THERE is no shortage of apartments in Paris, but try to find one with the finish and features to match a jetset lifestyle and you risk unleashing an existential crisis. Yet as France readies itself for the economic revolution promised by the new President Nicolas Sarkozy, a new City Lofts development designed to appeal to masters of the business universe has arrived.

The development of 33 apartments, on 81 Avenue Victor Hugo, is impeccably located in the prestigious 16th arrondissement in an typically elegant Haussmann-era building. Almost all exterior features are intact: from a grand gated entrance to a 400 sq m (1,300 sq ft) courtyard and cast-iron balconies that allow ceiling-height windows to be thrown open in summer.

Inside, previous occupants with a passion for subdivision have stripped out many features. Thus City Lofts, which has worked in association with Conran and Partners since 2003 and purchased the building last year, has had free rein almost throughout. Family-size units have been reinstated – three and four-bedroom flats of 200 sq m make up the bulk – and pastel carpets and faded parquetry stripped out. Conran has had the task of finding the “perfect balance” between the features that remain (polished wood floors and original mouldings and fireplaces) and our lust for slick, modern living (oversized, fully kitted kitchens and bathrooms). The combination does feel, in parts, forced – but, buyers can count on space, light and finishes that put the fusty apartments in nearby estate agents’ windows to shame. City Lofts has also added valet parking, a 24-hour concierge and a “micro-gym” – perfect for those working in the La Défense business district, just ten minutes’ drive away.

The end product will not come cheap: fourbed flats of about 200 sq m are priced from €3.3 million (£2.24 million). The 29 sq m studios, promoted as suitable for staff, are priced from £220,000 – yet have the same Conran interiors.

Market report on Paris

Figures from Knight Frank, out this week, show that France, where property prices are rising just 7.7 per cent a year (down from 14.2 per cent in 2003), has been creeping down the list of favoured destinations for British investors: it is now in 14th place, down from seventh. But prices in Paris, up 12 per cent last year, are somewhat bucking the trend. The improved Eurostar, the Sarkozy effect and the Conran touch will all do that little bit to help.

City Lofts 00 33 1 450 173 24 www.citylofts.co.uk

Catch Sir Terence Conran’s views on design in an online interview today at timesonline.co.uk/property

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