Cap d’Antibes : a magnificent environment

This peninsula lying south of Antibes Juan-les-Pins is one of most enviable addresses on the Côte d’Azur. A unique spot, quiet and luxuriant, yet close to the beaches and centre, highly sought-after by a well-heeled foreign clientele.

A well preserved site offering fabulous views of the bay of Cannes and Nice’s Bay of Angels, Cap d’Antibes has been highly-prized by wealthy visitors from all over Europe since the mid-19th century. As witnessed by luxury residences such as the Villas Thuret and Eilenroc, the Château de la Croë and Domaine de La Garoupe, and their splendid botanical gardens. A privileged wooded area at the water’s edge, but also very close to the centre of Antibes, only 10 minutes from Cannes and hardly 20 minutes from Nice Airport.

“Unlike Cap Ferrat or Saint-Tropez, both comparable in terms of prices, Cap d’Antibes does not suffer from traffic problems,” says Christine Carré, manageress of Cap d’Antibes Lux Rentals, an agency specializing in the cape but also covering the nearby area and Cannes. Opened in 2012, it handles sales, rentals and offers a conciergerie service. “A 1-bedroom apartment on the cape costs from 300,000 to 600,000 €. For 2 bedrooms, one should expect to pay over 650,000 €. As for high-end apartments with sea views, they fetch 800,000 € and more.” In the case of houses, Christine Carré draws a distinction between three main markets : “Medium-sized houses, increasingly numerous, priced from 1.3 to 1.5 million euros ; villas with much larger grounds - of around 1,500 m2 - from 2.5 to 3.5 million euros ; and properties with sea views, starting from 4 million euros”. High and stable prices, despite some recent adjustments : “Following several years marked by soaring prices, they now reflect market realities. Correctly estimated properties are selling well, even those worth over 10 million euros”. The agency’s clientele is mainly comprised of foreigners looking for second residences, mostly Russian.

Thomas Monnier is co-manager of the Agence du Cap d’Antibes, the oldest agency on the cape (founded in 1925), which he took over in 1997, and a second agency of the same name in Antibes which also covers Juan-les-Pins, Mougins and Cannes. He, too, receives very few enquiries from French clients : “Our buyers are Russian, English, Dutch, Belgian, Norwegian or Swedish”. As for prices, he gives an identical analysis : “Transactions over and above market prices are a thing of the past. Cap d’Antibes is not seeing, and will not see, any decline in prices, though properties offered at the right price are the ones which find takers”. In the case of apartments, Thomas Monnier says the price per sq. metre ranges from 5,000 to 6,000 € in middle-of-the-range residences, from 8,000 to 9,000 € if they offer views of the sea. “For outstanding examples, especially apartments in very charming villas, prices climb to 10,000-13,000 € per sqm.” He also mentions the up-coming delivery of “Paradise Cap”, a development of over 20 top-notch apartments. “For houses, prices vary extensively, depending on their location and view. By way of example, a house of about 130 m2 with a garden of 1,000 m2 and a pool will be pegged at around 1.5 million euros, while villas of 200 m2 in grounds of 2,000 m2 with sea view range from 3.5 to 4 million euros.”