Second home in Courchevel: the guide

The ski-in label covers very uneven realities. The real return is tested at the end of the day: carrying skis, a groomed passage or an open run, the exposure of the snow. A few dozen metres on foot, or ten metres of difference in height, change the use of a chalet and its value. Home Select has it checked at the foot of the property, on video with the seller’s agent, not on a plan.

In serviced residences and new developments, a commercial lease or an obligation to let can restrict your weeks of occupation: for a second home, it is often the deciding point. The rules, the charges, concierge, pool, shuttles, and the exit conditions are read before signing. Building rights and the resort’s rules finally govern renovation and extension, and energy renovation weighs on mountain buildings: have the works costed before the offer.

The ski season runs from early December to late April; in summer, the resort lives to the rhythm of hiking and cycling, at a gentler pace. In between, a Courchevel second home is closed, and that is where its real cost is played out. Who sets the heating to frost protection, who clears the access before you arrive, who watches the roof after heavy snowfall, who reopens the chalet before the festive season?

Living in Courchevel all year round remains a rare choice: the valley is organised around Moûtiers and Bozel for schools, shops and services. Running a chalet therefore relies on a concierge service, a caretaker and maintenance and snow-clearing contracts, to be planned before the purchase. An apartment in a residence with services is simpler to manage, provided its charges and its lease have been read. Home Select builds this logic of absence into the selection from the start.

The market has two active windows: autumn, from September to November, when buyers aim for a property ready before winter, and spring, from April to June, once the season is over. The properties that matter change hands between late spring and autumn, often without a listing, file by file: a ready file, financing and acquisition structure included, weighs more than a quick offer in February. Home Select receives more than 100 off-market properties every day and relies on a network of 15,000 partners to see what will never be published.

The method: brief by video call or by telephone, each property qualified on documents, video pre-viewings steered by Home Select with the seller’s agent, the price checked against comparable DVF sales at the chosen altitude. Then a single trip, grouping the decisive viewings: in winter to judge access to the slopes and the atmosphere, in the off-season for the calm. Chambéry is about 1 h 30 away, Geneva about 2 h 20, Moûtiers TGV station about 40 minutes by road. Negotiation, securing the sale agreement and coordinating the notary follow, with a power of attorney possible for the deed. Home Select charges its fees 100% on success: nothing is owed before the deed.