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Nice, the capital of France's famous Riviera, has once again become the by-word for glamour, charisma and that certain French sense of style that translates into an easy life. The place to been seen, to be hedonistic, to relax and to eat well.

The Riviera has gone through countless transformations over the last 150 years following the discovery of its charms by the British aristocracy and then later the Americans in the 1920s and 30s. In the last 10 years the most famous stretch of beach in the world (from St.Tropez to Menton on the Italian border) has been through a significant renaissance and has once again become the destination of choice for many wealthy Europeans and Americans.

But the extraordinary phenomenon of this area is that you don't have to be a millionaire to get your slice of the Riviera , especially if you are a fan of urban living. It's true there is a vast selection of villas and old farm houses in the hills behind Nice that are worth many millions of dollars, but if you want to buy a well presented apartment in Nice itself, just minutes from the beach, your budget wouldn't need to go much over $180,000. Those who have bought property in Nice do warn potential buyers from the US that if you don't make an effort to learn at least the basics of the language and try to integrate, it can be a difficult transition. But they add there's lots of help available for new American buyers with a large expatriate community and clubs like the English-American Bridge club, the English-American library and a vast array of social gatherings all year round.

The Brits have been the busiest buyers in the South of France for the last 6 years due mainly to the birth of a number of highly successful low cost airlines in England and Ireland that dump 40 planeloads of British sun seekers onto the shores of the Cote d'Azur every day. Buyers from other countries are reaping the benefits of the "British invasion" as the city of Nice has seriously cleaned up its image over the last 5 years because of pressure from the mainly middle class buyers who want a safer, tidier, cleaner environment

The latest French real estate statistics show that present day buyers will probably see a 15 to 20 percent rise in their investment over the next year. But it's the American invasion that is getting many agents very animated. They say the South of France is seeing many more Americans enquiring about property over the last twelve months. US clients are returning to the Riviera in ever growing numbers following the slump in tourism following 9/11. There is certainly a lot more Americans in the streets of Nice, Cannes , Monaco and St. Tropez than there has been for years.

As in all areas of the world being a foreign buyer comes with its own inherent problems, so you have to be careful, but a good agency will help you avoid any possible pitfalls, steer you through the bureaucracy and make the buying experience a pleasant one. With that in mind there are a few Golden Rules for buying in France .

1. Find an agency with fluent English speaking sales staff. Some of the biggest problems faced by foreign buyers are misunderstandings caused by not knowing the local vernacular.

2. Talk to the agents you want to deal with before you travel or wish to start looking at properties. You'll quickly get a sense of their professionalism over the phone if they can answer your queries about the local property market in detail.

3. Do your research. Have a good understanding of the region and a fairly good idea of where and what you want to buy. This will help both the agents and yourself in securing the exact apartment or house you want without spending days sitting in a car seeing hopelessly inappropriate properties.

4. Ask for references. If an agency is doing a good job for its English speaking clients they should be able to send you the details of a least 3 happy clients who can tell you all about their purchase and the agency you wish to work with.

5. Get a good Notaire. A Notaire is a peculiarity in the French property market. He's a semi-government appointee who trains for seven years to deal with every intricacy of your property purchase. The Notaire is essentially a property lawyer who makes sure that there are no debts associated with the property and that a freeway is not going to be built through your living room in five years time. He also administers the now mandatory search for asbestos, termites and lead in the apartment. A good Notaire will hold your hand as an independent party in the transaction. A bad one can be arrogant and off-hand. Technically as an independent party the Notaire can act for both sides in the transaction but it's always advisable to get your own and it doesn't cost you any more.