buying French property
Where are the property investment bargains in France? Having just spent two weeks wandering around Northern and middle-France to take a look at the markets and see what is going on on the ground as it were, I would say they have not yet surfaced, and the stunning amount of property for sale in France means we have a lot further to fall before seeing genuine bargains. I visited Brittany and the Dordogne to see just what was going on.
Hand written price reductions in a French Estate Agents Window
After months of denying the reality of the real estate correction, professionals in the industry have finally admitted there is a correction undrway. Figures published last week by the Chamber of Notaries of Paris-Ile-de-France tell a different tale to the usual “we are immune,” coming from the FNAIM. The housing market all but collapsed in the Paris region – 22 980 transactions were recorded in the first quarter of 2009 against 39 580 during the same period in 2008, a drop of 41% and the lowest figure since 1986.
Property prices around the world continue to decline as the financial crisis continues its way through the system. I don’t think anyone is under any illusions any more that we have not yet reached bottom. These are some headlines, although where bottom is is becoming more and more difficult to predict. With governments in disarray and it becoming clear that the banks have continued to disguise their true losses – even now. Available credit still presents a problem, and mortgage approvals are still extremely low.
Cuba the next big property investment destination? How badly will Panama Crash? How much commercial property will default this year? How far will prices fall on the Cote D’Azur? And more importantly – are we there yet?
According to the French National Federation of Real Estate (la Fédération nationale de l’immobilier or Fnaim) prices are expected to fall all over France in 2009. No surprises here, but the spokesman, René Pallincourt, was typically upbeat, suggesting that prices had only fallen 3.1% in 2008, and would only fall another 10% in 2009.
Coming towards the end of 2008, news from property markets around the world seems to be more of the same. So what is end-2008 looking like, and what to look forward to in 2009?
More on Property Market News and a look forward to 2009 for British Property Investors
This is actually hot news. I don’t normally cover celebrity property, but it is nice to see one of the lesser-known blogs pick up on something before the established blogs.
The Luxury Property blog reports that the Jolie/Pitts (or should that be the Pitt/Jolies?) have just spent a sizable sum on buying a vineyard in the South of France: Château Miraval. 1,000 acres, all the privacy in the world and one of the best wines in Provence.
More on Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt Buy in the South of France
An interesting new property investment phenomenon came to my attention recently. There are certain parts of the world where property prices have reached the point that it has become extremely difficult to get on the first rung of the investment ladder. This is what caught my eye:
French supermarket chain, Casino, has announced three major property deals which it says will take its property management strategy into a new phase, and generate EUR650m (US$928m) in cash in the current fiscal year.
There are a lot of things you do on autopilot that are just tiny threads in the normal fabric of your life. Grabbing a quick burrito for lunch, buying a pair of shoes, popping into Kroger for a gallon of milk. These are the things that make up life on a normal day. When you move overseas, these things may not happen any more and suddenly you realize you don’t have “normal” anymore and that what was your normal life is maybe unravelling a bit. You crave what used to be normal to you, and when you’re a Texan, that’s probably not going to be found on the French Riviera.
