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Early snowfall raises investor confidence in French Alps ski property
Snow causes many headaches in Britain, from train delays to school closures. However, as Matt French finds out, in the Alps a large dump of snow is actually welcomed.
The ski season in the French Alps traditionally starts in mid-December, however heavy snowfall started in mid-November this year and has enabled many resorts to open early – to the delight of French Alps property owners.
"The French Alps is France's third most popular tourist region, behind Paris and the Côte d'Azur," explains Matthieu Cany of Sextant French Property Agents. "With its numerous famous skiing resorts it is definitely the best place in France in which to ski," he adds.
The resort of Les Sept Laux in Prapoutel for example reported 35 centimetres of snow at the base, and 50 centimetres at the peak, with six runs and three lifts opening from the middle of last month.
Many investors with French Alps ski properties will be smiling following last year's disappointment when many Alpine resorts suffered a slow start to the season, which even led to the cancellation of some early-season World Cup races.
The North Atlantic Oscillation influences the winter weather conditions in Europe, and last year saw a positive NAO. More good news for property investors in the French Alps is that this year's early snowfall may be due to the slightly negative NAO forecast for 2007/2008, which would be a good sign for the whole of this ski season.
Gordon Roughan, Managing Director of Maison Individuelle has just returned from Les Sept Laux. "The quality of skiing is excellent for this time of year," he says. "The resort itself was busy with quite a number of Britons taking advantage of their second homes in the area with an impromptu ski break."
Les Sept Laux is situated in the Belledonne Mountains and is the third largest ski area in the Dauphine region. The resort offers 120 kilometres of runs up to a height of 2,600 metres, a snow large park for boarders and a lift system across three satellite resorts. With three different ski areas, you can move between the exposures and potentially ski all through the day in the sun. The resort is easily reached from Grenoble airport, which is serviced by budget airlines EasyJet and Ryanair, and is only 138 kilometres from France's second-biggest city Lyon.
"There is a lot more than skiing resorts in Rhône-Alpes," confirms Matthieu Cany of Sextant French Property Agents. "Lyon is a gorgeous and bustling city attracting more and more foreigners, retired people and investors.
Investing in a French ski property in this part of the Alps is made even more appealing as prices can be up to 50 per cent less than other resorts say Maison Individuelle.
One-, two- and three-bedroom off-plan apartments at 'Les Granges des Sept Laux', located at 1,350 metres, start from just £85,069 with capital appreciation expected up to 20 per cent.
Roughan comments: "Despite the rise of other ski resorts in Europe the French Alps will always retain their property appeal due to ease of accessibility, good quality snowfall, modern facilities and affordable accommodation. The recent heavy snowfall and early opening of resorts such as Les Sept Laux can only further raise the confidence of those owning ski property in the future of the French Alps."
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Article first published 04 December 2007