In 2008, the science and technology park created four decades ago played host to 5,000 students, 4,000 researchers in the public sector and 1,414 companies providing 30,000 jobs, of which 54 % boast executive status. Harmoniously integrated into the natural environment, the buildings of concrete, glass and metal accommodate thousands of people every day.

From the outset, the programme, planned to occupy almost 6,000 acres of land, has been able to rely on backing from the “département”, state, regional authority and the five communes initially involved : Biot, Valbonne, Mougins, Vallauris and Antibes. Four other villages now participate in the extension project : Villeneuve-Loubet, La Colle-sur-Loup, Opio and Roquefort-les-Pins. Together, they form the “Community of Agglomerations of Sophia-Antipolis” (CASA).
“Of all those working at Sophia Antipolis, often from outside the Alpes-Maritimes, one-third are acquiring a property for the very first time,” says Jalila Harati of the agency Bienvenue.fr. “Their work situation allows them to aim for an apartment, a semi-detached house or a detached villa on an estate, costing from 300,000 to 400,000 €.” Built less than ten years ago, facing the golf-course, the Saint-Philippe residences are pegged at 5,000 €/m2. In the same area, a house of 80 m2 with a garden of 400 m2 on an estate with swimming pool, just sold for around 500,000 €. The shortage of rented accommodation, already expensive - ie. 15-20 €/m2 per month for houses - explains the high prices. 70 % of buyers are looking for a villa. Since the start of the crisis, their horizons have shrunk. Rather than opt for generous living space in the region around Grasse, they now prefer proximity to their workplace, schools, lively village centres, the international airport and the coast, just a 20 minute drive away. Valbonne tops the list, followed by Biot and Mougins which both enjoy a head-start on Opio, Le Rouret, Roquefort and Châteauneuf. More inclined towards urban than countrified areas, clients for Antibes present different profiles and requirements. Bienvenue.fr proposes 450 possibilities in a 30-km radius around Sophia. Jalila Harati mentions the recent sale of a contemporary home of 180 m2 in perfect condition, in grounds of 1,700 m2, at 970,000 €, and another of 200 m2 with grounds of 2,000 m2, benefitting from a pool and an open view of the Alps, at 1.1 million euros. The English are very keen on properties within walking distance of the centre of Valbonne, a scarce and expensive commodity. With the exception of management executives, employees at Sophia Antipolis very rarely pay more than one million euros. A price-bracket reserved for buyers from Monaco, Belgium, Switzerland, Germany and Scandinavia. These clients are treating themselves to holiday homes, retirement in the sun or simply a rental investment functioning on a seasonal basis.

“Of the total number of clients ready to pay 800,000 to 1 million euros in the CASA, 25 % are employed in the technology park,” confirms Nathalie Chalion of the Arthur Amilton agency. The area around Valbonne can be compared with the hinterland behind Cannes in the 1990’s. The first is developing due to saturation of the second. If the site’s creation has had a positive impact on neighbouring communities, including the quality of roads, more facilities for hospitality and leisure, and even the size of municipal budgets, it does not fully explain the address’s popularity. Besides a peaceful, natural environment, the area boasts two well-known international schools. Many Europeans do not hesitate to install their families here, ready to make round-trips from their homebase, facilitated by the arrival of low-cost flights from Nice Airport.