La Belle Terrasse: One Share Available to Purchase!

You are so in luck.

One of the owners at “La Belle Terrasse” wants to sell their Fractional Ownership share (Share Letter E) in order to purchase a share in another one of our properties. That means an amazing opportunity for you…especially while the rate of exchange is so favorable! (1 USD = 1.03004 EUR!!!)

La Belle Terrasse is our “jewel in the crown.” It’s a one-bedroom apartment located in the Old Town of the romantic Romanesque village of Villefranche-sur-Mer with a spacious terrace on the “front row,” meaning that it’s directly overlooking the sea with nothing to obscure the view—and that view on the port and the peninsula of Saint-Jean-Cap-Ferrat is drop-dead stunning! I call it “The Million Dollar View.”

The apartment is located at 9 rue Pasteur at the end of one of the village’s primary streets, rue Poilu on which there are lots of restaurants and amenities, parallel to the port overlooking a sweet “Place” with a working fountain; Place Conseil. The entry to the property is dated on the door in carved stone—“1789”!

If you know Villefranche-sur-Mer, then you know that with so many levels, easy access is very important. There are a minimal amount of stairs to the front door of the apartment and it is easily accessed by stretches of flat paths (for easy rolling of your suitcases) from the available parking on both the east and west sides. There’s a flat pathway from the Place du Conseil that takes you directly to the local train station (five minutes by foot) that takes you all along the coast. In the other direction, you can take the same flat street (rue Poilu) with just a few steps to the main parking lot at the entry to Villefranche-sur-Mer (five minutes by foot), so the location is ideal in a town that is normally quite challenging. It’s also just a short walk to the buses on the Basse Corniche, so you don’t need a car in order to explore the entire Riviera.

Just at the Place du Conseil, is something very obscure indeed. This is the very beginning of rue Obscure, a hidden medieval street that runs 430 feet long under the buildings, so it looks more like a tunnel than a street. It was built in 1260 as a pathway that let the soldiers shuffle through the village with ease. It’s one of Villefranche-sur-Mer’s not-so-hidden treasures. At the other end of rue Obscure is a plaque cemented into the ground—a rendering by artist Jean Cocteau that reads:

Quand je regarde Villefranche
Vois ma jeunesse
Fassent les hommes qu’elle ne change jamais

Jean Cocteau became our inspiration for the apartment’s design and décor. It underwent complete renovation and an update to make it just as luxurious as are all of our properties. We’ve done the floors in a classic terrazzo, updated the kitchen, created a new and larger bathroom, and decorated the entire apartment “haut de gamme” in classic Provençal/Côte d’Azur style, all at the hands of designer Christine Collier.

The moment you enter, you have a view of the sea from the kitchen window, and there is another fabulous sea view from the living room/dining room. East facing with a broad expanse, the light pours in all day long. As lovely as the apartment is, it’s the larger-than-10-square-meter terrace where we will be sure to find you! And the terrace is heated so that you can use it all year long.

The new kitchen on the main level is bright, white and brilliant. It’s missing nothing—equipped with a four-burner stove, multi-cuisson oven (oven + microwave), dishwasher, fridge and freezer and washer/dryer combo. The cabinets are filled with dishes and glassware to match the Provençal/seaside color scheme with a hint of artist Jean Cocteau. Everything you need to cook gourmet meals is here—all while gazing out the window to see the aqua-blue sea below. Also on this level, just as you enter, is the toilet with a sink as is a washer/dryer and lots of storage.

Down just eight steps to the right takes you to the living room/dining room, bathroom and bedroom. The living room has a floor-to-ceiling window on the sea and a complete mirrored wall behind the sofa bed allows you to have non-stop views of the sea while you’re lounging, watching TV or dining inside.

The large and spacious bathroom is just to the right as you enter the salon, with a luxury shower, double sink, towel warmer and great make-up lighting.

Just further on is the bedroom, also large and spacious, with a floor-to-ceiling closet that will house more than you’d ever need. There is a dresser and a queen size bed that can separate to twins for those who prefer sleeping apart. The window in the bedroom overlooks Place Conseil, the charming Villefranche-sur-Mer buildings, and when open, you can hear the trickle of the fountain in the Place. Just below that window of the yellow stuccoed building is a fuchsia Bougainvillea that will put a smile on your face every time you pass through the Place and when you see it from the window.

The staircase that was once in a straight line going down, now elegantly curves down to the living room with a handmade iron railing and terrazzo tile surface, but the terrazzo floors throughout make for a perfect setting. I remembered growing up on terrazzo floors in New Orleans and these are even more beautiful than I remembered there.

The bathroom tile is the most gorgeous color aqua blue—almost as pretty as the sea itself. There is a large shower with both a rainhead and hand-held shower heads, a double sink, a towel warmer, a full wall of mirrors plus great make-up lighting. One could get lost in there and never come out.

Beautiful Pierre Frey fabric makes up the headboards and draperies in the bedroom that pull together the beautiful subtle colors of the Riviera. The couch in the living room is overstuffed and comfy-yummy. It doubles as a sofabed in case the owners have a guest or two. A secretary-style desk fits in the niche in the living room, equipped with a printer and bookshelves above it for all the guidebooks the owners want to keep on hand.

But best of all is the terrace! Brilliantly the designer mirrored the back wall of the terrace so that no matter where you are on it, you see the sea. The terrace is lit and heated with the flick of a switch by two heating units overhead. A large wooden slat table, that expands, can seat up to eight comfortably and there are plenty of chairs including two that are lounging…as we suspect this is where you will want to be in just about any weather.

Professional management takes care of all of the operations of the property. There is a concierge for the property who takes care of it and the owners’ needs. The owners have a special Facebook page they use to communicate and post photos.

USAGE DETAILS

This is Fractional Ownership’s smartest usage calendar; proven by the success it has had with other properties on the market we developed. Occupancy for the 13 owners begins on Thursday and ends on Thursday, in two-week intervals, 26 weeks apart. Each year, the rotation moves forward by 10 weeks to allow for a full mix of seasons. Owners may trade weeks with other owners as they like throughout the year and it’s easy to plan as the calendar is set for the next 13 years. Owners who wish to have four weeks consecutive usage, may choose a share adjacent to another owner with the same request. By trading weeks between them, each can have four weeks consecutive usage. Calendar may be altered by a unanimous owners’ vote.

Share Letter E’s next usage dates are June 22 to July 6, 2023 and December 21 to January 4, 2024. See the calendar here.

AMENITIES SPECIFIC TO LA BELLE TERRASSE:

• 1st floor (7 steps), European
• Large covered heated terrace with expansive sea view
• Bright, east-facing windows overlooking the sea and south-facing window overlooking Place Conseil

Kitchen

• Combination oven and microwave
• Four burner stove
• Dishwasher
• Full-size refrigerator with freezer
• Toaster
• Nespresso coffee machine
• Complete array of kitchenware (all cooking utensils, dinner, tableware and serving pieces)

Living Room/Dining Room

• Round dining table that seats four
• Double sofa bed
• Flat-screen TV
• Air-conditioning

Bedroom

• Queen-size bed that can be made as twins
• Large floor-to-ceiling closet with hanging space and drawers and dresser
• Bedside night stands
• Air-conditioning
• Flat-screen TV

Independent bathroom

• Large shower with glass door
• Double sink and vanity mirror
• Heated towel rack

Powder Room

• Toilet, mirror, and sink

Other Amenities

• Combination washer/dryer
• Hair dryer
• Iron, and ironing board
• Plenty of bed linens, hand, bath, and kitchen towels
• Private telephone line with answering machine
• Long-distance telephone service to 100+ countries, including US and Canada
WiFi internet access
• TV channels including BBC World, CNN International, and Aljazeera International
• Non-smoking
• No pets allowed

ANNUAL DUES & OPERATING COSTS

The owners share all of the annual costs of operating the property, which means spreading the costs thinly among them. They all have a voice and share the responsibilities, making this virtually hassle-free.

The operational costs include:

Taxe d’Habitation
Taxe Foncière
Electricity
Building homeowner association charges
Telephone/TV/internet, insurance
Housekeeping/concierge
Accounting, reserve fund
All U.S. and French tax filing

Annual dues were estimated at 990€ the first year and reduced the following years due to some first-time costs.

In addition, there is a small reserve fund of 385€ for future repairs and replacement as well as a security deposit of 1,500€ held on account that you refund the seller.

The current owners LOVE this property. Some of their comments on their Facebook page include:

“The heaters [on the terrace] work very well to keep you warm even in January. And the view is second to none!”

“We are all in good hands with Roni Sexton as the LBT concierge. She is lovely and was very helpful to us on our first visit.”

“Our place is even more beautiful than the photos. I feel so much at a special home. Roni is a delight. The train is close to the apartment.”

“This is fantastic! It doesn’t matter if it’s chilly and a bit rainy because the terrace is covered and heated. What a beautiful spot!”

“I would like to congratulate Adrian Leeds, Christine Collier, Patty Sadauskas, and Roni Sexton for making La Belle Terrasse such a fantastic little apartment to own a share of. Adrian and Christine had the vision to find and create it in the charming Old Town where beyond the antique doorway, you would never know such a jewel exists. I find it beautifully renovated and so comfortable. Patty handled all our paperwork and questions and Roni is available every day to help with any information we might need while staying here. Well done you fantastic four!”

You could be an owner, too. This is the only share available in this property.

The asking price is €87,700

As a buyer, you will be asked to pay the attorney’s transfer fees of approximately $1,000 and reimburse the seller for the security deposit.

So don’t delay to check it out. Visit our website to see all the details. If you are interested, email us NOW! This share will not last long!!

A la prochaine…