The gulf of Saint-Tropez
Luxuriant settings, sandy beaches, dazzling sea views, sumptuous villas and houses of real charm… This peninsula in Le Var offers picture-postcard scenery. Saint-Tropez, Ramatuelle and Grimaud win all the votes.
Caroline Simon of Saint-Tropez Home Finders describes the property market in the flagship town on the Gulf as “now stable in terms of both prices and sales volumes, underpinned by north European buyers, mostly looking for holiday homes from 3 to 8 million euros”. The low end of this price bracket corresponds to a house of 200 m2, usually requiring modernization, in grounds of 1,500 m2, with sweeping sea views, in Sinopolis, within walking distance of the Pampelonne beaches, or in the centre of Saint-Tropez. The top end of the range entitles the buyer to a villa of 300 m2 in grounds of 1,500 m2 in Sinopolis, enjoying a spectacular plunging view of the deep Blue Sea, 250 m2 in grounds of 2,700 m2 facing the gulf from the well-known neighbourhood of La Capilla, or 350 m2 in grounds of 3,600 m2 at the heart of Les Parcs de Saint-Tropez. Caroline Simon defines three types of clients : fans of the hyper-centre, beach-lovers, and those in search of privacy, lush vegetation and nature. An apartment of 120 m2 benefiting from a small terrace, near the Place des Lices, will rapidly find a taker at slightly under 2 million euros. In 2015, about ten properties sold at prices over 13 million euros.
Seen as a springboard towards acquisition, seasonal rentals are becoming shorter. Unlike the Russians, now more inclined to spend their roubles in their homeland, north Europeans plan holidays lasting from two to four weeks. Prices cover a wide range, from 40,000 to 150,000 € per month. At 18,000 to 20,000 € per week, summer tenants aim for properties from 240 m2, refurbished as new, offering high-end appointments in grounds of 2,700 m2, or an impressive village house of 300 m2 offering a view of the sea or harbour.
“While the price correction which began in 2011 has brought prices back to levels recorded in 2006, ie. 30 % lower than in the euphoric boom of 2008, the number of transactions clearly picked up last year,” comments Delphine Blet of Showroom Immobilier de Saint-Tropez, a few months away from inaugurating the first real-estate fair to be held in this little town in the Var. Around the Gulf of Saint-Tropez, some building land is still available. A plot of 2,000 m2 in the Saint-Anne area, on which a villa of 375 m2 could be built, is up for sale at 2.6 M€. In Grimaud, plots of 2,500 m2 offering building potential of 250 m2 range from 300,000 to 500,000 €, depending on whether they are on an estate or not. Another example of 3,000 m2, on the same commune, offering a breathtaking sea view, just found a taker at 1.2 M€. There is now a sufficent number of transactions to analyze the market and draw conclusions and comparisons. The highly sought-after domain of Les Parcs de Saint-Tropez and the concept of gated and guarded estates in general are still popular : such a property of 285 m2 in grounds of 3,200 m2 will bear a price-tag of 6 M€. The first examples in this ultra-prized sector start from 5 M€, whereas in 2007 nothing could be found under 8 M€. Buyers are, however, particularly vigilant with regard to value for money. A new villa of 400 m2 designed by an architect, in grounds of 4,000 m2 with a sea view, on the Route de Tahiti, on offer at 10.9 M€, is in line with today’s market. So is a century-old farmhouse of 700 m2, renovated throughout, over towards Ramatuelle, currently proposed at 8.5 M €, despite an estimate of 10.4 M € in December 2015. Apartments are very thin on the ground, which explains the success of two Kaufman & Broad developments. “There are two types of sellers : those who are fully committed to selling their properties, and opportunists, who begin by testing the market before ending up in the first category.”
“Enjoying a great location between Sainte-Maxime and Saint-Tropez, Grimaud offers quality living conditions all year round, in its old village with its shops, bars and good restaurants, and its “lagoon city”. Properties that face south, and open out to the Gulf of Saint-Tropez, offer undeniable assets,” say Rudi Janssens, Hugo Skillington and Rutger Volkert of Skillington Janssens Immobilier. Fans of sailing, whether Belgian, German, British or French, head for Port Grimaud, where prices range from 500,000 €, the sum required for a 1-bedroomed apartment with a small outdoor area, to 8 M€, the budget one would need to acquire a house of 300 m2 with very tasteful decor, a garden, pool, and two boat moorings at least 14 metres long. The market for villas priced from 750,000 to 2 M€ is also attracting a great deal of interest. While clients keep their eyes riveted on international politics, they still see the Gulf of Saint-Tropez as a sound investment, and the French art of living as a luxury.
