January 21st, 2010 | 
Author: The Dordogne is home to one of the biggest communities of British expatriates in France. According to Sudouest.com, the French regional news site, the departement has the highest concentration in Aquitaine and is second only to Paris when compared with the rest of the nation.
A census conducted in 2006 showed that 6300 Britons now live in Dordogne. Some of these expatriates spoke to the news website and revealed what brought them to the area.
Stewart Edwards was among those who migrated to the Dordogne in the ‘last wave’ of the early 1990′s. He has been living in the area for 20 years, and says that the region offers a much better “quality of life” than he found in the UK.
“It was mainly the economic factor which drove us to come here” said Edwards. “Today it is mainly for the peace – and the space! We can’t forget that France is three times bigger than England.”
Although young people often find it difficult to find work in the peaceful but pastoral region, many British people have made a life for themselves here. Toby Brown is the manager of Toques beer in Perigueux and says that he has enjoyed his life in the Dordogne. Speaking to Sudouest Mr Brown said “I’m used to the Dordogne and I’m very happy here”. His comments were shared by Stewart Edwards, who said “Now, I have more roots here than there.”
However Charles Gilloley, county chairman of the French organisation the National Federation of Estate Agents, said that the number of British moving to permanent residences in the Dordogne had dropped in recent years. He explains that this is because of the reduced purchasing power of sterling for the past three years.
Gilloley notes however that this means that most people from Britain looking to expatriate simply want to make sure that they make the best choice before committing - taking a French holiday before deciding to buy a French house.
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