Rhone Alps, Savoie, Modane, France

This property was a busy hairdressers and family home in its prime. It sits slightly back from the market square, opposite a café-tabac-PMU, bakery, pharmacy, restaurants and the town hall. It is the ideal location for a local business with 43,76 m² available on the ground floor, as well as the basement with an independent external access. From the main door, a stairway leads up to the first landing, and the first apartment measuring 45,15 m². This apartment is habitable, but would benefit from modernisation, and can be easily opened up. The space is bright, with a more than respectable distance to the neighbouring properties (no immediate vis-à-vis). There is a second apartment of 47,11 m² on the second floor which needs more work, notably to add a bathroom and functioning kitchen. A staircase then takes you up to the loft, which has a decent height (but under 1,80 m) and can be converted into living space. Electricity, water and mains drainage are connected.

The upper 3 floors would make a lovely family home, with an open-plan living space on the first floor, and bedrooms/ office/ playrooms on the second and third floors. However, depending on the chosen configuration, this property also has strong investment potential, by renting out the ground floor as commercial space, plus 1 or 2 apartments and a studio on the top floor. Proximity to the Lyon-Turin freight line building site means a regular flow of site workers looking for accommodation for the next 25-30 years.

Local taxes (taxe foncière) amount to around 600 € and there are no service charges as you would own the whole building.

Modane is a small town on the edge of the Vanoise National Park, with direct motorway access (A43). It is a great base for skiing, being a central location in the Maurienne Valley which has no less than 19 ski resorts. There is something for everyone, from the longest green slope in Europe in Val Cenis (30 min drive), to 3-star rated freeride runs in Bonneval-sur-Arc (45 min drive) and Valfréjus (15 min drive). Add to that the quick and easy access to the largest ski area in the world, the 3 Vallées, via the Orelle gondola lift (only a 14 min drive away). In the summer, cycling is a popular activity amongst many, and the town is on the road to some of the most iconic mountain passes in the French Alps; the Col de l'Iseran, Col du Mont Cenis and the Col du Galibier to name but a few.

Everything you need from childcare centres and schooling (3 to 15 years old), to large supermarkets and petrol stations can be found within walking distance. For an extra feature, you are only 16 minutes from the Fréjus tunnel with access to Italy, and 3 hrs from the Italian coast.

This is a wonderful property and will adapt easily to a number of different uses with little effort.