The problem

The problem
ALICE YATES WRITES: My husband and I have always wanted to run a small business of our own. We have recently come into a little money and – combined with the equity from our family home in Gloucestershire – we now have a lump sum of around £300,000 with which to do this. Our dream would be to run a little rural bed and breakfast somewhere in France – can we find suitable properties for this amount of money?Our favourite choice of location so far is Normandy, an area we have visited many times over the years. We have two young girls (aged four and six), so the area and property would need to be child-friendly.

Also, because the girls’ grandparents live in Hampshire, easy access to there is pretty imperative.Will there be any problems enrolling the girls into the French education system, and will they be able to cope with learning in French? We have also heard horror stories about the red tape involved in setting up a business in France. This area is crying out for a good, moderately priced contemporary restaurant,” says Logsdail.And one for the pub quiz?Which fictional working-class heroine from Lisson Grove is groomed to pass as posh?Answer: By George, I think you’ve got it: Eliza Doolittle from Shaw’s Pygmalion and the 1964 film My Fair Lady.Kinleigh Folkard Hayward, 020-7486 5551. The area also contains many Asian, Middle Eastern and other ethnic restaurants. “Zonzo, an Italian restaurant on Edgware Road, is always full.

Lisson Grove is just outside the congestion charging zone, which begins at Marylebone Road. Immediately west of Lisson Grove, Marylebone Road becomes the A40(M) for Heathrow, the M25 and Oxford.What about the shopping?Bell Street and its market have been overshadowed by Church Street. “Although not a farmers’ market, Church Street has good fresh produce, and Alfie’s has about 200 dealers selling antiques, classic modern, and specialists – for example in 1950s Italian furniture,” says Logsdail.What about dining out?The renowned Sea Shell chippy is located on Lisson Grove, between Bell and Church Streets ( ).For afternoon tea, the Winter Garden is in an eight-storey atrium in the Landmark Hotel (a grand Victorian railway hotel) on Marylebone Road. Word on the street is that a single buyer is negotiating to purchase the whole caboodle.And the canal?The sprawling Lisson Green estate occupies the land just south of the Grand Union Canal.

Westminster council’s £50m programme to improve the estate, which began in 1995, is now in its final phase. The project has seen the demolition of several blocks, new social-housing units, increased security (removing high-level interlinking walkways) and a new community centre.How’s the transport?Marylebone Station has National Rail and underground services. In new blocks with concierges and other trimmings, two-bed flats can cost £350,000 or more Many period houses have been converted into flats. Intact houses are snapped up quickly if properly priced, says Spencer Botchin of agents Kinleigh Folkard Hayward.Tell me more about the SanctuaryThis is a new development on Bell Street, which has nine flats, two penthouses and three townhouses, on offer for between £415,000 and £1.4m.