You have just bought on the Bay. Here are the six months that count.

The statutory surveys handed over at sale answer precise questions: asbestos, lead, termites, energy performance, gas and electrical compliance, risk exposure.

They do not answer the only question that really interests you: what condition is this house in, and what is it going to ask for?

I. Month 1 — the technical survey

This is the first thing we do on a new engagement, and it looks nothing like an agency viewing.

The roof, at close range. By drone or from the roof space. We look at verge tiles, ridge, flashings, junctions with projections, sarking membrane and structure. On Bay houses, the west elevation tells you most of what you need to know.

The services. Locate and photograph: main water valve, meter, complete and labelled consumer unit, gas supply, drainage chambers, septic tank cover, pool valves, buried irrigation. On an older house this mapping almost never exists, and its absence is expensive at the first excavation.

Equipment and its age. Every data plate carries a year. Boiler, heat pump, cylinder, softener, ventilation, pool pump, motors, alarm. This list allows renewals to be projected over ten years, and therefore a credible budget to be built.

Damp points. North wall bases, corners of the least ventilated rooms, backs of cupboards, basement, crawl space. Surface moisture readings and a visual inspection say a great deal in an hour.

Outside. Trees and deadwood, fencing, irrigation, terraces, balustrades, gate, lighting.

The result is a document ranking what must be done now, what can wait twelve months and what is planned over five years. It is also the starting point of the maintenance record.

II. Month 2 — the administrative questions worth settling early

Insurance. Take out a policy suited to a second home, reading the particular conditions and not just the general ones. Check the unoccupancy clause, the maximum absence period, the precautions required, cover for contents and outbuildings, storm cover and new-for-old settlement.

Local taxation. Property tax, second-home council tax and any surcharge depending on the commune. Check with the mairie rather than estimating: the differences between Bay communes are considerable.

Easements and rules. Estate rules, association statutes, rights of way, local planning rules. On the Bay the architectural constraints are real, particularly in the oyster villages and protected sectors: a shutter colour or a fence may require consent.

Risks. Consult the risk statement and the prevention plan applicable to the plot: marine flooding, wildfire, clay shrink-swell. These determine your obligations, insurability and sometimes future development potential.

III. Month 3 — the network of trades

This is the most valuable intangible asset a Bay owner can build, and it cannot be built in a hurry.

You need, at minimum: a plumber, an electrician, a roofer, a joiner, a gardener, a pool contractor if you have a pool, and a cleaning firm.

The right time to find them is now, while you need nobody. In peak season, with an emergency, you will take whoever is free — which is almost never the best.

Have each of them do one small job. You will see how they work, whether they answer, whether they invoice what they quoted. A plumber who has already seen the house and knows where the valves are attends in thirty minutes on the day of a leak; a plumber discovering the place takes three hours, assuming they come at all.

IV. Months 4 to 6 — the first seasonal cycle

The house will show you things the viewing did not. Each season reveals a different register.

The first sustained rain reveals overflowing gutters, ingress at wall bases, undersized drainage.

The first gale reveals poorly fixed elements, hazardous branches, banging shutters, tiles that move.

The first frost reveals inadequately protected circuits.

The first week closed up reveals the building's real thermal and moisture behaviour.

Note everything, photograph everything, date everything. These first-year observations are worth more than any survey, because they concern how the property behaves rather than its condition at an instant.

V. What not to do straight away

One temptation recurs with almost every new buyer: starting improvement works in the first six months. Kitchen, bathroom, terrace, pool.

We consistently advise waiting a full cycle, for three reasons.

First, because actual use always differs from imagined use. You do not yet know where you have breakfast in July, where the afternoon wind comes from, or which room stays cool in August.

Second, because improvement works consume a budget that may be needed elsewhere. A roof that turns out to be at the end of its life in the first winter comes before a new kitchen.

Third, because the firms you would choose today are not the ones you would choose in six months, once you know the local trade.

The only exception is work required for safety or preservation: that is not deferred.

Frequently asked questions

What should be done in the months after buying a second home?

Establish a full technical survey going beyond the statutory sale reports, map the services and record equipment ages, adapt insurance to second-home use, check local taxation and easements, and build a network of trades before you need one.

Are statutory surveys enough to know a house's condition?

No. They answer precise regulatory questions — asbestos, lead, termites, energy performance, installation safety — but say nothing about the roof, buried services, damp in the fabric or the real age of the equipment.

Should works begin as soon as a villa is bought?

Other than safety and preservation work, it is better to wait a full seasonal cycle. Actual use differs from imagined use, the first winter reveals technical priorities, and knowledge of the local trade takes a few months to acquire.

How do I find good tradespeople on Arcachon Bay?

By looking for them outside an emergency, on small jobs that let you judge responsiveness and care. A tradesperson who already knows the house attends far faster on the day of an emergency, which is itself a form of protection.

Which natural risks should be checked when buying on the Bay?

Marine flooding, coastal retreat, wildfire and clay shrink-swell, by consulting the risk statement and the prevention plans applicable to the plot. These determine an owner's obligations, insurance and the scope for future changes to the property.