Prime prices in the Alps rose by an average of 3.2% over the past year, according to Knight Frank's Alpine report published on 22 October, with Verbier up 6.7% and St Moritz up 3.7%. Gstaad, where prices fell 2.6%, remains the most expensive resort in the index. In France, Knight Frank found the strongest growth in Courchevel Village, Courchevel Moriond and Val d'Isère, while Chamonix, Méribel and Megève were largely unchanged.
The buying process in the two countries could hardly be more different, and the rules matter as much as the price.
What prime chalets cost
Knight Frank's previous Alpine report, published in October 2025, gave prices for prime homes as at June 2025. Gstaad ranged from €42,800 to €47,300 per square metre, Courchevel 1850 from €30,600 to €33,900 and Verbier from €30,500 to €33,700. Further down the scale were Méribel at €17,400 to €19,200, Megève at €14,300 to €15,800 and Chamonix at €13,500 to €14,900. A 200 square metre chalet in Courchevel 1850 was therefore priced at well over €6 million.
Switzerland: permits, quotas and size limits
A British buyer who does not live in Switzerland needs a permit from the canton to buy a holiday home under the federal law known as Lex Koller. The rules are strict:
- The home must be in a place the canton has designated as a holiday resort, and cantons share a national quota of 1,500 holiday-home units a year. Some cantons allow none.
- Living space is generally limited to 200 square metres and land to 1,000 square metres, although more can be allowed where a need is shown.
- The buyer must be an individual, not a company, and may own only one such home in Switzerland. It can be let from time to time, but not all year round.
Separately, the Second Homes Act stops new second homes being built in communes where they already make up more than 20% of housing. Since 1 October 2024, homes built before March 2012 may be rebuilt or enlarged by up to 30%. In April 2026 the Federal Council consulted on tightening Lex Koller further, including smaller cantonal quotas and a permit requirement when one foreign owner sells to another. Those proposals are not yet law, but a buyer should follow them.
France: open to all, with higher local taxes
France places no restrictions on foreign buyers. On a resale home, purchase costs, usually called notary fees, are typically around 7% to 8% of the price; most departments have raised the transfer duty within them for sales between April 2025 and March 2028.
Running costs are rising in popular resorts. A 2023 decree extended to around 3,700 communes, including Chamonix and Morzine, the power to add a surcharge of 5% to 60% to the council tax on second homes. Letting is also more regulated: under the Loi Le Meur, the tax allowance on unclassified holiday lets fell from 50% to 30% from 2025, and communes can require registration.
Days, snow and the long view
Switzerland is part of the Schengen area, so days spent in a Swiss chalet and a French one count towards the same limit of 90 days in any 180 for British visitors without a residence permit.
Altitude matters more than it used to. A study by Météo-France and INRAE published in Nature Climate Change in December 2023 found that, with 2°C of warming, 53% of the 2,234 European ski resorts studied would face a very high risk of poor snow without snowmaking. Higher resorts with good snowmaking are better placed, and buyers increasingly weigh summer appeal as well as winter.
Before buying
- In Switzerland, confirm with a local notary that the property and the buyer qualify for a permit, and how long the canton takes to grant one.
- In France, ask the commune about second-home council tax and any rules on letting.
- Check the altitude, the lift links and the resort's snowmaking.
- Budget for service charges, management and the cost of the home standing empty for much of the year.
None of this is legal or tax advice; a local notary and a tax adviser in both countries should confirm the position before an offer.
Dolce Vita handles sales and lettings across the UK from Mayfair, and helps clients buy abroad through partner agencies. If you are selling or letting a UK home to fund a chalet, Request a valuation; we acknowledge the same working day and return a written valuation within 24 to 48 hours.
Hanane Dawson, Founder
Sources: Knight Frank, "Peak performance: prime mountain property trends in 2026" (Alpine report), 22 October 2026. Knight Frank, Alpine Property Report, "Peaks and prices", 20 October 2025. ch.ch, "Buying property in Switzerland as a foreigner". Federal Office of Justice, Lex Koller guidelines, updated 20 July 2026, and consultation on amending Lex Koller, 15 April 2026. Swiss Federal Council, second homes amendment in force 1 October 2024, 13 September 2024. LCL, increase in transfer duties, 1 July 2025. Banque des Territoires, second-home council tax surcharge extended to 2,500 more communes, 29 August 2023. Service-Public.fr, Loi Le Meur, updated 20 January 2025. gov.uk, Switzerland travel advice: entry requirements. INRAE, "Climate change and snow cover in European ski resorts", December 2023.