MGM’s New Lakeside Homes

Meeting Britons’ Needs for Holidays, Investment or Commuting to Geneva

The latest ones are taking shape in a location which has been popular for more than 5,000 years!

The popularity of new residential developments around Lake Annecy in the Haute Savoie region of France has prompted the developer to draw up plans for several other new schemes close to what has been dubbed ‘the cleanest lake in Europe.’

Just months after unveiling plans for its latest scheme in Annecy-le-Vieux, a five-minute walk from the centre of the picturesque lakeside town of Annecy, developer MGM French Properties reveals that all but four of the 20 apartments have been sold off plan.

Standing in landscaped gardens in a peaceful elevated location, the six-storey Résidence l’Amethyste comprises two-and three-bedroom apartments available to buy outright at prices starting at €447,000 (including VAT). An underground garage is included in the purchase price.

In contrast to an earlier development by MGM in Annecy-le-Vieux, Le Domaine de Saint Laurent which featured an exterior inspired by the area’s traditional Savoyard farm buildings of an earlier age, Résidence l’Amethyste has a contemporary design.

MGM says that, when they are ready for occupation at the end of next year, the new apartments will be conveniently positioned for easy access to local shops as well as the heart of the old-world town of Annecy. Its mediaeval cobbled streets and ‘Little Venice’ canal network have an appeal which has spanned thousands of years; archaeologists have found remains of a waterfront settlement from 3100 BC.

Meanwhile, MGM is drawing up plans for new developments on land it owns nearby in Annecy-le-Vieux. Full details will be announced soon.

Many buyers of MGM’s properties in the Annecy are attracted by it syear-round appeal. Sailing, watersports and fishing are available just 500m away on the 14km long lake in summer. In winter the ski slopes of La Clusaz and Le Grand Bornand are only 30 minutes away by road.

“For Britons working in Geneva, Annecy is the ideal place to live,” says Richard Deans in MGM’s London office (tel 0207 4940706). “The cost of living is substantially lower than that in the Swiss city and the drive-time for commuters is less than half an hour. Résidence l’Amethyste is only 20 minutes from Geneva Airport by road.”

Richard says investors also like Annecy. As a university town and a cultural centre hosting festivals, conferences, exhibitions and theatrical performances throughout the year, it offers good scope for both short-term lets and holiday rentals, in addition to capital growth, he reports.

Floor areas of the spacious new apartments at Résidence l’Amethyste range from 85sqm for a two-bedroom home to 110sqm for a three-bedroom property. The apartments are designed to maximise the use of natural light through glass-fronted balconies offering views in two directions and big double-glazed windows. Among energy-saving features are: lighting activated by movement detectors, switching off automatically when no-one is around; low-energy light bulbs in communal areas; geothermal heat pumps to extract and use energy which occurs naturally underground; low-cost under-floor heating, and flow regulators on all taps.

For more information about the properties available from MGM in the Annecy area, contact the company’s UK office at Kingsland House, 122 – 124 Regent Street, London W1B 5SA, telephone 0207 4940706, email [email protected] or visit the website www.mgmfrenchproperties.com