Paris real estate attracts more diverse buyers in recent years

Purchases of older, existing homes by foreigners often focus the attention of real estate market observers on relatively few, emblematic transactions carried out by wealthy clients. But detailed statistical analysis highlights a more nuanced reality and trends that go beyond these highlights, as shown in the attached graphs.

Foreign buyers not resident in France (whose main residence is located outside France)

Foreigners who do not live in France represent only a very small portion of home buyers in the Paris Region (0.8% of buyers were in this situation in 2022, a relatively stable proportion over time). Unsurprisingly, they tend to buy apartments rather than houses, which are mainly intended to be pied-à-terres, in Paris and more rarely in the Hauts-de-Seine. The apartments they buy are slightly larger and, above all, much more expensive than those of other buyer profiles.

In Paris, non-resident foreigners accounted for 2.8% of purchases in 2022, for a “median” property of 51 square meters at €12,450 per square meter, with a budget of €635,100. They prefer the 6th and 7th arrondissements, the two most expensive districts in Paris, where they account for 11% and 13% of sales respectively.

In 2022, in Paris, foreign buyers who live outside of France are primarily from the United States with more than 200 purchases (23%), followed by Lebanon (12%), Italy (9%) and Germany (8%). Non-US residents, who benefited from a strong dollar during the year, purchased the most expensive properties (median purchase budget of €825,000 in 2022, or €12,890 per square meter for 64 square meters).

French buyers not residing in France (whose primary residence is located outside France)

These French people have behaviors quite similar to those of the previous category, but slightly attenuated. Undoubtedly expatriates, with high purchasing power and the desire to have a central location, they also favor Paris. They account for 1.3% of home purchases in the Paris region and 3.8% in Paris. This share is fairly constant over the long term.

Like non-resident foreigners, non-resident French residents favor the center of the capital and represent about 10% of buyers in the 6th and 7th arrondissements of Paris.

Resident foreign buyers (who live in France)

The share of foreigners residing in France, which represented 6.4% of Ile-de-France home buyers in 2002, has risen to 9.6% in 2022, a steady increase over the past 10 years.

Among non-French resident apartment buyers, the Chinese were the most represented in 2022 (15%), followed by the Portuguese (11%), Tunisians (8%), Italians and Algerians (7%), Moroccans (6%) and Romanians (5%). Italians have a higher median budget of more than €350,000, due to the large number of purchases in Paris. At the other end of the price range, Portuguese and Romanians buy apartments for less than €200,000.

Houses purchased by foreigners residing in France are smaller and less expensive (95 square meters and €314,000 in median value) than those purchased by French residents (105 square meters and €370,000). This difference is partly due to the geographic distribution of these purchases, which are less often located in the Hauts-de-Seine or Yvelines regions, where prices are much higher. However, we also observe, in all departments, the choice of less expensive houses.

Portuguese residents in France are the main buyers of homes: more than 1,000 acquisitions in 2022, or 21% of purchases by resident foreigners. They are followed by Romanians (13% of foreign buyers), Algerians (9%), Turks (7%), Chinese (6%) and Tunisians and Moroccans (5%).

Purchase prices vary little by nationality, except for the Chinese, who buy more expensive homes because they are more often located in the inner suburbs.

French resident buyers (who live in France)

Twenty years ago, French residents accounted for 91.5% of home buyers in the Paris Region. This proportion has been eroding over the years, and by 2022 it will have dropped to 88.4%. They buy slightly more expensive properties (€310,000) than foreigners in France (€270,000), but less than all those living outside France, whether foreign (€478,400) or French (€411,300).

* The data for 2022 are provisional, only the data integrated as of December 28 could be used in this focus.

Source: Notaires de Paris