Because of the sanitary crisis, provinces cities are all the rage. Between 2019 and 2020, the share of household living in the capital and having bought a principal residence outside of Ile-de-France has been multiplied by two, going from 5.6% to 11.8%.
Buyers have increased their field of research in a radius of about 30 kms around the city of their choice. They also choose among the cities of less than 100,000 inhabitants preferred by the French, Cherbourg-en-Cotentin being head of the list. Prices are far more interesting. They favor houses with garden rather than those with an extra room. “French people have had two reflexes: invest money and improve their way of living” Alexander Kraft, president of Sotheby’s International Realty France-Monaco explains.
Regarding the buyers, there are not only those with comfortable incomes who have wanted a better quality of life. Indeed, there are two types of buyers: the digital nomads and the freelancers who have no pressure in terms of jobs or children, and the executives who can telecommute. “Those who had the money took advantage of the absence of foreigners to buy properties at a price between 5 and 20 millions of euros in front of the sea” adds Alexander Kraft.
France has around 45,000 châteaux, 13,000 of which are listed or registered as historic monuments. The European Heritage Days in September 2026 were a reminder of their appeal, and the market is following: sales are rising, American buyers are back, and estates within…
Sales are returning across most of the Île-de-France region. In Neuilly-sur-Seine and Boulogne-Billancourt, the best addresses are drawing decisive buyers again, many of them keen to complete before the French presidential campaign gathers pace. Here are the key…
