Nice, Alpes-Maritimes · Neighbourhood
Buying by the port and in Vieux-Nice, Nice
Port Lympia and Vieux-Nice make up the Nice of character: baroque lanes and ochre façades between Castle Hill and the cours Saleya, quays lined with Italianate façades, apartments under the roofs and terraces with a view, and a neighbourhood life lived on foot. Home Select searches there for the buyer alone, off-market included, checks every property before the offer and negotiates through to the keys.
A first confidential conversation, with no commitment
Home Select since 2011 · 1,200+ buyers guided · 4.8/5 on Google (139 reviews) · Paid 100% on success
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01Neighbourhood
Living by the port and in Vieux-Nice
Daily life in Vieux-Nice happens in the lanes, between place Rossetti and its Sainte-Réparate cathedral, rue Droite and the cours Saleya, home to the flower market and the producers in the morning and the antiques market on Mondays. Castle Hill, with its park and waterfall, overlooks the old town and the Baie des Anges. Food shops, restaurants and terraces sit at the foot of the buildings, the opera and the quai des États-Unis a few steps away. Life here is car-free, in a district that stays lively late into the evening.
On the other side of the hill, Port Lympia lives at another pace: yachts and pointus along the quays, ferries to Corsica, place Garibaldi and its arcades linking the port to the old town. Rue Bonaparte and its surroundings have become the address for the district’s restaurants and bars, rue Catherine-Ségurane that of the antique dealers. Tram line 2 runs from the port to the airport, line 1 serves place Garibaldi and the old town, and the paths of Mont Boron start at the end of the quays.
02Neighbourhood
The buildings and what sells by the port and in Vieux-Nice
The old building of Vieux-Nice is the type specific to the district: four to six storeys on a narrow plot, ochre, red or yellow façades, painted shutters, stone staircases and rarely a lift. Apartments are often small and irregular, with beams, vaults or painted ceilings in the finest palazzi. Top floors with a roof terrace are the most sought-after properties: they gain the light and the view that the lanes deny the lower floors. The old town is covered by a safeguarding plan that governs façades, roofs and sometimes interiors.
Around the port, the buildings date mainly from the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, from the digging of Port Lympia and the laying out of place Garibaldi: Italianate buildings with ordered façades, arcades on the square, apartments more regular and better lit than in the old town. Floors on the quays gain a view of the boats and Castle Hill, those on the back streets the calm.
Streets and micro-sectors
- 01
The quays of the port
From place de l’Île-de-Beauté and its Notre-Dame-du-Port church to the quai des Deux-Emmanuel, the quays line up the coloured façades that frame the basin. Upper floors gain the view of the boats and, on the east side, sunsets over Castle Hill. The trade-off is port traffic, ferries and terraces: double glazing and the position of the bedrooms are checked before the offer.
- 02
Place Garibaldi and rue Bonaparte
Around place Garibaldi and its arcades, the buildings of the Sardinian era offer regular apartments, often dual-aspect, at the hinge between the port and the old town. Rue Bonaparte and the nearby streets, very lively at night, suit those who love neighbourhood life; upper floors and courtyard apartments gain the calm.
- 03
The heart of Vieux-Nice
Between rue Droite, place Rossetti and rue de la Préfecture, the lanes hold the oldest buildings, often without a lift, with character apartments and a few grand floors in the baroque palazzi. Light, floor and the noise of the terraces make the whole difference in value, from one lane to the next.
- 04
The cours Saleya and the Ponchettes
Towards the sea, the cours Saleya and the Ponchettes, long low houses with flat roofs between the market and the quai des États-Unis, open the old town onto the Baie des Anges. Addresses there gain the sea a few steps away and views over the rooftops; they also get the market from dawn and the evening crowds.
03Neighbourhood
How Home Select hunts by the port and in Vieux-Nice?
Home Select follows the port and Vieux-Nice street by street, with a written brief that sets the floor, the light, the terrace, whether a lift is required and the noise tolerated on the lane or quay side. Home Select receives more than 100 off-market properties every day from its network of 15,000 professional partners, which gives it access to top floors and character apartments sold between neighbours. The search is run remotely: every property is qualified from the documents, then the property finder has a video pre-viewing carried out, staircase and terrace included, before presenting it.
Before the offer, the property finder audits from the documents what makes the value or the risk of an old property: minutes of the co-owners’ meetings, façade works approved or pending, the condition of roofs and staircases, lead, electrics and energy surveys, the compliance of terraces and converted attics with the safeguarding plan. Structure, roof timbers and damp on the lower floors call for a building surveyor: have them examined before the offer. The buyer then views only the shortlisted properties, with the decisive viewings grouped into a single trip, and Home Select negotiates for the buyer alone, on the strength of that file.
Three finder’s reflexes by the port and in Vieux-Nice
- 01 Listen to the lane on a Saturday night
An apartment in Vieux-Nice does not sound the same on a Tuesday morning and a Saturday night: terraces, deliveries, refuse collection and parties cannot be measured in the middle of the day. The property finder has a second video pre-viewing carried out at the least favourable time before advising an offer, above all for bedrooms on the street side.
- 02 Pay for the terrace, not the promise
A roof terrace is checked in the deeds: private part, exclusive right of use or a construction never authorised? The property finder checks the co-ownership rules, the permits granted and the requirements of the safeguarding plan. An irregular terrace is negotiated hard or declined, whatever the view.
- 03 Count the floors without a lift
A fifth floor without a lift is lived every day, with the shopping and the suitcases. The video pre-viewing films the staircase and its condition, and the property finder checks whether a lift is possible, approved or impossible in the building: the answer changes the price as well as the resale.
A property finder answers within one working day. A first confidential conversation, with no commitment.
On the ground
Why a property finder by the port and in Vieux-Nice?
The best addresses never list
On this market, a share of the sought-after properties sells before publication, between families and through notaires and local networks. Home Select receives more than 100 off-market properties every day from its network of 15,000 partners.
You only view the essential
Every lead is verified and priced for you before you travel, on file then on a video viewing: you view only the shortlisted properties, your decisive viewings grouped into a single trip. Home Select then defends your offer, with a complete file and the actual sales of the area in hand.
The building audited before you commit
Surveys, co-ownership rules, easements, local building specifics: every document is checked before you commit.
Fees
Two offers, paid on success
- 2.5% of the net purchase price
- Exclusive offer The full service, at every budget. Minimum €10,000 incl. VAT.
- 1.5% of the net purchase price
- Confidential offer The same service, dedicated to off-market properties. Reserved for projects of €2m and above.
Home Select is paid 100% on success: nothing is due until you have bought.
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Frequently asked questions
Buying by the port and in Vieux-Nice: your questions
How much does an apartment cost by the port and in Vieux-Nice?
The port and Vieux-Nice generally sell below the seafront, with wide gaps depending on the floor, the terrace and the condition of the building. In Nice, the median stands at €4,900 per m² for apartments over the 12 months to end of June 2026 according to DVF data, and small units sell for more per square metre, €5,500 per m² for studios, than large apartments, €4,400 per m² for five rooms or more. Home Select does not publish prices by district: the DVF record covers the commune as a whole.
What types of property are found by the port and in Vieux-Nice?
Four types: the character apartment in an old Vieux-Nice building, often with one or two bedrooms, the top floor with a roof terrace, the more regular apartment in the Italianate buildings of the port, sometimes overlooking the boats, and a few grand floors in the baroque palazzi. Terraces and port views are the rarest and often change hands off-market.
Is the district suitable for a family?
The port more than the old town: more regular buildings, larger apartments, more frequent lifts, and Castle Hill with its playgrounds and the Promenade du Paillon for fresh air. Vieux-Nice suits independent families who accept the stairs and the evening liveliness. State schools follow catchment sectors that change from one street to the next: the property finder checks the catchment of the exact address before the offer.
Can I carry out works in Vieux-Nice?
The old town is a site patrimonial remarquable with a safeguarding plan: façades, windows, roofs and sometimes notable interiors are restored according to its requirements, with the approval of the Architecte des Bâtiments de France. Interior works also fall under the co-ownership rules. Have any restoration costed by a professional and allow for review periods before the offer.
How long does it take to buy, and are there off-market properties?
Small units are found quickly; a top floor with a terrace, a dual-aspect apartment on the port or a grand floor take more patience. Home Select sets the timetable from the first brief, then keeps to it, and the buyer views only the shortlisted properties, first seen on video. Off-market properties exist: terraces sold between neighbours, apartments sold through networks before any listing. For projects of €2 million and above, the Confidential Offer presents off-market properties only.
What are your fees in Nice?
Home Select, a property finder in Nice, charges 2.5% of the net purchase price (minimum €10,000 incl. VAT) on the Exclusive offer, or 1.5% on the Confidential offer for projects of €2m and above. Home Select is paid on success only: nothing is due until you have bought.
What happens next
- A property finder reads your request and answers within one working day.
- A first confidential conversation: how you will use the property, the real budget, the non-negotiable criteria, the timing.
- A written brief, and a search started within the week. Nothing is due until you have bought.
Your project in Nice
A first confidential conversation, with no commitment. A property finder answers within one working day.
- 4.8/5
- On Google (139 reviews)
- 1,200+
- Buyers guided
- 100%
- On success, nothing upfront
It takes 1 minute.
Or call Home Select directly on 01 78 76 78 10
