Nice, a lively yet stable market

Radia Amar - 20 November 2018

The capital of the Côte d’Azur offers a wide choice of properties. Its “Golden Square” is the most highly-prized central neighbourhood, followed by La Coulée Verte, while residential neighbourhoods on the west side of town, on Cap de Nice or Mont Boron, contain real gems at prices that sometimes rocket.

An expert on Nice’s property market since 1997, Lazzaro Bellei launched Modus Real Estate on Boulevard Victor Hugo in 2005. In this prime location in the central area of the capital of the French Riviera, and notably in its “Golden Square”, it covers the entire commune. “I present all kinds of properties, from studios proposed as rental investments in good locations to luxury residences on Cap d’Antibes. My only selection criterion is the property’s price : I only present those pegged at their real market value.” Shared out evenly between year-round, holiday homes and rental investments, transactions orchestrated by Lazzaro Bellei involve a foreign clientele (Italians, Scandinavians, English…) wanting to treat themselves to a pied-à-terre in the city centre, and local buyers, including retirees who have sold their villas on the hills and now wish to live in the centre, families and investors. “At the moment, prices are still relatively stable. Though I am expecting them to rise in certain highly-prized neighbourhoods,” says Lazzaro Bellei, mentioning as examples of properties reflecting the market in the town centre, classy 1-bedroomed apartments on Boulevard Victor Hugo. Ranging from 35 to 42 m2, they fetch from 250,000 to 280,000 €, while studios in the same area cost from 150,000 to 160,000 €. A spacious apartment of 125 m2 in a 1930’s building here recently sold for around 650,000 €. “In my opinion, the stock of availabilities is still satisfactory in all sectors. When looking for holiday homes, buyers are not keen to take on renovation work. For permanent residences, even though certain clients are more inclined to personalize their apartments, properties that have been rehabilitated are always more popular.”

A real-estate expert for many years in Nice West, Marie-France Baillet launched A.L.P. Azur Luxe Properties with her partners in June, 2018. Specializing in sales of high-end properties, and soon to offer rentals/management, this agency based in the prestigious residence “Les Belles Terres” covers all the best addresses in Nice, and the area from Monaco to Saint-Tropez thanks to its team of six multilingual professionals. “We are, of course, the agency in the best position to present apartments in”Les Belles Terres”, one of the finest gated residences in Nice West, benefiting from a luxuriant park, a pool with restaurant, a tennis court and gym. Here we have just handled the sale of a 1-bedroom through apartment of 58 m2 priced at 310,000 €, prolonged by a deep terrace with a panoramic sea view.” The agency’s portfolio of properties is not, however, limited to Nice West, as evidenced by an exceptional 2-bedroomed apartment of 84 m2 on Cap de Nice. On an upper floor of a top-notch residence right at the water’s edge, this property extended by a generous terrace facing the Med offers high-spec appointments. With a cellar and parking place, it is on offer at 1,495,000 €. On Mont-Boron, another 2-bedroomed apartment of 88 m2 with a terrace facing due south and an elevated view of the town and sea is in a very select and highly-prized residence. It is priced at 950,000 €. “For this type of exceptional property, we have a good number of Parisian and foreign clients wanting to treat themselves to a smart pied-à-terre in Nice,” says Marie-France Baillet, who is planning to open a second agency in 2019.