Category Archives: Chalet Locations

New development in St Gervais

La Folie Douce, a new ambiance for St Gervais.

So with winter fast approaching, there are a few new developments this season in St Gervais. Last year, the gondola cars were replaced between the town and the Bettex, and this year the Mont Joux chair has been upgraded to a new, faster, 6-man chair lift. This will be especially appreciated during the peak season as it’s a popular area.

At the top of the chair, the old Mont Joux restaurant has been completely changed. It is now La Folie Douce – loosely translated as “the Gentle Craziness”. For those who have previously been to Val d’Isère, Val Thorens, Méribel or Alpe d’Huez, they may have already come across La Folie Douce, a concept that started over 30 years ago. Luc Reversade, a former ski instructor, founded the first one in Val d’isere and it’s reputation has grown and spread to other resorts. It is now seen as “the place” for après ski.

Now it’s the turn of St Gervais where, at over 2000m just off the new Mont Joux chair, there will be the 5th Folie Douce. It will consist of 2 restaurants, one called “La Fruitière” with quality dining and a more low key self service style restaurant called “La petite Cuisine”. The key component with La Folie Douce, is that as well as a restaurant, it’s an outdoor music and clubbing zone.

Image used with permission of La Folie Douce

La Folie Douce will have DJ’s, live music and cabarets, which will be no doubt especially appreciated by young people, but apparently aimed at all ages groups. It’s about having a drink, listening to music in a fabulous setting, dancing and soaking up the atmosphere and coolness. Every day after lunch the St Gervais Folie Douce will provide a lively party atmosphere which will continue until the ski lifts’ closing time.

St Gervais has traditionally been a family resort, and Megève, which is linked into the same ski area, has always held a high-end, classy reputation, so this new venture shows an openness to branching out and innovating. As with any change however, some St Gervais associations and locals are less than impressed. They fear the (potentially far reaching) noise that the venue could create, and say it could detract from the peacefulness of the mountains. Given that St Gervais’ slogan is “la montagne à l’état pur”, “The mountain in it’s pure form”, it is debatable whether having House music blaring from the roof tops, will quite mesh comfortably with this ethos.

Other detractors comment that turfing out a load of drunk youths at lift closing time, causing them to funnel down the easy beginner’s run on the St Gervais side (Chateluy), could lead to overcrowded sections and increased accidents. However, as other mountain restaurants bar/cafés have served alcohol and also close at the same time, there is no reason why this should be the case.

The Maire of St Gervais, Jean Marc Peillex, has also been quick to defend the project and says it will operate within normal ski area opening times and within a framework. He doesn’t believe there’s any reason why it should be a bad thing. The project will also create around 40 jobs.

This season it will be interesting to see how it plays out. Hopefully La Folie Douce will be a lively place with an uplifting atmosphere, enhancing people’s enjoyment of their holidays without having a negative impact. It will help keep St Gervais fresh and attract a new younger generation of holidaymakers which is important in securing any resort’s future.

If nothing else, St Gervais is demonstrating it’s ahead of the curve. Some much “flashier” and better known resorts such as a Verbier, and Zermatt aren’t due to get their Folie Douce until the next few years.

St Gervais’ La Folie Douce will be ready to open its doors on the 20th December 2014 as the season kicks off.

A refuge in the Alps

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Taking time out to go and visit an Alpine Refuge could well be one of the most memorable things you can do in the Alps. I try and visit one each year with my family and these trips never fail to disappoint. In fact I’ve been visiting refuges for the last 20 years, summer and winter, manned or not, I think each has left a memory to treasure.

Refuge Vogealle, nr Samoens

What is a refuge?

I used to call them “huts” but the term tends to confuse the uninitiated. In fact I’ve just done a quick web search and Wikipedia has a long article on the subject here the term “Refuge” is hardly mentioned. The problem with calling them Mountain Huts is this really doesn’t do them justice. Many of them are extremely well appointed with small dorms or bedrooms, inside toilets and 3 course meals served every evening. The latest ones do have hot showers too but unless they are heated via the local hot spring I won’t be using them (please see Eco Living? below).

Sleeping arrangements at the Vogealle

Where do I sleep?

The traditional refuges have communal dorms, long sleeping platforms provided with pillows and blankets. The major downside with these is people that snore. You would be well advised to take some ear-plugs! Refuges that have been renovated in the last few years will probably have bedrooms that sleep 6/8 people. These are ideal for most groups and families and reduce the noise considerably. These more modern places may have duvets instead of blankets too. Either way, you will need to use a sheet sleeping bag.

Sometimes more closely related to a high mountain hotel!

What to take?

Refuges are not hotels, but then again they are not bothies either. So what should you take? Beyond your “normal” day kit for the mountains you probably only need to take a sheet sleeping bag, either to protect the duvets and reduce the requirement for laundering or to make the itchy blankets a little more comfortable. I usually take a fresh t-shirt, socks and underwear for the evening and don’t forget most of them are at quite an altitude so the evening might be quite chilly. A torch can be essential, especially if the toilets are outside. But whatever you do, try and travel light, the less you have to carry the more you will enjoy the walk!

Bouquetin near the Refuge Presset

Which refuge?

I live in the Haute Savoie so my recommendations are based on this. In the Massif du Mont-Blanc alone there are 50 to choose from, there is loads of information on the web and a book that covers them all too. I’ll cover a few here:

The following have shortish walks so would suit families.

Refuge de Loriaz, Chamonix, old style
http://www.refuges.info/point/370/refuge-garde/aiguilles-rouges/refuge-de-loriaz/
2 hrs of walking, 680m of climbing (from the valley) or start from the dam at Emosson, same time but much easier walk.

Refuge Tinderets, near Chatel, old style
http://www.refuge-abondance.com/
1 hr, 295m, very basic, very lovely

Refuge Folly, Samoens, old style but with small dorms and fresh food.
http://refuge-du-folly.perso.neuf.fr
2hr15min, 561m, lovely spot, donkeys for the kids to play with too. These guys are running an old refuge but with excellent eco-credentials. Have a look at the “Ecologie” page on their website.

Refuge de Varan, Passy (nr Chamonix)
http://www.varan.tourdesfiz.com/
1hr45min and 520m, amazing views of Mt Blanc.

Walk to Refuge Presset

These two are a little farther to walk, maybe best left to the more experienced.

Refuge de la Vogealle, 1902m, Samoens, recently renovated
http://www.refugedelavogealle.com/acces.html
3hrs15min, 950m of ascent, a really smart refuge in a great location.

Refuge de Presset, 2514m, near Beaufort (Savoie), brand new
http://refugedepresset.ffcam.fr/
A CAF (Club Alpin Francais) refuge, discounts for members. Various routes 800m of climbing, about 3hrs.

Monta Rosa Refuge 2,795m sleeps 120 near Zermatt

Eco Living?

Placing a building that can accommodate up to 100 people high in the mountains will have an obvious impact on the environment. The most extreme example is the new Refuge du Gouter, at 3,835m altitude on Mt Blanc, it accommodates 120 climbers each night. There is no running water so most of it is collected as snow and melted. Although the building is covered is solar panels the energy uses by this number of people is enormous. The very latest technology is being used to mitigate the impact but the people using the facilities need to be educated too and foregoing a hot shower for one night will go a long way! The other step forward the modern refuges have made is how they deal with the toilet facilities. Nowadays they have managed to bring the toilets inside the buildings and make them water free. A huge advance on the old system which I won’t be describing here.

Books and games to pass the time

Swimming in the Haute Savoie

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The French Alps are known for the mountains. Most of our activities involve climbing up and down the Alps, skiing, walking or biking. Sometimes it’s easy to forget the mountains make a beautiful backdrop to the many swimming and watersports opportunities too. During the short summer months the Alpine lakes and numerous outdoor swimming pools come into their own.

At the end of the winter I decided to enter the Traversée du Lac d’Annecy, an annual event held on the “Quinze Août” a bank holiday in France. Over 2000 people take part in various swims across the lake with distances of 1km, 2.4km and 5km. As a result this summer has been a summer of water for me. I started my training in May in Thonon les Bains. The “Thonon Plage” could be one of the best swimming pools I’ve ever been too. Even in May they have two heated pools, a 50m pool and a 25m laned training pool. The main pool is surrounded by a glass wall which creates a sun trap. The 25m pool is surrounded by hardwood decking and thanks to the lack of surrounding wall it gives the impression of an infinite pool with just Lac Leman as the backdrop. This picture was taken on a cold windy day. The pool was 28C and I had it to myself for an hour. Not bad for the entry price of 3.20€. In July an open water swim starts and finishes at the plage, the “Rives Ripaille“.

Just up the road is the swimming pool at Evian, “Evian plage”, again 50m and surrounded by beautifully manicured grass. Once the lake has warmed up there is a secure swimming area in the Lac Leman too. This doesn’t happen until about July at which point the lake temperature is about 21C. This pool is great for the kids as the (free) slide is enormous and will keep them occupied for hours. Wind direction and temperatures are available from windspots.com.

evian swimming pool

Morzine swimming pool is the most local to me. Oddly I don’t have any photos of it! There is a new (opened in 2012) 25m indoor pool and in July and August the 50m open air pool is open too. The “Club des Nageurs Morzinois” is one of the summer only swimming squads in the area. There are others nearby in Samoens, Evian and La Roche-sur-Foron. These “club estivale” only train outdoors and compete against each other for the 2 summer months. This suits many of the squad as they spend more of their year on skis! Thanks to Morzine’s new-found status as a triathlon training venue you could easily end up swimming next to the likes of Jodie Stimpson and Alistair Brownlee. Stimpson in particular seems to have spent most of summer 2014 training around and about. Maybe it’s the altitude they like?

Or perhaps it’s the Lac de Montriond? A 1km long lake just 5 minutes outside of Morzine. Quiet and thanks to its altitude (1057m) this summer it has been rather cold. Summer 2014 has not been a good summer, we have had no period of sustained heat to warm the higher mountain lakes. I’d be surprised if it made it over 15C. I swam a length in June but even with a wetsuit that was a bit of a trial.

Lac de Passy is well-known to swimmers and triathletes from Chamonix. It has hosted the Mont Blanc Triathlon for several years now. 2014 saw the first edition of the Traversée du Lac de Passy too. The water is clean and thanks to its lower altitude (550m) it often hits 23C in a warm summer.

There is a beach, café and some miniature boats for the kids to play in.

Lake Annecy is world renowned and has plenty of beaches and access points. The most well-known is the “Plage de l’Imperial” which is surrounded by plenty of parking. Further along the east side are beaches at Veyrier-du-lac and Menthon too. Thanks to it’s lowly height (445m), shallow sandy bottom and large surface area it’s another warm lake, the temperature of the water can be found on the web, it’s updated every couple of minutes on the annecy-meto site. Considering it was August. This year’s Lake Annecy swim was pretty cold, even then the water was still 20C so it was better in the water than out!

Schooling in Fra

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How English speaking children cope with schooling in France is a frequent discussion amongst the foreigners living here. This shouldn’t be a surprise; schooling is often a hot topic in your home country, so wondering how your children will cope with the alien environment of a French school can be doubly stressful! Choosing which school to send your kids to is not so much of an issue, (in most of the areas we deal with there is just one school to choose from) it’s how your children can get the most from that one school that needs attention.

This is my opinion, it is based on fact (I have three children aged 8, 10 and 12 years), but it should probably not be quoted as gospel. I do seem to have to express it quite frequently though so I thought I’d publish it.

My kids have had the (massive) advantage of being born in France. In addition to this, and unusually, we took the decision to send them to a French childminder from age 1 until school started. (This facility is heavily subsidised and in our area was organised by the local ‘Relais des Assistantes Maternelles’ or RAM). This meant that my kids pretty much learnt the two languages together. BUT both my wife and I speak only English at home and, although we have both French and UK television we tend to gravitate towards the UK TV 95% of the time.

I’m not saying this to brag, just to give you an idea of how they are doing, they are average in the class for French, in most other subjects they are slightly above average. In the primary schools many English speaking children manage to follow the curriculum without too much difficulty. However if the basics of the language aren’t mastered by the time they start collège (secondary school) at the age of 11 it can become quite an issue. We’ve done some analysis and I think some (more) of the reasons our kids cope quite well are:

* We enrolled them in as many French run clubs and holiday activities etc. as we could. Here the kids are exposed to more ‘conversational’ French than in the school environment.

* My wife is a full-time Mum and speaks good French (mostly self-taught) so can help with their homework.

* We have a tutor who comes to the house once a week to fill in the gaps.

Even with these ‘extras’ the kids just about keep their heads above water on the schooling front. You shouldn’t expect much extra help from the schools either. Some do run remedial lessons for non-French speakers but only for an hour or so per week, and there is normally no classroom assistant to help them on a daily basis. Quite often any difficulties that your child might have will just be put down to the fact that they are not a native French speaker.

In fact I was talking about this yesterday with someone from Samoëns and another from Chamonix. Apparently can get a bit frosty on occasion in the Chamonix schools, they have had to deal with too many non-French speakers and it sounds like they are getting fed up now (this wasn’t reported in Samoëns). Of particular ire was the scene of an English parent picking their kids up from school whilst dressed in ski kit. You can imagine what the teachers think. There isn’t the same hostility where I live in St Jean d’Aulps, but the proportion of English speaking children in the three primary school classes is 25%, 30% and in one class 50%! You can perhaps understand a little why the French can feel put out.

So you’ve got a couple of options to think about. Either “go native” and find somewhere “French”, or to head for somewhere like the Annecy area that caters for the bi-lingual aspect of your childs education.

Go Native

So to try and avoid other English speaking kids at school. We have witnessed many new English speakers starting school who cling on to a small group of Anglophones in the class. It’s not exactly the language “immersion” many parents imagine before coming here. It slows progress significantly. Stay on top of the situation too; it’s hard work but if the first time you discover you child is struggling at school is in their end of term report you may well have a lot of ground to cover to sort the situation out.

With this in mind here are some suggestions for the predominantly French areas in the Haute Savoie.

Le Petit Bornand and Thones in the Aravis: http://www.alpine-property.com/area/5/aravis

Espace Diamant: http://www.alpine-property.com/area/8/espace-diamant

Vallee Verte: http://www.alpine-property.com/area/9/vallee-verte

Possibly Samoëns but in fact, on this subject, I think you will be better off further down the valley in Taninings or Mieussy.

The Annecy Options

It could be Annecy’s proximity to Geneva but there are now several options available to relocated families with bilingual kindergarten and primary schools such as Ecole Bilingue de Haute-Savoie in Annecy and the Mésanges Ecole Bilingue Montessori in Veigy. French secondary schools in the area are also starting to offer specialised classes for native English speakers and gifted French kids, seeing the benefits of having native English speakers in the school.

These developments will no doubt help families avoid having to needlessly move back to the UK for educational reasons when their children can profit from diverse, high quality schooling in situ – and still go skiing!

You can read more about the Lake Annecy area here: http://www.alpine-property.com/area/10/lac-annecy or see a list of the properties we have for sale around the lake here: http://www.alpine-property.com/lacannecy

The bottom line is – schooling cannot be left to chance; which in fact is the same everywhere!

Alpine Property in the press, winter 13/14

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Every year I do a round up of where Alpine Property has appeared in the UK press over the winter. In fact it’s mostly in the Autumn as the newspapers promote the up-coming ski season. As you can imagine this makes getting hold of snowy pictures of our chalets a challenge.

You’ll see that we are normally promoted as Winkworth’s Alpine arm. In general the writers like to feature the well known resorts like Chamonix but this year there has been a diversification. Some of the journalists have been actively seeking out some of the lesser known spots in the Haute Savoie.

Evening Standard August 2013

Cathy Hawker wrote this article about Les Gets for the her regular paper the London Evening Standard. It’s promoting some of the new build projects in Les Gets.

Country Life October 2013

Some random ads for some mega chalets (one for 20m€), we sneaked one in in Combloux for 1.68m€. This did quite well for us when reposted on Facebook, the full article is here. Country Life Oct 2013

Country Life November 2013

A classic article by one of the in-house journalists (Arabella Youens) promoting the big name ski areas across the Alps. Verbier, Couchevel, Meribel and would you believe it Morzine. How times change. 15 years ago Morzine would have been mentioned in the “undiscovered French family resorts category. Not in with the big boys! You can see the article here.

Sunday Times December 2013

A nice article by Sean Newsom featuring one of our favourite traditional properties we have for sale in Le Biot. Some of the lesser known ski resorts in the Alps like Bernex and Samoens got a mention Sunday Times Dec 2013

Money Week December 2013

A little snippet advertising one of most picturesque properties in Le Grand-Bornand. It’s chalet Fleur de Neige, just a short walk to the skiing and with amazing panoramic views of the whole area.

Sunday Times February 2014

This was one of the best articles that appeared over the winter. Written by Sean Newsom again (from http://welove2ski.com/) it was a well researched article on Morzine. I even got to be a bit cynical in it! Sunday Times article

Last years results are here:

Right in the middle of St Gervais

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La Comtesse development in St Gervais is, in our opinion a pretty good option for property hunters looking for something in and among it all. Set behind the church, right in the centre, owners will have a quiet location surrounded by trees and views of Mont Joly, yet with all amenities on their doorstep. In fact next door is the Sérac, a gastro restaurant that has recently obtained its first Michelin star, and very proud of them we are.

Within a 100 paces of La Comtesse there’s a number of banks for all your international transfers, a few locals’ bars – La Grange where you’ll meet the lifties and ski instructors or the more recent Brasserie that offer a pool table and covers sporting events; the Serac’s gourmet bistort and deli; the Mairie for all your French admin or marrying needs and the little police station where the local ‘Policiers’, who get all excited if a car breaks down in the centre of the village and who double up for lollypop duty for the school kids, reside. Ahhh, sweet rural living.

There’s also the choice of 3 supermarkets, the office de tourisme, the potters shop and the historic Haute Tour – which are fortified buildings dating back to the 13th century that can be visited and where cultural and artistic events take place. If you buy in La Comtesse, you can literally holiday in your slippers!

La Comtesse is nearing completion and the other day, they had planted the trees which will give privacy and help landscape the newly implanted building.

Only 6 apartments were ever available and there are currently only 4 left. We have just taken pictures of the insides of the apartments, which until now didn’t have bathrooms and kitchens. Yes, they still need their final clean, so you’ll spot dust on mirrors and floors and the odd ladder in the images, but have a look at the new mountain interiors with a modern twist.

For those wanting a large spacious apartment, then La Comtesse 5 is your best option

alpine-property.com/index.php?page=prop_3_aptcomtesse5

If a ground floor apartment with some outside space is your desire then No 1, 2 are still available

alpine-property.com/index.php?page=prop_3_aptcomtesse2

alpine-property.com/index.php?page=prop_3_aptcomtesse1

and finally a popular 2 bedroom arrangement (no.3) but with a private terrace can be purchased here

alpine-property.com/index.php?page=prop_3_aptcomtesse3

Chalet Renovation

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Liz Ockelton is married to Ed our Chatel agent. Liz has brought her professional training as a commercial and domestic interior designer in the UK over to France. She complements Ed’s work as an agent very well, so when he sells a property that needs some work then Liz is on hand to take on the job. From time to time we like to showcase her projects.

Chalet Joyeux was purchased in Chatel in 2013 for 720,000€. The chalet was bought as a second home, the owners wanted a mountain retreat for the family. The aim of the project was to open up the main living space into one large open plan area and make it have more of a cozy chalet style. The open plan living area was really important for the family who want to spend time together on holiday. Upstairs the renovations created an en-suite shower room for the parents and a large family bathroom with bath for the children.

Renovation costs – new kitchen and electrical appliances, 2 new bathrooms, all walls, floors and ceilings in the living space, lighting throughout, old wood interior doors. APPROX 80,000€ and then full furnishing throughout at an additional APPROX 40,000€.

The design research works started in mid Oct when the chalet sale completed. The building works on site took 4 weeks start to finish. All finished in time for the Christmas holidays. All work was completed by local company Alpine Renovation, kitchen and bathroom and tiles all supplied by local suppliers.

Opening up the living area has created a communal space for all the family.

Below are a couple of pictures of the chalet kitchen in its original state.

And below a before and after shot.

A great example of how modernising a bathroom can in bring an old chalet into the current century!

Selling your property in the Alps

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So, your life is moving into a new phase, or the family no longer want to spend Christmas together in the chalet, or the time has come to spend some of the cash tied up in your property. The decision to sell your ski chalet can have any number of triggers, but whatever the reason, let’s assume you have reluctantly decided to put your much-loved ski property on the market. Hopefully with us at Alpine Property.

Maison des Billets, Samoens, for sale for 600,000€ in February 2014.

Selling your chalet in the Alps is one of those things most people do just once in a lifetime. Unfortunately, it’s also one of those things where practise makes perfect. So, what are the dos and don’ts of putting your property on the market in France?

Most important of all…………..

DO price the property realistically. First talk to us! We would say that wouldn’t we? It is tempting to take a look at similar properties for sale with Alpine Property (or other agencies!) to gauge current asking prices, then decide on a price for your property yourself. This comes with risks. For example there are a number of properties on our books that have been there a while and it could be that they are not realistically priced. The second home market is different from other markets, the properties are regarded as “assets” by the owners and often they’d like to sell but they don’t NEED to sell. So if the property is overpriced they are happy to sit and wait. We base our valuations on actual sales figures including data from the notaires, which therefore reflect a more accurate market price.

Talk to us so we can work together on a price that will represent good value relative to the other properties. This way you will almost invariably achieve a higher selling price. Let me explain. Properties which are priced realistically sell very quickly and often a deal is struck within a month. Properties which are priced too highly only sell after sitting for a long time on the market and undergoing a series of painful price reductions. The reason for this is that buyers watch websites like ours at Alpine Property constantly and are surprisingly clever at identifying properties which have been for sale for some time. These properties are perceived to have something wrong with them and are unattractive to a buyer. Buyers, like early birds seeking a juicy worm, are instinctively drawn to properties which are new on the market. Thus there is a brief window of opportunity to get the best price for your property when it first goes on the market. Price the property too highly and that opportunity is lost.

Our agents are experienced in the prices actually being achieved in the market and will be very happy to advise you on a realistic price. Take a look at our Sell Property page for more practical advice

DO NOT Listen to an agent who suggests testing the market with a price at the top end of the price range you had in mind. His strategy is to get your property onto his books first and worry about selling it later. He will no doubt come back to you in three months time and suggest a substantial price reduction. By this time your property will be stale.

DO make every effort to help us present the property well. The property photographs we take are obviously vital. We use the best equipment to produce good quality views, but it’s up to you to ensure the chalet is clean and tidy. Homestaging is well worth the time and effort. We work with several people in the area that can help with this. The same applies when we make visits. Buyers will only buy an untidy or dirty chalet if it is being sold at a substantial discount. I’ll write another post on the best way to present your property for sale.

DO put yourself in the shoes of a buyer. Often a client looking to buy a chalet within a certain price range has seen many properties priced similarly and has an instant idea of what is reasonable and what isn’t. Though we advise caution on advertised prices not always being an accurate reflection of true value, it can be an eye opener to go ‘internet shopping’ and seeing if you can find a better property than yours for the same money. If you do, then you can be sure that these properties will sell first and yours will remain on the market.

DO keep in touch with your Alpine Property agent. We monitor all our virtual visits of your property listing, log all enquiries from our buyers and are happy to provide feedback at anytime, including after visits. If you’re not getting any buyers looking at the property, then we’ll probably have an idea as to why, and can advise you accordingly. This is the case with any other agency you are using too, particularly if they have given you a high valuation. Once again, it is all well and good them saying your chalet is worth X, but it is then reasonable to challenge them as to why it is not getting any interest.

DO make sure that you are clear as to your Capital Gains Tax liability. The tax situation for second homes has recently seen some flux in France so a visit to a local accountant or Notaire is a must if you are not sure where you stand. Meilleurs Agents can be a good place to get the CGT table for France. Don’t believe everything you read on the web though!

New Chalets in St Jean d’Aulps

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If you thought all building work stops in the Alps in the winter (so all the tradesmen can go off to their second jobs as ski instructors), then think again. It is still the case on a small-scale but in general the tradesmen try to keep working all year around. The idea is to make a structure waterproof so work can carry on inside during the winter months. As an example have a look at this development of the Chalets des Cimes project, it has been continuing throughout this winter in sight of the pistes. The developer has just sent me these photos.

This is my favourite as you can see the piste and the ski lift in the background.

These chalets are excellent quality. Note the copper guttering, the granite faced first floor walls (this is an option for an extra cost), the charred and brushed Douglas Pine (this means you won’t need to varnish or treat the wood). I wrote an article where I mentioned the quality of chalets we see in the Alps and how it’s hard to compare with a cheap build in the UK. These chalets are a good example of this.

Don’t forget that these chalets are at the base of the piste at La Grande Terche (Espace Roc d’Enfer), they are in the Portes du Soleil and only 20 minutes drive from the skiing in Morzine or Avoriaz.

Out of the 9 that are being built, a couple of them are sold and another 2 more are “in negotiation” (as of 18/Feb/2014), we’ve listed the different types on our website here:

Les Chalets des Cîmes, No. 9
600 000 €uros, 5 bedrooms, 144m2

Les Chalets des Cîmes, No. 3
580 000 €uros, 4 bedrooms, 133m2

Les Chalets des Cîmes, No. 4
550 000 €uros, 4 bedrooms, 121m2

Les Chalets des Cîmes, No. 2
525 000 €uros, 4 bedrooms, 121m2

Build your own chalet

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This was written in 2014, the numbers are out of date! I have refreshed it in a post late 2019. We frequently get asked how much it will cost to build your own chalet. In general we quote 2500€/m2 as a benchmark. Sometimes we qualify this with “of course it depends on many many, factors”, such as the floor area, quality of materials and fixtures and fittings, easy of building on the site, proximity of services and things like that. But in the end 2500€/m2 is a good place to start. So if you were building a 4 bedroom 140m2 chalet then a starting point would be 350,000 € to build the chalet after you have bought the land.

When I mention these figures to UK-based buyers that know about these things they take a sharp intake of breath. Apparently you can build houses in the UK for much less than that. Closer to 1500€/m2 I’m told and sometimes even less. So why the big difference? Some of my opinions follow:

Everything costs more in the Alps. In particular materials and more importantly labour.
We are not comparing like with like. The “average” chalet in the Alps is higher quality than a cheap house in the UK.
The build methods in the Alps are more expensive. In general the properties have concrete basements and first floors. This makes a very solid property, sometimes due to earthquake and avalanche risks it’s mandatory to build this way. It’s also just “the way it’s done”, much like in the UK houses have traditionally been built from brick.

There are various things you can do to reduce these costs. Taking each point one by one.

I’m not going to suggest importing your materials from afar or even you labour (though both these things are possible and may save money).
Building a cheap quality chalet is not a good idea, it would be a real shame to waste the worlds resources on building a house that won’t last.
Build methods, there could be money saved here. It may also bring in points one and two. I’m referring to kit chalets.

My neighbour is a carpenter and he has just built a chalet using mostly traditional techniques. The basement is concrete as are some of the first floor walls. The main frame was a kit though, the walls arrived on a lorry and ready built. He’s obviously building on a budget but doesn’t want to live in a cardboard box. His build costs will be well under 2000€/m2.

kit chalet in Samoens

We’ve recently been approached by a ECSUS Design, who have recently completed a chalet in Samoens and are constructing a couple more in Morzine this summer. These guys either design your home or adapt an existing design and fabricate using Structurally Insulated Panels (SIPs) that are precision engineered and cut to size to ensure an exceptionally quick method of building a highly thermally efficient chalet. The main weather-tight structure can be erected in as little as 3-4 weeks and can be easily finished by an adventurous self builder or they can do the entire job for you. The average costs of the SIPS structure is about 450€/m2 which represents about 30% of the overall costs of a new chalet and means that a fully managed build can come in at under 2000€/m2. Now I can’t act as a reference for these guys but they can offer references if interested. The company is http://www.ecsusdesign.com/ and the SIPs system is http://www.tek.kingspan.com/ They supplied me with the lovely photo of the finished chalet in Samoens. I have used it to illustrate this post.

The Alpine Property Blog

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Category Archives: Chalet Locations

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Right in the middle of St Gervais

Chalet Renovation

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