NEWS
PROPERTY MARKET: OPTIMISTIC OUTLOOK Keeping you up to date with the French property market,
AU COURANT news, travel and events A
fter two years of a steep decline, there finally seems to be an end in sight to the
downward cycle in the French property market, according to the annual report from the Notaires de France. Transactions reached a
record level of 1.2 million in August 2021, a very different picture to the last few years. By the end of 2024, the Notaires estimate a transactions figure of 750,000 for resale (non new- build) homes. Although this will be the
lowest point since May 2015, the Notaires say that optimism is the order of the day, in a market that is still governed by credit rates. It is hoped that successive decisions by the European Central Bank to lower its key rates and the re-energisation of banking institutions will enable more buyers to return to the market. Limited access to credit has
been a sticking point for some time, with notaires noting a large number of mortgage refusals. This has particularly affected younger and first-time buyers, who generally need finance in order to proceed with a purchase.
Annecy in Haute-Savoie, which has seen strong interest from overseas buyers in the past year Indeed, the report notes
that since the start of 2024, the share of sales to older buyers increased significantly; 56% of sales recorded in the second quarter. The share of sales to those aged 70 and over (33%) increased by 3% over one year, and the average age of sellers rose from 59 years and 10 months to 61 years between 2023 and 2024.
PRICE DROPS EASE The fall in property prices has
THE EVOLUTION OF OVERSEAS BUYERS IN FRANCE 2019
2021
been easing off too. While the value of resale homes fell to -5% in the 2nd quarter of 2024, the decline is predicted to ease significantly to -2.6% by the end of November 2024 (figures not yet available). This slowdown is expected to be faster for apartments (-2.2%) than for houses (-2.9%). Although the situation
remains uncertain, confidence seems to be returning to the market, say the Notaires. The stabilisation of prices, after
a pronounced correction, particularly in large cities, combined with more favourable credit rates, should produce a more positive picture.
2024
OVERSEAS BUYERS The share of foreign buyers has risen slightly compared with 2023. The increase was seen most prominently in the Gers and Haute-Savoie departments, where overseas buyers now represent 7% and 12% of transactions. This puts Haute- Savoie just behind the Alpes- Maritimes département, which is renowned for its global mix of homeowners, and which had 13% of overseas buyers in 2024, compared with 9% in 2021. Most of the southwest and
south of France has seen a bounceback of overseas buyers, with the rest of the country generally showing stable transaction levels. Only a few departments have
■ Increasing ■ Stable ■ Decreasing 10 FRENCH PROPERTY NEWS: March/April 2025
seen the proportion of foreign buyers fall over the year. This includes Creuse, which dropped by 1%.
©SHUTTERSTOCK
©NOTAIRES DE FRANCE
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