There is a significant price premium for newly built houses in Monaco. The average selling price of newly built properties is €13.7m, three times higher than resale properties. Of the 553 properties sold in 2016, just 33 were newly built, accounting for just six per cent of all transactions.
New developments, such as Tour Odeon and La Petite Afrique have brought new properties in Monaco up to the same standard that is seen in other major world cities.
A large proportion of Monaco’s housing stock was developed in the 1960s and 1970s and many of these properties are now looking dated and ripe for renewal and refurbishment. International architects are raising the design stakes, with La Petite Afrique designed by Brazilian architect Isay Weinfeld and the Richard Rogers-designed Sporting D’Hiver is under construction. Civic buildings are getting the same treatment, with the Yacht Club de Monaco being designed by Foster and Partners.
There remains a shortage of new properties for sale, however. With prices at record highs, wealthy vendors are unwilling to negotiate down and transaction volumes are now falling. In spite of this, given a limited pipeline of new development coupled with robust demand, we do not foresee any potential for downward price adjustment in the near term.
