Why buy a property in Nice ?

1. Purchase an apartment in Nice for pleasure, retirement or permanent relocation

Nice has something for everyone from the beach-lover to the culture-vulture. If you've read under our About Nice section you'll be able to see that there really is a lot to love about this city - fantastic weather, breathtaking scenery, great restaurants, stunning architecture, shops galore, first class museums, trendy bars, glamorous yachts..... the list could go on forever.... If you purchase an apartment in Nice for your personal use then you are sure to be able to find something new to do every time you visit - and your friends and family will be booking your place out months in advance too ! Buying property in Nice will make you everyone's favourite friend!

Nice is an all year round city so you can make use of your Nice apartment or Nice villa even in the winter - it's the capital of the Riviera and so it doesn't "close down" out of season as do some of the smaller towns and villages. There is plenty of nightlife to keep you entertained and to ensure you enjoy an active social life while you are here - even if you don't speak French!  Throughout the town, and especially in the Old Town, you will find a great many English pubs, bars, clubs and restaurants but the local French nightspots welcome English speakers with their quirky Gallic charm and the vast majority will be delighted to practise their English in a bid to help you along if you have forgotten your schoolroom Français ! 

Nice airport is only a 10 minute drive or so to the town centre so you can use your Nice property even for just a quick weekend jaunt as there's no tiresome journey to your holiday home once you land here. The airport buses are regular and leave for the town centre directly outside the terminal. A taxi would cost around 20 euros to the town centre.

If you are buying a property on the Cote d'Azur so that you can retire or to relocate with your family, Nice is the perfect spot to choose. There are a huge number of expat groups to help you settle in, International schools for the children, an English radio station and newspapers - and a vast range of properties to suit all tastes. 

Buying an apartment in Nice for Investment

In the past 5 years, prices have more than doubled in Nice centre. Such excellent capital appreciation looks set to continue with the Nouvel Observateur (8/11/07) announcing a further 15% price rise in Central Nice properties in the year 2006-2007 so you are sure to see good returns on a well-chosen property in Nice while prices still remain affordable here compared to other areas along the Riviera - and certainly in comparison to many UK city centre locations. Even with the credit crunch of 2009, prices of apartments in Nice remained stable with only marginal products on the outskirts of the town losing value. A well chosen apartment in the right area of Nice kept its value and prices are now moving upwards again.

Since land on the French Riviera is so limited, there are few places left to build which means that prices of existing properties are constantly rising due to the high demand and limited supply. In the last number of years, the Riviera property market has seen a huge boom with no signs of slowing down as an ever-increasing number of people look to purchase property down here - especially now that work and society has become so much more "mobile". Visitors from overseas who fall in love with the area are thus able to live permanently in the South of France with the technology available now to continue their work via the internet. Commuting with the cheap airlines is affordable for many business people many of whom now commute on a weekly basis to London, Dublin etc. The South of France is also a huge draw to the French themselves and so demand for properties on the Côte d'Azur can only increase.

Not only will your property be gaining in value every year, but you can also earn excellent rental income from it while you are not using it. Nice is a top holiday destination and so you can choose to rent your property out during peak times to holiday makers (we can put you in touch with some excellent rental agencies here) or - should you wish to rent out for a few months at a time - you will find that many business people are on placements and looking for property in or near Nice meaning that you can have income for a few months and still use the property yourself for much of the year.

Should you wish to buy for a long-term rental investment then properties anywhere in Nice will be snapped up by potential tenants - so few properties are there on the rental market. But remember that a long term unfurnished lease is for 3 years which means that you won't be able to use your property yourself during this time.