French Holiday HomesApartments, villas and townhouses near Cannes and St Tropez will cost from €525,000 to €2.4m. Joan Scales reports
Location is always the first reason to buy a property and when the property is halfway between two of the best towns on the Côte D'Azur, the decision is easier.
This weekend the first 47 properties at Village Bellevue, Le Roc, - a five-star golf resort to be built on land overlooking the sea between Cannes and St Tropez at Roquebrune sur Argens - go on sale in Ireland off the plans through Springvale Overseas Properties.
For sale will be a mixture of apartments, townhouses and eight luxury villas des golfeurs with private pools.
There will be a five-star hotel, two golf courses, an existing nine-hole course and a new 18-hole course,to be managed by the PGA, on the 110-hectare (xxxx-acre) site.
There will also be a golf academy, driving range, horse riding, tennis courts and a sports club for children. A 1,000sq m (10,763sq ft) wellness centre is planned.
Properties for sale at Le Roc will cost €525,000 to €680,000 for two and three-bed apartments of around 83sq m (893sq ft), with terraces of varying sizes. Ground floor apartments will have gardens.
Two and three-bedroom townhouses of 96-122sqm (1,033-1,313sq ft) with 26-80sq m (279-861sq ft) terraces will cost from €615,000 to €940,000.
Three and four-bedroom 143-172sq m (1,539-1,851sq ft) villas with gardens and terraces cost from €1.8-€2.4 million. The prices include garages, all furniture and fittings and in the case of villas, private pools. The five-star hotel will be managed by the German Althoff Group, which manages five hotels in Germany and the luxurious Villa Belrose in St Tropez. Extensive conference facilities will be available to guests.
There is an unusual financial package in place for Le Roc. If you buy an apartment or townhouse, you have the option to pay 50 per cent up front and the balance in five years time. You will be paying the balance at today's price, i.e. if you buy a €600,000 property, €300,000 will be payable initially and the balance will be payable in 2011.
The investment is VAT free and the management company, the Amann Group are registered in Switzerland.
You also have the option of selling it back to the company for the same price, although it is expected that investors will realise significant growth in the Côte D'Azur area and see good capital appreciation during the five-year period.
The property will be rented by the management company for the five years, with buyers allowed to use it for up to 39 days per year, significantly higher than many leaseback options. The 39 days are spread over the year with most days to be taken between October and March.
The resort will operate all year round, though June, July and August are the busiest months in the south of France and accordingly, investors would have just three days of use during this time.
There is no service charge or management fee for investors; there is a daily charge of €60 when you use your property for the 39 days.
IThe agent expects that returns will be in the region of four to six per cent. The time scale for the opening of the first phase is the end of 2007. Building work will begin in three weeks time.
The Le Roc development will be on show at Radisson St Helens Hotel, Stillorgan, Co Dublin this weekend.
www.amanngroup.ch; www.le-roc.fr
