Le Lavandou, the assets offered by a town in the Var

With a Mediterranean coast 12 km long and a stretch of sandy beaches to its credit, this seaside resort in the Var also boasts an authentic fishing village, a natural setting with luxuriant vegetation, with the islands of Port-Cros and Le Levant just opposite and the Massif des Maures just behind.

6,000 people share the 7,904 acres occupied by Le Lavandou on a year-round basis. The harbour provides sailing fans with 1,100 berths. An additional argument to the harmonious alternation of creeks and sandy beaches. Le Lavandou is 25, 40 and 70 km respectively from the train stations of Hyères, Toulon and Saint-Raphaël. A Provençal market, flower parade, concerts, the Saint-Jean, Saint-Pierre and Romérage fête-days are on the agenda of this town largely focusing on the sea and watersports.

“In the majority of cases, a view of the sea tops the clients’ list of criteria,” says Olivier Pruvost of the agency aptly named Vue Mer Immobilier. After a year of ups and downs, this specialist for prestige properties has observed an upturn, especially for villas between 500,000 and 1.5 million euros, sought as second residences by a French, Belgian, Dutch, German, British and Swiss clientele. These buyers appreciate the well-preserved nature, stretches of sand, summer entertainment and properties preferably proposed ready to move in. Demand is steady. The only flies in the ointment are the scarcity of offerings in the files and the modernization which proves necessary for houses built in the 1960’s-1970’s. Some purchasers cover the running costs of their holiday homes with seasonal rentals. Among his most recent sales, Olivier Pruvost mentions a villa of 140 m2 in grounds of 1,200 m2 just 300 metres from the beach of Cavalière, likely to bring 2,500 € per week in the high season and acquired by a couple from Paris for 800,000 €, and a house of 100 m2 in Le Gaou Benat, also bought by French clients as a holiday home, for 750,000 €.

“Today’s buyers, 85 % of whom are French retirees from départements 42, 69, 38, 59 and the Parisian region, are drawn by the attractiveness of the site and the proximity of the airport and train station in Hyères,” adds Robert Estève of L’Agence du Sud. Many of them spend from six to eight months here, preferring the off-seasons to the summer, especially as Le Lavandou is lively year-round. People still actively employed come here during the holiday periods. L’Agence du Sud is a subsidiary of Piersanti Immobilier, which recently marketed five new developments priced from 4,100 to 6,500 €/m2, including “L’Ile Verte”. In all, 400 apartments contributing towards a readjustment of the market for old buildings and a re-balancing of prices. Nevertheless, they are still too expensive for people working locally, who are obliged to fall back on La Crau or Solliès-Pont. In the historic heart of Le Lavandou, so-called typical properties can still be found. The agency’s latest transactions include a renovated apartment of 24 m2 just 100 metres from the beach and harbour, priced at 127,000 €, and another of 85 m2, benefiting from a garage and parking place, at 470,000 €, not forgetting a 1960’s house in need of renovation in Le Super-Lavandou, offering a panoramic sea view, at 800,000 €.