Rise of French property resale prices

French resale property prices have experienced year on year growth, despite a drop in the first quarter of 2012

French resale property prices have experienced year on year growth, despite a drop in the first quarter of 2012. In the Notaires de France’s latest French Property Market Report, prices are still 3.9% higher on average compared with levels recorded for the same period last year.

However, between quarter four of 2011 and the first quarter of this year, resale house prices in France fell by 1.1%. Prices for re-sale flats decreased by 1.6%, while prices for re-sale houses dropped by 1.4%.

Year on year, variations across the country have been marked. Mulhouse, for example, experienced a 12.3% drop in resale apartment prices (to €1,140/m2) between quarter one of 2011 and quarter one of 2012.

However, in the same period, Limoges resale apartment prices rose by 10.3% (to €1,360/m2). Amiens experienced the same percentage increase to €2,300/m2.

Even within one location, there can be big contrasts, depending on the type of property. In N�mes, resale apartment prices dropped by a sizeable 13.3% year on year (to €1,670/m2), while prices of resale houses have remained stable, even inching up slightly by 0.5% to an average of €209,000.

There has been a less dramatic variation in fortunes when it comes to new apartments. The region that experienced the biggest drop in prices between the first quarters of 2011 and 2012 was Poitou-Charentes (6.9%, down to €3,342/m2).

Interestingly, two of France’s least expensive regions experienced the biggest increases in the prices of new apartments – in Limousin prices rose by 14.9% (up to €2,820/m2) while Auvergne had a hike of 9.5% (up to €2,873).

www.notaires.fr