The first lies in the valley of L’Huveaune, at the centre of the motorway hub between Toulon, Marseille and Aix-en-Provence, in the foothills of La Sainte-Baume, the Massifs du Garlaban and Le Douard. La Ciotat, 31 km east of the Phocean City of Marseille, benefits from a seafront location.

Aubagne, with 44,680 inhabitants, attracts people working in Marseille. It in fact proposes go-ahead activity zones such as Les Paluds, La Martelle and Napollon. In addition to a branch of the Chamber of Commerce and Industry, it is also home to the Janot distillery and, since 1962, the command headquarters of the Foreign Legion. Nestling deep in a bay, beneath Le Bec de l’Aigle and Cap Canaille, La Ciotat forms part of the urban area known as “Marseille Provence Métropole”. After the closure of the shipyards in the mid-1980’s, the town naturally turned its attention to tourism, exploiting its beaches, creeks and diving sites, and even ringing in the new century with the inauguration of a casino.

“Aubagne and its neighbouring communes have been going through a transition period between the crisis, characterized by a sharp fall in transactions and a price drop of 10-15 %, and the recovery that began this summer,” explains Philippe Chaix of the Cabinet Marlène Chaix. In a stabilization phase, the market is surfing along with average budgets of 190-200,000 € for apartments with 3 and 4 main rooms, and 450,000 €, the price demanded for a villa in the centre with living space of 160 m2 in fair condition, in grounds of 1,200 m2 with a pool. Locals with a fondness for this rural setting are joined by new-comers on job transfers and retirees from the region around Paris, two groups that alone account for 30 % of buyers. They all appreciate Les Solans, Eoures and Les Camoins, the countryside of Marcel Pagnol and zones with plots from 2,000 to 10,000 m2 renowned for their sound construction. Gémenos is still one of the most popular addresses in the area. Calm and peaceful, it has retained its authenticity and village spirit. It also offers a sports complex, indoor pool, outdoor theatre and schools up to secondary level. The construction ratio, higher than in Aubagne, allows for properties of generous proportions. Among recent sales, our estate-agent mentions a house of 170 m2, built in the ’eighties in grounds of 1,200 m2, sold for 600,000 €, and another of 180 m2 with grounds of 8,000 m2 at the foot of Le Garlaban, for 730,000 €. Large estates still exist, but demand rarely exceeds the 1 million euro mark. More outlying, Auriol and La Bouilladisse offset daily commuting by affordable prices. As demonstrated by a “pavillon” of 90 m2 opening out to a garden of 400-500 m2, priced around 340,000 €, and the top end of the range, which meets resistance at 800,000 €. “The distance between a house and Marseille usually determines the price,” says the manager of the Cabinet Marlène Chaix, who is convinced things will get going again in early 2010.

“La Ciotat is something of a mixed sector, divided equally between main residences and holiday homes,” says Gisèle Silva of the Agence du Vallat. Locals employed at L’Athelia or in Marseille spend 250,000 € maximum, 200,000 € on average. This kind of budget allows them to acquire a 2-bedroomed apartment. One such example, offering 58 m2 on the fourth floor without elevator but facing the Mediterranean, is currently pegged at 212,000 €. First-time buyers head northward, in the direction of Céreste. Conversely, buyers looking for a small holiday apartment set their sights on the seafront or secure, comfortable estates with swimming pools, set further back, for which they pay 220,000 € in the case of a 1-bedroomed apartment of 48 m2 prolonged by a terrace of 25 m2. Whether they are from Marseille, Aix, Lyon, Paris or Belgium, they have still been keen to invest, even at the height of the storm. Between 2008 and 2009, this estate-agent has successfully marketed the ISR Promotion development called “Les Néréides”, 24 apartments ranging from 489,000 to 1,260,000 € in a park of 5,800 m2 at the water’s edge, benefitting from a wintering area for boats. On the basis of this experience, the coast of France’s 13th “département” now has a prestigious new address. The area is constantly fighting to turn over a new leaf after the closure of the shipyards, to provide a pleasant environment with all the amenities necessary to daily life. Yet despite its potential, the road still seems long before this market can be compared with Cassis. This is perhaps due to its individual house segment, less buoyant than the sector devoted to apartments. Standard “pavillons” cost around 400,000-500,000 €, attractive villas not on estates, often hampered by outdated appointments, range from 700,000 to 900,000 €, whereas contemporary houses overlooking the Med are automatically priced over 1 million euros.