Buy into the: affordable homes of the French riviera?

The Cannes Film Festival is in full swing and all the glitterati are strutting their stuff along the Croisette.

The town is in the heart of the Cote d’Azur, where the rich and famous own fabulous homes in locations such as St. Tropez – think Brigitte Bardot in her heyday, Elton John in Nice and Bono, who has a home in Eze-Bord de Mer. Not to mention the mega expensive homes belonging to the super rich in Monaco.

Because this glitzy, ritzy part of the South of France has such a glamorous allure, you might think that to buy a second home here would be astronomical.

But surprisingly, it’s possible to buy a new apartment in one of the popular towns, close to the seafront, the shops, restaurants and bars for under £250,000.

Piece of paradise

As an investment, a new town centre apartment makes perfect sense too.  It makes a great letting property as neither tenant nor owner would ever have to bother with hiring a car and it will always be in demand as holidaymakers head for the summer sun.

“The season is now in full swing with the volume of searches and planned visits growing on a daily basis.  There is a huge demand for new build”, says Francois Marchand of Erna Low, which is selling one, two and three bedroom flats from €245,000 in Juan-les-Pins, St. Raphael and Menton.

“People looking at these apartments want a second home where they can easily nip down for a sunny weekend when it’s grey at home.  They want a piece of heaven near the beach, at an affordable price and easy to commute to. They don’t want to buy a villa because of the hassle, maintenance and extra cost”. Another reason to buy new is that notary fees are cheaper.

Vinay's village

Vinay Patel, a business man living in Surrey has bought a new-build, one-bedroom apartment in Villa Royale Residences, Beausoleil - a little village overlooking the harbour of Monte Carlo, but on the French side of the border so very much cheaper than if it were in Monaco. He’s bought for investment to let for both holiday and long term rentals.

“This is our first opportunity to buy a property in France” says Mr. Patel. “We chose this development because of its unique location. Our apartment is on fifth floor and standing on the balcony gives a unique view over the harbour and the famous rock. Its proximity to Monaco gives us the assurance of top level security and it’s an easy train journey from Nice to Monaco Station, which is only 5 minutes walk from our site.

"We are optimistic about our investment, as Eurozone property is doing better than UK property”.

In Cannes, you can buy a studio apartment overlooking the Croisette through Azzuria Immobiliere for €170,000 and in Nice, there are apartments in two new blocks of apartments being sold off-plan by EU Property Portfolio, priced from €110,000 to €172,000.

On the other hand, if you do have considerably more dosh to spend, then Knight Frank is selling a fabulous apartment with three bedrooms, views of Cannes’ Croisette and beautiful communal gardens for €2.5 million.