Le Chablais : from Lake Geneva to Mont-Blanc

Radia Amar - 25 October 2019

A geographical, geological, historic and gastronomic entity, Le Chablais straddles France and Switzerland, offering diverse landscapes comprised of valleys, ski resorts and mid-mountain areas.

Covering the region of Le Chablais for 29 years through a network of nine proximity agencies (one in Switzerland), Imogroup Léman offers in-depth experience of the various local property markets. In charge of sales for the Douvaine agency, Lionel Rosset describes changes in its market : “Over the past three years, the number of Swiss clients has shrunk dramatically following the economic situation in 2014 which resulted in a price decline of 10% on average. Parity in the Swiss franc/euro exchange rate then provoked a wave of purchases that exhausted our stocks of sales mandates. Since then, the market has been lively and prices have remained stable, but with a big gap between supply and demand, resulting in very short completion times : some transactions are concluded within a week of the property’s appearance on the market, sometimes on the same day, which is why we are always actively searching for new availabilities”. Demand mainly focuses on detached houses with 3 or 4 bedrooms, in quiet locations, but not on estates, priced at around 400,000 €. This type of property is, however, rare. The CEVA railway line which will link Evian to the centre of Geneva from December, 2019, will also benefit communes served by the line, such as Bons-en-Chablais and Perrignier. The area close to the border is seen as a sound investment by people working in Switzerland : Veigy, for example, benefits from a transport network allowing them to cross the frontier without necessarily using their cars. “Old apartments are less sought-after due to numerous new developments which have recently risen from the ground and are meeting with real success,” adds Lionel Rosset. “In the “Petit Prince” development in Veigy, whose promotion and marketing we are handling, only eight of the initial 25 apartments are still available : with 1 to 3 bedrooms and very high-end appointments, priced from 220,000 to 640,000 €.” After adding property administration to its range of services this year, Imogroup Léman now covers all real estate activities.

A family enterprise, Vallée Verte Immobilier will be celebrating its 20th anniversary next year, with three agencies in Habère-Lullin, Mieussy and Bellevaux handling all real estate services in Upper Savoy. Today, Sales Manager Emmanuel Fleury has 107 properties on offer, plus a new development in Boëge. “The market for apartments in ski resorts and mid-mountain villages is seeing a significant decline,” he explains. “70% of buyers of this kind of property now no longer use it as a holiday home, but as an investment bringing rental income, which they entrust to us in the form of seasonal rentals.” For this type of property, from studios to 1 bedroomed apartments, prices range from 35,000 to 65,000 €, including agency fees. “As year-round homes, our clients are looking for farmhouses, renovated or in need of renovation, depending on their budgets, chalets, and building plots, which are very popular. By way of example, in the Vallée Verte area, we recently sold a chalet of 90 m2 (60 m2>1m80) for 280,000 €.” Areas close to the border are the most sought-after, together with those at a reasonable distance, between the valley and the mid-mountain area, enabling buyers to benefit from both a peaceful setting and an acceptable drive to centres of activity.