_International Property Digest: An Alpine Home in The Three Valleys, France
The French Alps have several stellar resorts with a reputation for excellence but for sheer top of the range glamour and size, one location stands above all others. Step forward The Three Valleys, 600 kilometres of efficiently linked slopes that take in three major mountain resorts and a host of smaller villages. In one day, skiers can descend electrifying Courchevel couloirs, cruise wide flattering reds and blues in Méribel and bounce around off-piste in Val Thorens.
"Each resort within the Three Valleys has its own distinctive style," says Roddy Aris of Knight Frank. "Courchevel places great emphasis on service, delivering a consistently high quality product. Meribel is especially good for families with teenage children while younger families might head to the gentler pace of its satellite village St Martin de Belleville. Purpose-built Val Thorens is the place for serious ski junkies, Europe’s highest resort at 2,300 metre with an equally strong reputation for hard partying.
Across all these inter-connected resorts, authorities have focused on investing and consistently upgrading facilities to provide a top-grade infrastructure of lifts, snow cannons and pistes. A further €42 million investment is planned as The Three Valleys prepares to host the 2023 FIS Alpine World Ski Championships. In hospitality too, The Three Valleys stands out. Five hotels in Courchevel have been awarded the highest Palace status, representing almost 20 per cent of those across all of France.
Knight Frank have added to their Three Valley offices by opening this year in St Martin de Belleville, a charming, low-key Savoyard village below Val Thorens. Its tree-lined slopes and lifts link directly into the vast Three Valleys ski area.
“St Martin is not at all showy yet thanks to its charm and wonderful restaurants including three-Michelin star La Bouitte it has a loyal following,” explains Mr Aris. “Prime property prices strengthened there by 2.4 per cent last year due primarily to the relative value compared with neighbouring resorts.”
Properties for sale in The Three Valleys
An example of homes currently for sale in St Martin de Belleville include this new, high-quality six-bedroom wood and stone chalet for €2,550,000.
Above: a chalet in Saint-Martin de Bellevue.
Prices for best in class chalets in elite Courchevel 1850 can easily reach €35,000 per square metre but overall, in the core market, per square metre prices throughout Courchevel and Meribel remain fairly consistently between €12,000 to €16,000.
Courchevel centres on Courchevel 1850, the largest and most exclusive village. Further down the mountain the villages of Courchevel Le Praz at 1,350 metres, Courchevel Village at 1,550 metres and Courchevel Moriond at 1,650 metres are quieter but all linked in to the same ski area.
In Courchevel Village, handsome two to five-bedroom new-build apartments and chalets at Alpamayor, due for completion at the end of 2020, bring contemporary open-plan design to the slopes. Homes are priced from €875,000.
Above: an apartment in Courchevel.
Méribel has the prime location at the very heart of The Three Valleys with a buzzy centre and pretty wooden chalets hidden among pine forests. Like Courchevel it comprises a number of separate villages including Méribel Village and Le Raffort.
A six-bedroom apartment, one of ten new south-facing homes in the Swan Lodge Residence close to the centre of Méribel is priced from €2,230,000.
Above: an apartment in Méribel.
Across the French Alps buyers are currently motivated by low mortgage rates. New-build homes remain popular helped by the 20 per cent VAT rebate they carry and the flexibility of stage payments. And while owners understand that yields will rarely exceed 2 per cent net, they increasingly want to know there is the potential to cover their running costs through rental income.
“People buy a home in the Alps because they love skiing or because they have a young family and can see ten years ahead of quality family holidays,” concludes Mr Aris. “A ski property represents an investment in family life and the joy of Alpine holidays.”
For more information on all of Knight Frank’s properties across the French Alps contact Roddy Arisor or download Knight Frank's Ski Property Report 2020.