Put Your Toe in the Water of France

There is a consultation booked on my agenda almost daily and almost always at 4 p.m. Paris time to allow West Coast people to start their day at a reasonable hour and still meet me on Zoom. This past week, I spoke to a woman in California who had attended our recent Living and Investing in France Conference in Nice who discovered the benefits of living in Nice and decided she wanted to spend more time there…maybe even the rest of her life. She wasn’t quite ready to make the move 100%, so buying a fractional share of a property made a whole lot of sense—a way of putting her toe into the water (or in this case, the Mediterranean Sea!).

With the fractional share, she could have four weeks a year in Nice without the hassles and expense of home ownership. Meanwhile, she’d have the time organize her professional life to wind down to retirement, while also organizing her US assets—whether to rent her home or sell it. It also gave her time to test the waters and see if she would like living in Nice or environs before leaping in, all the while looking at the situation well before taking that big step.

In our conversation, she/we came to the realization that this was no risk at all. When you own a share in a US corporation, as it is with the fractional properties, you own a real asset that is highly re-saleable. In fact, I am about to offer you a re-sale share in one of our most desirable properties at a very affordable price, but an amount that enables the current owner to recuperate all of her money. This means that during her year of usage, her only expense was the annual dues, a fraction of what she would have spent if she had rented an apartment during that same time.

The property our client chose to consider is Le Jardin de la Promenade, our newest offering. It’s a seaside studio in Nice and ready for purchase with occupancy beginning January 5, 2023. This large studio apartment is on the ground level of a contemporary Niçois building, with a private garden and directly on the Promenade des Anglais. It was newly renovated and decorated to perfection within the last two years by our Nice designer, Laura Poirier. Large glass sliding doors lead directly onto the patio and garden, providing views on the Mediterranean sea at all hours of the day and night.

Le Jardin de la Promenade is located just west of Vieux Nice and the Carré d’Or, and within steps of the new East-West Tramway #2 that takes you from the airport to the Old Port, with stops throughout central Nice, plus the several buses that ride along the famous and very beautiful Promenade des Anglais.

Protected by two digicode-controlled doors at street level, the apartment is just to the left of the main entry. It is mobility-friendly—from the main entry to the garden, there are no steps to climb. The width of the bathroom door is the only aspect deterring wheelchair access, but for those who need or want full mobility, this is the perfect answer.

The clever queen-sized Murphy bed system with a pop-up sofa allows the apartment to be a bedroom at night (or whenever you choose to snooze) and have a really comfortable sleep, while you can enjoy the living/dining room during any other time. The bed system includes lots of built-in storage for your clothing and other belongings. The apartment is equipped with electric heat and air conditioning.

The fully equipped kitchen includes a two-burner cook top, full oven and microwave, large refrigerator and dishwasher, plus the apartment has its own washer/dryer combo unit.

The bathroom has a shower with both rainhead and hand-held showers, sink and toilet. Of course, high-quality bedding and towels are provided for owners’ use in addition to the many other amenities. The apartment is equipped with WiFi internet, TV with over 100 channels, including several English-language channels, and free international phone calling to over 110 countries.

The patio/garden is equipped with lounge furniture and table and chairs, as well as an awning for shade (electronically controlled) so you can spend many of your waking hours outdoors enjoying the smell of the sea breezes and the beautiful sights of the seacoast. The apartment is also equipped with lightweight lounge chairs you can take to the beach!

Transportation in the vicinity abounds: Buses 12, 32, 62, 87, LR230 and Tram #2 that take you to the airport or the Old Port. The property is missing nothing…all you will need is your personal belongings and everything else awaits you there.

The usage calendar is France’s smartest—proven by the success it has had with other properties 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. Usage begins January 5, 2023. 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 of consecutive usage may choose a share adjacent to another owner with the same request. By trading weeks between them, each can have four weeks of consecutive usage. (The calendar may be altered by a unanimous owners’ vote.) You choose your share letter when you make your share purchase.

The owners will share all of the annual costs of operating the property, which means spreading the costs thinly among them. They will all have a voice and share the responsibilities, making this virtually hassle-free. The annual dues are currently estimated at 1,430€ the first year and reduced the following years due to some first-time costs. In addition, there will be a small reserve fund of 310€ for future repairs and replacement as well as a security deposit of 1,500€ held on account.

The shares are as inexpensive as you’ll ever find. My personal goal is to provide you with the best possible fractional ownership properties on the market—something you can love owning and using, that you will have for many years and then later easily resell or be proud to leave to your kids. You’ll find the price of the shares to be very reasonable—much less than others on the market, simply because we don’t have to overcharge to make ends meet.

Shares 1 through 4 €57,700.00
Shares 5 through 9 €61,700.00
Shares 10 through 13 €65,700.00

The shares are sold on a first-come/first-serve basis. When you make your request, you will receive a letter of commitment to sign, and access to all supporting documentation.

For more information and to reserve your share, visit the property’s page on our website or email us.

NICE IS NICE, BUT VILLEFRANCHE-SUR-MER CAN BE EVEN NICER

If a studio is too small for you and your family or friends, then you’re in luck, because we have two shares that just became available in La Belle Terrasse in Villefranche-sur-Mer! The current owner of these shares has decided to fully immerse herself in the water and buy her own property. This is exactly what my client from last week’s consultation will likely end up doing…once she’s gotten her feet wet first!

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 (four minutes by foot) that takes you all along the coast and 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 (four minutes by foot). 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 the 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 and 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 all of our properties. The floors are a classic terrazzo, it has a fully equipped and updated the kitchen, created a new and larger bathroom, and decorated the entire apartment “haute 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 another fabulous sea view from the living room/dining room. East facing with a broad expanse, the light pours in all day long, and as lovely as the apartment will be, it’s the larger-than-10-square-meter terrace where we will be sure to find you! And the terrace is heated it so that you can use it all year long.

The kitchen is on this main level as you enter, leading directly to the terrace. It is fully equipped with absolutely everything you need to cook gourmet meals—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.

Just eight steps to the right take 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 allowing 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. 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 into 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 re-sale share available is Share J.

The price she is asking for each of the shares is €89,700

See the usage calendar here.

As is with all the properties, the owners share all of the annual costs of operating the property. Annual dues for 2022 were 1,185€ (that was the first year and will reduce the following years due to some first-time costs). In addition, there is a small reserve fund of 310€ for future repairs and replacement as well as a security deposit of 1,500€ held on account.

For more information, visit our La Belle Terrasse page.

To reserve one or both of these shares, email us today!

A la prochaine…