FRANCE:THREE SALE and leaseback developments - one in Paris, one near Geneva airport, and one an hour from Lyon and Grenoble - are being offered for sale through agent CB French Property.

Studio and one-bedroom apartments in Residence Suisse, 15 minutes' from Geneva city centre, will cost from €71,274 to €144,257, and offer returns of 5.2 per cent. Units in Residence Aquarelia, a seniors' residence in Voiron, an hour from Grenoble, Lyon and Chambery, will cost from €87,250 and offer returns of 5.7 per cent. These are both due to be completed in the first quarter of 2010.

The Paris sale and leaseback is called Residence Paris and is in the Marais-Bastille district, close to Place des Vosges and Place de la Bastille. The seven-storey building has an internal courtyard garden. It has been open since 1996.

Apartments in this development cost from €232,500 and come with a return of 4 per cent.

A number of Irish buyers have run into problems with sale and leaseback apartments bought in the past few years, because their management companies have gone out of business.

Agent CB French Property says: "The leaseback is an investment like any other, the element of risk is never zero no matter how much homework people carry out. The location of the residence (for its target market) is very important, the experience of the management company and its financial stability are also vital. You can obtain a financial statement on any French company by going into the Register of Commerce online."

www.cb-french-property-consultancy.com