The Top Ten Best Addresses in Paris

It was a big shock. I waited Monday night at midnight in front of my Web cam for Erica to log on to Skype so the co-op board could grill me ‘virtually.’ But no, just three board members sauntered in, took 15 minutes to ask a handful of questions of my daughter and it was a done deal…she and I are soon to be proud owners of a studio apartment in the West Village with a perfect view of the Empire State Building.

It’s almost as good as having a perfect view of the Eiffel Tower. Never mind. The closing is planned to be on her 23rd birthday, October 1. Not bad for a kid who grew up in Paris considered to be a “double American” — with both parents American transplants.

With the current turn of economic events Stateside, the investment feels a bit like skating on thin ice, but an article on CNN.com Monday about how the collapse of a couple of financial giants affects the New York housing market had this to say:

“However, any downturn in prices is likely to be met with an influx of foreign buyers, taking advantage of the weak U.S. dollar, real estate agents say. Wealthy buyers from Italy, Russia and Great Britain in particular have snapped up properties in recent months, taking advantage of their strong currency compared with the U.S. dollar.”

That’s us. That’s what’s funny. We’re foreign buyers. And we took advantage of the strong euro, not to mention the equity built in our Paris properties. If it weren’t for those, a New York “pied-à-terre” would never have been possible.

We’re not worried — those of us with Eiffel Tower views — because Paris just continues to remain a strong market with increases still hovering at about 10% annually. The economy will likely soften a bit, but with the U.S. dollar strengthening, Americans will have more buying power. The Russians and Italians are coming in with suitcases of cash (each for different reasons), and buying up quite substantial properties with their extravagant tastes and proud heritages.

No matter what, the key is purchasing the RIGHT property. You know what they say: “Location, location, location.” It couldn’t be truer. If you can afford it, then don’t buy ‘off of center,’ otherwise you increase the investment risk.

Paris will always be Paris, like New York will always be New York. And most of Paris, like most of New York City, is considered “center.” Still, there are better districts, better addresses than others, and these are the prime property players.

The ten best addresses in Paris, in my opinion? In this order:

1. Place des Vosges, 4th	6. Le Marais (depends where!), 3rd and 4th
2. Place Dauphine, 1st	7. Along the Champ des Mars, 7th
3. Place Furstenberg, 6th	8. Palais Royal, 1st
4. Ile Saint-Louis, 4th	9. Almost Anywhere Along the Seine, 1st, 4th, 5th, 6th, 7th, 8th
5. Saint-Germain-des-Prés, 6th (depends where!)	10. Parc Monceau, 8th

Adrian Leeds
Editor, Parler Paris

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