Real Estate

How to live the Monte Carlo lifestyle on a credit crunch budget! Investment properties on the French Riviera

Monaco: This mythical principality is a magnet for the world’s rich and powerful who gravitate towards this 2 km independent state (the second smallest after Vatican City) attracted by its famous tax laws, the high levels of security provided by its incredibly efficient police force and the glitzy and glamorous social life on offer.

Here you can be sure to rub shoulders with the most elite beautiful people, from real James Bond types to supermodel types, all of whom sit comfortably alongside oligarchs, billionaire real estate developers, European royalty, as well as Shirley Bassey and Ringo Starr! The flashy Lamborghinis and Aston Martins lounging in Casino Square, as well as the mega-yachts moored in the turquoise bay, are testament to the fact that the credit crunch hasn’t hit everyone that hard.

Properties for sale in this small Côte d’Azur principality are rare and worth a not-so-small fortune, even with modest studios starting at around one million euros, a small price to pay for those requiring a tax hole in a Divine location just a short private jet flight to London, as well as access to a lifestyle where the neighbors are regulars on Tatler’s social pages and the weather is Côte d’Azur heaven.

The Grand Prix is ​​without a doubt the biggest social event of the year and world-class nightclubs like Jimmy’z, the Amber Lounge and the Sea Lounge, Michelin-starred restaurants like the celebrated Louis XV and of course the legendary Monte Carlo Casino being a must. in the social circuit of the jet-set.

The outrageous luxury on offer here is beyond the reach of most mortals… But for those of us who need to tighten our belts, THERE IS a way to live the Monte Carlo lifestyle on a credit crunch budget!

While a small 2-bedroom apartment in Monaco will set you back around 5 million (and the rest, take a look at some of our Monaco properties for sale on our website!), a 2-bedroom apartment in Beausoleil, just 2 minutes walk from the Casino square. , can be found for less than 400,000 euros; if you’re up for a lick of paint, even €350,000 can get you a good-sized apartment in this little-known spot.

Beausoleil borders Monaco and the center is a pretty, lively place with an excellent food market that on Sundays spills out into the streets to include clothes and household items. There are superb bakeries and supermarkets, as well as all the cafes and restaurants, boutiques and other conveniences you’d expect on your doorstep, and of course Monaco’s shopping mecca, literally across the street! The predominant architecture in the central streets of Beausoleil is the much appreciated French bourgeois style and the general feeling is one of gentle elegance.

From the center it is a few minutes walk to the heart of Monte Carlo, the Casino, the Hotel de Paris, the exquisite restaurants and the incredible shops. In fact, Rue de France in Beausoleil is Monaco on one sidewalk and Beausoleil on the next.

This is a first class place for anyone who wants to live the Monaco lifestyle on a budget! A British lady who recently shopped on Boulevard de la Republique is delighted with her recent purchase “It takes me just a couple of minutes to walk to the Monte Carlo Casino from my front door. I can sit down and have my morning croissant at the Café from Paris I can still hear the accordionist on a Saturday morning at the Beausoleil market right next to my apartment so I have a great mix of cosmopolitan sophistication and French local vibe and the center is small enough to meet everyone one bedroom flat in a lovely French building a few meters from the Monaco border for just €360,000 Needed refurbishment but still a bargain and for a fraction of the price I would have had to pay a street down where the MB starts the naco border”.

Beausoleil is also a great place for Côte d’Azur rental investment as many of the people who work in Monaco (all the big private banks, accounting firms, wealth management firms and yacht brokers are based there ) need a place to live as only the mega-rich can afford Monaco, so Beausoleil is a first class choice – your property will never be short of tenants if you want to rent it out!

Be careful though, as Beausoleil stretches up the hills towards the Grande Corniche…and not all areas are created equal! The best places to shop are obviously those in the very center that are also closer to Monaco: around the Beausoleil market area, the Monaco train station and near the Beausoleil town hall.

Boulevard de la Republique, Boulevard de France and all the streets in between are first-class investment locations, as Monte Carlo can be reached on foot. Parking in this city center location is difficult, you’ll be lucky to find a property with a garage (unless you invest in a new build), but monthly rates at local car parks are around €120 per month if you need one. but with first class bus and train services just around the corner a car is not a strict necessity.

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