The average price per m² in Bonneville is 3 241 €/m² for an apartment, based on actual notarised (DVF) sales. About 146 transactions are recorded each year.
Atmospheric illustration of Bonneville, at the confluence of the Arve and the Borne in Haute-Savoie.
The average price recorded in Bonneville stands at 3 241 €/m². This average covers a stock of main residences rather than a holiday-home stock: according to INSEE (France's national statistics institute), nearly 90 % of dwellings are occupied year-round and second homes account for only 3,9 %, a profile that clearly sets Bonneville apart from the neighbouring resorts. Apartments dominate, with 60,5 % of the stock against 38,5 % houses, and 72 % of dwellings were built after 1970. The average price recorded for houses and villas comes out at 3 873 €/m². The location within the valley, the year of construction and energy performance explain most of the gaps. The figures come from the DVF database (the French record of notarised property sales), which lists the transactions actually registered with notaries.
Prices from the DVF file (Demandes de valeurs foncières, published by the DGFiP), transactions actually recorded at the notary at municipality level. Cross-referenced with the Notaires de France - INSEE indices. Learn more about our methodology.
The Bonneville market rests on its role as a valley town more than on a tourist vocation. Halfway between Geneva and Chamonix, the municipality captures a demand for main residences driven by cross-border employment and by a local industrial fabric, which supports prices as the population grows, at 13 335 inhabitants in 2023 after a rise of nearly 6 % since 2017. With only 3,9 % second homes according to INSEE, most transactions involve dwellings intended to be occupied year-round, a more stable profile than that of the neighbouring resorts dependent on the ski season.
The supply remains dominated by the apartment, in a stock built mostly after 1970 whose energy performance now weighs in negotiations. The proximity of Geneva and the motorway service keep up pressure on the best-located dwellings, while the loi Montagne and the constraints of the valley limit sprawl. The price differential with the resorts of the Côte du Faucigny and the Aravis remains marked: Bonneville positions itself as a more affordable gateway for those who work in the valley or towards the Swiss border.
A valley town with a residential vocation, Bonneville sits slightly below its valley-floor neighbours such as Sallanches and Annemasse, and far below mountain resorts such as Le Grand-Bornand. The gap comes from the absence of a holiday-home market and the weight of main residences.
Bonneville was born in the 13th century at the instigation of Peter II of Savoy, at the confluence of the Arve and the Borne, a strategic site commanding the entrance to the valley. The town received its name in 1283 from Beatrice of Faucigny, who granted it a charter of franchises in 1289. Dominated by the castle of the lords of Faucigny, it established itself as the chief town of this former Savoyard province, halfway between Lake Geneva and the Mont-Blanc massif.
The medieval castle lost its military function and became a place of detention, a use that lasted until 1934. Bonneville for its part kept an administrative role: it is today one of the three sub-prefectures of Haute-Savoie and the chief town of its arrondissement. On the banks of the Arve stands the Charles-Félix column, raised in wood in 1824 then rebuilt in stone in 1826 to thank King Charles-Félix for having funded the embankment works on the river. Some twenty metres high and crowned with a Carrara marble statue, it remains a monument unique of its kind in Savoy.
The recent history is that of a valley town turned towards industry. Bonneville marks the entrance to the Arve valley, an area renowned for bar turning and precision metalworking, and hosts industrial sites that provide employment. Its population, 13 335 inhabitants in 2023, has grown by nearly 6 % since 2017, driven by its position between Geneva and the Alps and by the motorway service of the valley.
According to INSEE, Bonneville has 13 335 inhabitants for 5 541 dwellings, of which around 90 % are main residences. Second homes account for only 3,9 % and vacant dwellings 6,3 %, far from the balances of the area's mountain resorts. The stock leans towards apartment blocks, with 60,5 % apartments to 38,5 % houses. Among households, 46,2 % are owner-occupiers, which leaves a large share of tenants: Bonneville is first and foremost a town of year-round residents, workers in industry, public services and the cross-border sector. Buyers here are looking mainly for a main home, the apartment for first-time buyers and cross-border workers, the house for settled families, rather than a holiday property.
The average price recorded is 3 241 €/m², calculated from transactions registered with notaries and published in the DVF database. It is a municipal average, mixing the small town-centre apartment and the hillside house. The average price recorded for houses and villas reaches 3 873 €/m². The location within the municipality, the year of construction, the condition and the energy performance explain most of the gaps. A serious valuation relies on comparable sales, not on the average alone.
This page concerns Bonneville in Haute-Savoie (INSEE code 74042), a sub-prefecture in the Arve valley, between Geneva and Chamonix. Another municipality bears the same name in the Somme, in the Hauts-de-France: it has no connection with the property market described here. The prices, trends and sale references shown on this page relate only to the Savoyard Bonneville.
The supply is mostly in apartment blocks. According to INSEE, apartments account for 60,5 % of dwellings against 38,5 % houses, and nearly three quarters of the stock dates from after 1970. Apartments are concentrated in the centre and the residential districts of the valley, while houses are spread across the hillsides and the hamlets, with variable sizes and plots. The price gap per square metre between apartment blocks and detached housing makes the valuation of a house more dependent on its condition and its plot than on the municipal average.
Bonneville occupies a crossroads position in the Arve valley, halfway between the Geneva conurbation and the Mont-Blanc massif. The A40 motorway, known as the autoroute Blanche, serves the municipality directly and places Geneva and Annemasse around thirty minutes away, which feeds a demand for housing linked to cross-border work. This accessibility, coupled with a local industrial fabric, supports an active market of main residences all year round, regardless of the tourist season.
The municipality falls under the loi Montagne (France's mountain-planning law), which governs urban development and the appearance of buildings, its altitude ranging from 428 to nearly 1 900 metres. Set at the confluence of the Arve and the Borne, it is also exposed to flood risk, governed by a risk-prevention plan: the Charles-Félix column is in fact a reminder of the former embankment works on the river. Before a purchase, it is worth consulting the risk zoning that applies to the address and anticipating the taxation tied to the nature of the property.
This analysis is published by Immover, an independent observatory founded by Antony Barbier. Data sourced from official sources (DVF, INSEE, Notaries of France).