Are Paris Property Prices Topping Out?
There was a big “ooh la la” from the audience when this slide came up…at last night’s Paris Soirée hosted by Patricia Laplante Collins at Eurocentres (click on this link to the site to see the photo —
About 60 people — Americans, French and a variety of Anglophones of other nationalities came to have mingle, have dinner (great cooking by Patricia) and of course, to learn how to find their dream apartment in Paris. One Parisienne had been looking for six months with no luck in sight. So, you can imagine that if a native Parisian who’s here 100% of the time can’t make heads or tails of property in Paris, it’s any wonder why those of you who are trying to do it from afar are having a rough go.
Finding your dream apartment in Paris is a big subject…way too big for just one hour with a PowerPoint presentation and another 45 minutes of Q’s and A’s — which were bountiful. Americans coming to the arena with the experience they’ve known Stateside of an MLS system (Multiple Listing Service) that enables any agent to show and sell any property, title insurance to give them security of ownership and minimal closing costs are in for a rude awakening. Real estate life in Paris (and all of France) is a different matter entirely, so we must shed all we’ve known to be true and start with a clean slate.
Very interesting for most of the audience was a discussion of the trends of property prices as the city evolves. A visit to http://www.paris.notaires.fr/fr/immobilier/20031009_indices/chiffres_cles.html will give you the current prices per square meter and the evolution of the prices by arrondissement. But beware, these averages are 30% to 50% less than you will actually pay for a property you’d want to live in (for a variety of reasons)! Special neighborhoods to watch for long term appreciation (of our own predictions)…the 2nd around rue Montorgeuil, all of the 3rd (watch the little corner around rue Volta and rue au Maire) and surprisingly large parts of the 10th (where the Bobo’s are now investing — “plus Bourgeiois que Bohème”).
But no matter where you end up buying in Paris, it’s a low-risk investment. Property values just keep rising — right now at 13.9% overall from second quarter 2002 to second quarter 2003 and with Paris now 24th on the cost of living scale, long after New York, London and Los Angeles, it’s got a way to go before topping out.
A la prochaine…
Adrian Leeds
Editor, Parler Paris
E-mail: [email protected]
P.S. For more information about the GRAND VIEW OF THE MARAIS
122,5 square meter apartment on rue de Turenne, visit the site and to get regular weekly updates, listings and information about property in Paris and all of France, subscribe to French Property Insider
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* Further resources:
* Though France might seem as familiar as any other Western country, the truth is, from paying taxes to having a baby — things are done differently in France. Read the stories how other people maneuvered the system.
* The best and fastest way to find the pied-à-terre of your dreams…
* Paris Confidential — our newest book for those who want to know the real Paris.
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