Real estate sales volumes in France hit all-time highs

Between January and March, real estate prices increased by 3% compared to 2018, while over the past year, sales numbers reached 985,000.

While real estate prices increased in the first trimester in France, maintaining last year’s momentum (+3%), sales volumes have hit a new record, according to data published by INSEE and French notaries.

Over the past twelve months, the number of real estate transactions reached 985,000, a never-before-seen level.  Price increases remain in line with those observed in 2018 (+3.2%), as the market has been booming for several years now, most notably due to the accessibility of “easy money” following an accommodating monetary policy issued from the ECB.

Both price levels and first trimester sales volumes correspond as well to the information, however intrinsically fragmented, given by major real estate branch networks at the beginning of the year.

Unaffected by les gilets jaunes

While certain market specialists feared the consequences of the gilets jaunes movement, or even the introduction of withholding tax, the real estate market, in its entirety, shows no signs of slowing down.

This situation, nevertheless, does not fully account for differences between France’s many regions: prices increase at an accelerated rate in Paris (+6.4%), where they have been skyrocketing for years now, and to a lesser degree throughout Île-de-France (+3.9%).

Increases slow down slightly, however, outside of the Paris region (+2.6%), although this number generally varies from one city to another, as well as from one rural area to another, where the market has remained static for some years now.

Source: Immobilier ancien : le nombre de transactions à un niveau record

Cover photo: Larry Johnson [CC BY 2.0]