden nosing leads up to the first floor. This level is divided between a vast bedroom with a fireplace, filled with natural light from the south and west, and a private bathroom with a lavatory on the north side.
The intermediate level
The stairs carry on up to an intermediate floor above a vaulted cellar in the eastern part of the house. A central hallway connects, on one side, to a shower room, a lavatory and a bedroom with a sloping attic ceiling and exposed beams. All three of these rooms face north. On the other side, there is a row of three bedrooms. The first bedroom has kept a fireplace and two south-facing windows. The second bedroom leads out onto a terrace that runs alongside the eastern gable wall. Two steps lead to the third bedroom, which faces east. Beneath its floor, there is a shower room with a lavatory in a former wine vat room, which you can reach via an inner trapdoor and a ladder, or from outside.
The second floor
On the top floor, there is a 32m² bedroom with a fireplace and windows facing north and west. The sloping attic ceilings are covered with painted terracotta tiles and exposed timber beams.
The outbuildings
A vaulted cellar with an earthen floor adjoins the house’s southern elevation. It has been kept in its old state with a single entrance door outside. A passageway could be made to connect it to the main house. At the back of the building there is a 25m² room with a sloping ceiling. It is currently used as a dormitory. Located above the lounge, it could also serve as storage space or be given another purpose. Nearby, there is a former wine vat room. It has been converted into a shower room with a lavatory. Further north, there is a separate 40m² barn that could be turned into a workshop, a studio apartment or a reception room.
The garden and swimming pool
The garden is entirely walled. It is structured around a series of dry-stone retaining walls around the house. On the east side, the steepest parts are dotted with pines, olive trees and Mediterranean plants. On the west side, there are fruit trees, a kitchen garden and a few rows of vines. In front of the facade, there is a vast gravelled court lined with oleanders, agapanthuses and tall trees. This court extends to the entrance gate. The swimming pool is oval-shaped. It lies in a stone terrace on the north-east side of the property. From the highest parts of the plot, you can admire views of Sainte-Baume mountain ridge and the villages of Le Castellet and La Cadière-d'Azur.
Our opinion
This former Provençal farmhouse is a charming gem. Beyond its stone walls, its rooms are bathed in natural light. Lime-plastered walls, old terracotta tiles, exposed beams and fireplaces create an atmosphere that is both simple and warmly welcoming. The property's Mediterranean vegetation and clear views of the surrounding landscape underline the place’s character. The haven has been preserved in its original style and bears many tokens of its past in winemaking. And its outbuildings and rooms open up different possibilities for development. The quaint misalignment of levels, some unevenness in the walls and historical traces left by successive adaptations tell a story of authenticity that radical revamps would have probably wiped out. The delightful home is waiting for you write the next chapter in its story.
1 145 000 €
Including negotiation fees
1 090 476 € Excluding negotiation fees
5%
incl. VAT to be paid by the buyer
Reference 598354
| Land registry surface area | 3888 m² |
| Main building floor area | 197 m² |
| Number of bedrooms | 6 |
| Outbuildings floor area | 75 m² |
| Annual average amount of the proportionate share of expenses | 438 € |
Information on the risks to which this property is exposed is available on the website: www.georisques.gouv.fr
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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.
