Recently sold properties

Just sold three of my favorite properties this month, all really different but all really good value and with that certain special something ......
This stunning 3 bedroom ski chalet with potential to make into 5 bedrooms. The most beautiful views and south west facing - gorgeous!


Situated in the pretty village of La Combe 6kms from the ski lifts very lovely property offers the buyer great value, a rental income and a holiday home and in addition this 5 bedroom property looks very impressive! If you fancy a holiday here then please feel to contact me and I'll put you in touch.


The last one that I found very appealing is this beautiful house with barn to renovate in St Oyen The photo doesn't do it justice. The new owners are buying with a view to renovating the barn in order to create a fantastic ski chalet business. Getting to know Jo and Paul a little I am absolutly sure it will be a roaring sucess! there is a thermal spa 5 mins away and they will also be doing self-catered lets during the non ski months.

The French Alps ..... why buy here?

What do you think of when you think of the French Alps? Skiing, Chamonix, mountaineering? Probably something along those lines. Me too before I moved here. Indeed I moved here for the skiing but have fallen in love with the whole incredible package. I couldn’t live anywhere else.


So what's here? Main stream attractions include the numerous golf courses – did you know there are 80 of them! The never ending skiing which along with the lakes, 8 national parks, numerous thermal spas and superb cities makes the Rhone Alps the second biggest holiday destination In France, welcoming more visitors than Provence-Alpes-Côte-d’Azur (the French Riviera). In fact accounting for 12% of all holidays in France!

So if you’re looking for a golf home or ski property you may have already considered this area, but how about if you want to be based in France and earn an honest crust?

Well then, this is a good place to be. First it is very commercial, providing 10% of France’s GDP, it has a wide range of industries protecting it very efficiently from economic cycles, in fact the area is so successful it accounts for almost 1% of world trade.

Hummm, food for thought. ..... which reminds me, the principle city for the Rhone Alps is Lyon, also the gastronomic capital of France and a great place for a canal holiday!

These stats alone, without mention of the Tour de France which spends a good few days in the area each year and encourages a truly huge cycling industry here, clearly demonstrate that this makes the area ideal for B&B, hotels, specialist holiday companies (ski, walk, cycle, paraglide, barge, flowers, photography, horse riding, climbing, ice climbing, ice sculpture, flying, gliding, herbs and mushrooms, wine tasting, gourmet tours ........) demonstrate that this makes the area ideal for B&B, hotels, specialist holiday companies alongside the many who are seconded here from all round the world to work in the big corporate companies who operate in the cities of Lyon, Grenoble and Geneva. Because of the well established international links the infrastructure is excellent and along with 3 international airports there are several smaller options plus a very good TGV network and excellent motorway access.

Sounds busy? Not at all. The region is vast. There are pockets of huge activity around the ski resort and cities, Annecy and Chambery included because of the lakes but 10mins away from all of these tourist draws it is quiet and peaceful, spacious and relaxed. In fact even in the heart of these busy areas there are locations that make you feel there isn’t another human being for miles. Clean air, fresh water and a real sense of well being. It is beautiful.

So the area makes sense for those looking for investment property, permanant moves and also for a holiday homes – here you can do as little or as much as you like. Be part of the buzz of the cities and ski resorts or chill out in the mountain pastures and hidden valleys. And we have it all; properties lakeside, riverside, piste side, fairway side, mountain side. Both hidden and flashy, charming and glamorous. Whatever property you seek we will have it. And if we don’t .... simply tell us your requirements and we’ll go out and find it for you.

Here are my picks for areas 73 and 74 which take in some of the worlds busiest cities, most famous ski resorts and quietest backwaters;

For those who come just for the skiing a ski in, out studio in Paradiski at 70,000€:

For those considering running a small B&B or opening a restaurant 210,000€

Looking for an idyllic holiday home that also has potential? This is a corker at 240,750€

Perhaps a renovation project with commercial possibilities near a ski resort? Consider this house and barn 1kms from the lifts that you can ski back to. 400,000€

Remote yet close to it all. Lots of potential for private or commercial use depending on what you want. 400,400€

The good life. An old farm for sale, with endearing views and a ski resort 5 minutes away. 447,500€

Perhaps a lock up and leave investment ski property, currently rented out all season to skiers and being sold at a very attractive 472,500€

How about a bargain ski property in Courchevel 1650 for sale at 636,000€

Or a hotel for sale near ski resorts that needs a bit of love and care at 788,000€?

Or a stylish ski chalet in a little known but very popular ski resort at 910,000.

Or a stunning duplex, ski in and ski out with a garage in the centre of St Martin de Belleville at 995,000€

Consider this stunning house for sale next to Lake Geneva with heated swimming pool at only 1,575,000€

Also for consideration for those looking for investment properties is this chalet in Courchevel 1650 which could be doubled in size but is being sold at a very good price of 3,360,000€

And finally just to round off the full range of properties available why not consider a chateau?

What is good value?

Good value, to my mind, is not about getting something at a knock down price, to me it’s about getting what you want for a fair price, and in ski areas we can see just how much your requirements dictate what is good value.

Here are three 3 bedroom properties for sale in the Belleville Valley, part of the world renowned Three Valleys ski area.

3 bedroom chalet for sale, which could be 4 even 5 bedrooms, 5 mins walk to the lists and centre at 1,248,000€
Three bedroom ski chalet 8 mins walk to the lifts 682,500€
3 bedroom village house 10 mins drive to the lifts at 373,000€.

But let’s look at these three examples in more detail..... what’s this price difference all about and how can they all be good value for money?

The most expensive at 1,248,000€ is a new build. This means that everything is built to the latest standard; there is a 10 year guarantee in place, everything is shiny and new. You can also choose your interior finish to suit your tastes ... hummm.... tempting isn’t it! It is also in a superb location, lots of sun, south west facing, 5 mins flat walk to the lifts and centre of the village, incredible views and lots of potential to make more of the chalet by utilising the lower ground floor which is undeveloped due to local planning law. So actually not a bad buy at all, and in fact even compares well to other new builds in the resort and even better again when looking at other resorts in the Three valleys. So the price isn’t looking so high now is it? In fact I think good value applies very much to this chalet. Quality finish and quality location.

The three bedroom chalet for 682,500€ is a cutie. A pretty chocolate box type chalet and I really like it, but perhaps this style is not for everyone? There is little potential to develop but none the less that is a great price to be able to say “I own a chalet in St martin de Belleville” so why is it such a good price? Well, it has three bedrooms (sleeps 10), and two bathrooms – so far so good – but (here it comes) it is at the lower end of the village so you do have to walk uphill for about 6 to 8 minutes to the lift in the village centre although it only take about 5 mins in normal shoes for going out in the evening. So that limits the buyers a bit. It’s good news for you if you don’t mind walking as the slightly limited market that has been anticipated when valuing the property has helped keep the price down for you! Another but ....... it is close to the local store for snow ploughs .... although let’s face it that means you’ll never be snowed in (you can tell I’m an estate agent can’t you! Next to a nuclear power plant? That’s alright madam you’ll never be short of electricity.). However in this case that really can be a bonus if you’ve got a plane to catch or are a little timid in a car. In addition it has great views. It’s got a terrace, balconies and a little garden. Its 10 years old so maybe coming up to a bit of a refresh but it’s been well looked after so perhaps that’s not an issue in any way other than keeping the price down a little.... for you maybe? It’s pretty, it’s in a ski resort, it’s been well cared for ....... so good value? To me very good value for an in resort 3 bedroom chalet!

Finally the village house, which get’s loads of sun on a terrace that looks to Mont Blanc. It has lots of potential and is based in a friendly, pretty, sunny village that is very attractive to all year round mountain lovers. In the summer it’s a haven for walkers and mountain bikers as well as becoming a good ski base in the winter months.

But you have to drive to the lift.

If that isn’t a problem for you then this is where you’ll get great value and much more property for you hard earned pound.

So three good value properties – three very different prices – which one represents good value to you? Tricky isn’t it!

Other three bedroom properties in or near ski resorts for you to consider;
3 bedroom penthouse for sale, St Martin de Belleville,great views, central village, couple of paces to the ski lift. 920,000€
3 bedroom apartment St Martin de Belleville, great views, ski in/ski out. 446,000€
3 bedroom ski chalet in the heart of Courchevel 1650 for sale. 636,000€
3 bedroom ski apartment for sale in the pretty village of Les Allues 4mins drive to ski lift. 575,000€
3 bedroom village house in t Bon for sale at 424,000€
3 bedroom new build for sale near St Martin de Belleville, 3 mins drive to lift. 395,550€

and there are more ........... www.skifrenchproperty.com

A lovely, lovely work day on the mountain.

Today was a lovely, lovely day on the mountain. The sky was very blue. If you’re a skier you’ll know the type of blue; deep and intense. The mountains were white and sparkled and shimmered in the sunshine. I have a burnt nose .... tut, tut, .... forgot my sunscreen! But I had my mind on other things, you see I was working, honest.

We skied over to Courchevel 1650. So starting at St Martin de Belleville with a few chat breaks in between it took us 1h10 to the bottom of the telecabine in 1650. And what a ski, ahhhhhh, what a ski indeed.

Helen (of Alpine Club fame and in the pink trousers) and I, in the black ski suit, ski together a lot so we know when to push and when to chill. Today we chilled. We stayed on piste and carved and turned and flat lined our way over. Lovely.

As I say I was working (me thinks the maiden doth protest too much!). I needed more photos of this fantastic chalet and we skied over to get them. You see, working! Regrettably the sun was in the wrong place for the best shots so I shall have to ski over again..... what a shame!

This chalet for sale in Courchevel 1650 is a top investment in my considered opinion. It's a good price as it is for the chalet alone ....but .... there is more, it has a building plot so you can either double the size of the chalet or keep the 7 bedroom one and build a smaller one next door and then decide which to keep and which to sell. It’s a no brainer really, there's money to be made. Take a look.

A conversation came up whilst we skied regarding instruction and ski courses. We are in the market for something. I will let you know what we decide on after we’ve done some research – meanwhile if you can recommend anyone in the Three Valleys (we want the best) then get in touch.

Don't use Apple or i-tunes

If you value your sanity I would strongly advise against loading anything to do with i-tunes on your computer - once on it won't come off! It takes over your computer and makes you jump through hoops ..... not to mention the fact that as opposed to sharing if I want to download my husbands libary then I can't without wiping his first - huhh? It even asks you if you want to wipe it - huhh? So I can't have my own libary AND share my husbands ...... but hang on I brought this so I can share music. That's what they're marketing isn't it? A device that makes listening to, sharing and enjoying music easier - not so my friends. Can't get it to work in English because I live in France and use a french credit card so they've registered me to the french shop (french books, French top 20's and so on). Really these days when most forward thinking software supplies have learnt that happy customers are the ones that feel in control of their own computers, Apple and i-tunes are a long, long way behind. Give me ugly if I can control it quite frankly! So no i-pod, no i-tunes and no Apple for me ....... once ..... if ..... I ever figure out how to get the bleeping thing off my computer. Jeeeez.

France Show

So we, Leggett Immobilier, had a stand at the France Show and it coincided with the worse weather to hit Britain since the 14th century ....... or there abouts.

My husband runs an airport to resort transfer company taking people to and from the ski resorts so you can imagine the fun he had! Meanwhile I, on the TGV, sailed through the worst without much aggravation and arrived in London only a couple of hours late and without any real hassle – well done TGV and Eurostar.

The Ibis Hotel on the other hand popped me in a room that was in competition with Siberia and on complaining politely on several occasions that it was too cold to sleep it took them an hour to even check out my room and that only after I marched down to the reception in my socks (and some other clothes of course). Once I’d stood in reception for a while giving them the run down on my thinking about their service they finally changed me into a nice warm comfortable room where I passed a relatively pleasant stay - so no harm done! It’s not all glamour being an estate agent you know..... I even had a hole in my sock which I noted was being looked at by another resident in the foyer..... happily I didn’t have my name badge on at that point.

Trevor Leggett, the patron, big cheese, grand chef, owner of Leggett Immobilier (just in case you hadn’t worked that out) was treating us to a meal out each night and the team reacted like 5 year olds in a sweet shop - the first night’s choice was Chinese.

We are deprived of the type of quality Chinese available in London and pretty much between us ate the entire menu. We had satay, seaweed, crispy duck, dumplings, prawns, and..... that was just my starters ....... the food arrived ...... we were happy pigs at the trough.

You can see how much the food meant to me because I’m also going to tell you that we had an Indian the 2nd night, good place the Lilly Indian, I recommend it wholeheartedly. A resounding quietness descended at our table when the food arrived whilst we contentedly chomped our way through the piles of goodies that kept arriving at the table – but don’t worry – we ate it all - as you will note from our empty table!

Back to the show. Great fun.

You meet the nicest people both visiting and working on the other stands. With Leggett having built their core business in the south west of France the vast majority of visitors were for that area but the ski team did good with a steady stream of enquiries from genuine buyers – results will follow I’m sure.



My most popular chalet was the one based in St Martin de Belleville, a 3 bedroom chocolate box ski chalet at a very reasonable 682,500€.



There were some other that kept coming up and the enormous 7 bedroom ski chalet in Courchevel was a hit too.

It was a laugh, it was a success. Next year we’ll be at the ski show as well so pop that in your diaries now.

Happy New Year

A gentle start to the New Year at a friend’s chalet in St Martin de Belleville. Lots of chatting and catching up after a start to a busy season. Extremely pleasant way to start the New Year exchanging news with friends.
The theme at John and Hazel’s was black and white which meant we saw some people dressed in tuxedos and we even had a fencer (no ....the sword kind). All in all it was a very jolly start to 2010 and bodes well for a great year.
Hope you all had great starts as well.
HAPPY NEW YEAR – Peace, health, wealth and happiness.