The countryside near Aix, a charming lifestyle…
Radia Amar - 05 October 2018
These high-end communes with desirable addresses around Aix-en-Provence appeal to fans of a certain art of living blending elegance and authenticity. The bonus ? Superb countryside comprised of hills, vineyards, streams, and fields of wild flowers, with the majestic Sainte-Victoire mountain in the background.
“Aix-en-Provence and its surrounding area continue to draw many buyers from outside the region,” says Valentin Huc-Debat of the Agence d’Aix-en-Provence on Cours Mirabeau. “Today, almost 50 % of the transactions we handle involve main or holiday homes acquired by clients from Paris, Lille, Belgium, or former French ex-pats, including numerous retirees.” The beautiful countryside around Aix, especially on communes about 15 minutes from the centre of Aix, is seeing steady demand. “Le Tholonet, Puyricard, Eguilles, Les Pinchinats and Saint-Marc-Jaumegarde are the addresses most sought-after by our clients looking for houses. They are confronted by limited availabilities, and a minimum budget of 800,000-1.2 million euros is required when targetting properties of quality.” By way of example, Valentin Huc-Debat mentions a very lovely Provençal “bastide” of 230 m2 set in grounds of 9,000 m2 with a pool. At the heart of well-preserved countryside in Les Pinchinats, it sold for 1,050,000 €. Another house of 168 m2 in grounds of 3,000 m2 in Saint-Marc-Jaumegarde, ideally located near schools and public transport, has just been acquired as a main home by a family from Paris, for 870,000 €.
At the gateway to Aix-en-Provence, at the foot of the Sainte-Victoire mountain, Le Tholonet is an authentic village with 2,500 residents. This historic commune offers lots of charm along the Route de Cézanne, the only listed road in France ! A favourite address among many artists and painters, Le Tholonet has produced the famous wine of La Palette, a small AOC, since 1948. Specializing in high-end, charming and prestige properties, Annick Mossay founded L’Immobilière du Tholonet about 20 years ago, convinced of the potential of this area offering sublime panoramic views of nature and homes of sound quality. “Le Tholonet is definitely a highly-prized address. More and more locals, including buyers from Marseille, are now set on moving here to benefit from its quality lifestyle. With such constant demand, it is becoming increasingly hard to find new offerings. Yet prices remain stable, and activity is lively in all four seasons. Our offices remained open throughout the entire summer, and we concluded a good number of sales, more than in the summer of 2017,” says Annick Mossay, whose property portfolio is comprised of numerous apartments, villas from 1 M €, then superb properties worth close on 4 M €.