As uncertainty in international travel in Europe drags on, and holidaying abroad continues with peril, many investors are questioning the wisdom of buying a second home as a rental income generator and long-term investment. Nevertheless, positive trends—particularly in the French property market—are emerging.
France most popular tourist destination in world
According to the “European Overseas Property Market Tracker for Q2 2021” report, the French property market is exhibiting potential in comparison to trends in Spain, Italy, and Portugal. The report analyses the average asking price per overseas market—the number of properties for sale per country and consumer interest in each country—finding that the south of France is particularly in demand right now.
Alpes-Maritimes, Var, and Dordogne are named as the most popular regions, being as they are burnished by the pristine beach, blue-water, sun-splashed appeal of the Mediterranean Sea. The most favoured cities for overseas buyers include Nice, Cannes, and Sainte-Maxime, and investing in properties in these cities is likely to be a sound investment.
In your search for luxury properties in Villefranche-sur-Mer, you’ll be encouraged to learn that France has emerged as the most popular tourist destination in the world, attracting 83 million tourists every year, according to the “European Union Tourism Trends Report”. Europe accounts for 50% of the world’s tourist arrivals and is the most visited region in the world, according to UNWTO, while Italy, Spain, France, and England account for 55% of EU travel.
What’s more, the report “Global Residential Cities Index” finds that real estate prices decreased in Q1, 2021 in some European cities; 4.3% in Venice (Italy), 3.8% in Lisbon (Portugal), and 3% in Seville (Spain), while prices in the U.S. market, in comparison, have increased in the past year.
Villefranche-sur-Mer is a commune in the Alpes-Maritimes department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d’Azur region on the French Riviera and is located south-west of the Principality of Monaco, long favoured as a playground destination for the world’s wealthiest citizens.
The area offers some of the finest residential real estate on the French Riviera, with luxury villas, apartments, and other residences surrounding a beautiful historic town centre overlooking a port fronted by seafront restaurants and dotted with stunning medieval architecture representing the region’s past.
France is also a great springboard to the rest of Europe, with the UK, Spain and Portugal all close enough for a short flight. So if you want to return home, or take up one of the many Portugal golf holiday offers available, then it’s an easy trip.
Average property in France now €236,350
Luxury such as this doesn’t come cheap: €1,880M will buy a 144 square meter, three-bedroom apartment with panoramic views and unparalleled access to the centre of Villefranche, complete with a swimming pool, garden, and gym. The average property price in France is now €236,350, with Spain coming in at €290,000, and Portugal €249,000.
At the top end of the market, priced at €6,950M, comes a contemporary villa in Villefranche-sur-Mer located in a closed domain with panoramic sea views of the Cap Ferrat and the bay of Villefranche. Arranged over three levels with an internal lift, the property is composed on the garden level of a living and dining area with an open-plan kitchen.
The garden flows further to an infinity pool with jacuzzi, a bedroom with en-suite bathroom, staff accommodation, and laundry room. On the first floor you’ll find an immense dining area with a kitchen opening to terrace and bedroom with bathroom and dressing room. The penthouse floor boasts three bedrooms, landscaped garden, garaging for two cars, and parking for three more.
In the U.K., as calls grow louder for MPs, councils, and the government to regulate short-term, AirBnb-style letting more stringently—with landlords forcing out long-term tenants in favour of short holiday lets—it might be all the more advisable to look offshore in your investment property ambitions.