The best places to buy real estate in France

Interested in investing in property in France, but unsure as to which cities are the most promising?  

A study by meilleursagents.com has ranked the nation’s ten largest cities according to investment potential, based on the following factors: the price of property, the age of the population, the amount of time taken to purchase a property, unemployment rates, purchasing power, and migration rates.  The most highly-ranked cities were given a maximum of five stars.

So, where should you invest?  Thelocal.fr has condensed the data, presenting an idea of which cities are your best bet and which ones are best to avoid.

Rennes was the only city awarded a five-star rating, due to its low unemployment rate, young population (the average age is 31 years old) and the short time in which property sales transactions are completed (59 days on average). Prices here are expected to increase 6% over the next 12 months.

Nantes, in the Loire Valley close to the Atlantic coast, Toulouse in the southwest, and Lyon toward Eastern France, were given four stars for comparable reasons, as was Paris, although higher prices in the capital (€9,300 per square meter as opposed to €2,726/m2 in Rennes or €2,900/m2 in Lille) have limited the size of the property people can afford to buy (only 20 m2 on average).  According to the study, house prices in these four cities should rise by 5% this year.

Lille and Strasbourg were awarded 3 stars, despite their high unemployment rates, because the property market in these cities remains relatively dynamic.

Sliding down the list figures last year’s five-star winner, Bordeaux, which was only given two stars this year.  Despite the success of investments meant to improve the city, including the installation of high-speed train line and several renovations to the inner city, increases in house prices over recent years have caused stagnation in the overall market.  

Marseille and Montpellier were only awarded two stars as well, most notably due to their unemployment rates.  However, out of all these cities, it was Nice, on France’s Mediterranean coast, that was ranked last. The city was awarded only one star due to its aging population, extended property transaction times (90 days), and relatively high rate of migration out of the city.