Deep in Cathar country in the south-west of France is a small village called Bugarach. To the uninformed eye, there isn’t much to distinguish it from the hundreds of other villages dotted around the Pyrenean foothills. It has a fine looking mountain – Pech de Bugarach – as a backdrop and quite a few pretty houses, but spectacular views are two a penny in the region, as are picturesque properties.

So what makes Bugarach special? Answer: the price of a house. You can buy a good-sized house anywhere else in the Aude for less than €200,000. But here a smallish bungalow recently changed hands for a rumoured €400,000.