Haut-Rhin is one of the few departments where the prefecture, Colmar, is not the largest or most important city from an economic point of view.
Mulhouse and its suburbs have a population of around 278,000, or 40% of the population of the department, while Colmar and its suburbs further north have just 116,000.
They are both on the Alsace plain, with the Vosges mountains to the west, and close to the Rhine, which marks the boundary with Germany.
The plain is densely populated, with villages and towns sometimes within sight of each other, while up in the mountains the countryside is much emptier.
Winters are usually cold and dry, while summers are hot with rain falling often in thunderstorms.
Around Colmar, regular hot Foehn winds from the Vosges make it one of the driest parts of France – vines are the most profitable use of farmland and the wines from the region are famous.
Further south, Saint-Louis with its population of 22,530 is the main town. It is close to the Swiss border and Basel is a magnet for many cross-border workers.
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The main A35 autoroute runs north from Basel, past Mulhouse to Colmar, crossing with the east/west A36 at Mulhouse. This eventually takes you to Dijon, where you can join the main autoroute to Paris.
It takes just over five hours to drive on the autoroute network to Paris, while trains take 3 hours 35 minutes. TGVs from Mulhouse also link with Zurich, and there is a separate service going north to Strasbourg as well as an extensive TER service connecting many of the towns on the Alsace plain.
Some local Swiss trains also serve Haut-Rhin stations.
For flyers, the EuroAirport Basel-Mulhouse-Freiburg, jointly administered by France and Switzerland, has around 100 arrivals and departures a day, making it one of the busier regional airports in France.
Passengers can fly to all three of London’s airports via British Airways and easyJet, as well as to Edinburgh with easyJet. Flights also connect with most of Europe, Morocco and Tunisia.
The property market is dominated by Mulhouse and Colmar, both of which have traditional architecture with strong German influences.
Prices are high in this densely populated department, and it is only when you reach the foothills and high villages of the Vosges that you are likely to find anything below €50,000, and then it is likely to be a village house with a tiny garden if you are lucky.
The following properties were available at the time of writing:
Under €50,000
This house has two kitchensSeLoger
This townhouse in Sainte-Marie-au-Mines in the Vosges mountains has two bedrooms and around 121m² of living space. It is on the market for €49,800.
At the moment the house has two kitchens, one upstairs in an open-plan dining area, and another downstairs with a separate dining room and lounge.
A cellar runs along the length of the house and the loft could be converted into more living space.
The property has its own garage with an entrance directly onto the road.
Although the house is habitable, there is a long list of work to be done including installing double glazing, rewiring the electricity and general insulation and decoration.
Heating is by gas central heating, but no DPE information is given.
This small, medieval chateau, complete with pepper pot towers and water courses which could have been moats in earlier times, is on the market for €1.4million.
Situated on the Alsace plain between Mulhouse and Colmar in a quiet village, the building dates from 1162 – if a builder’s plaque left during restoration over the years is to be believed.
There are eight bedrooms and 600m² of living space.
Along with the main house, there is an annexe which used to be attached to the farm, a garage, a barn and a stable, as well as two small buildings built in the 20th Century.
The roof of the chateau was revised in the 1980s and is described as being in good condition, but the estate agents give the opinion that the interior could do with a bit of work.
The vaulted cellar still has wine barrels, and next to it is an old grape press in its own room.
