How will the property market change post lockdown? Article taken from Journaldesfemmes 25 april 2020
- Amanda BREMNER
- Apr 27, 2020
- 2 min read
The article and study of Parisian attitudes towards where they would like to live, having experienced this period of isolation and confinement, gives support to the local theory in this area, that more rural properties could well be in higher demand following the lock down.
Link to article in French:
English translation of the article:
"After a month of confinement, some have revised their housing criteria. The capital and its small apartments are in free fall... From now on, it’s about home, greenery and fresh air!
Confinement is a social and psychological experience that can be particularly challenging for some French people, who have never spent so much time in their homes. For those who started a property project, very often, the desires and projects no longer correspond to what they had in mind before the health crisis and their new property searches testify to it. According to the studies of several estate agent groups on the issue, 57% of French people with an ongoing project want it to evolve following the Covid-19. But what do they want now?
French people are looking for open spaces.
The experience was not pleasant for everyone. According to figures from the Capelli study, 20% of respondents are seriously considering changing home after the coronavirus crisis. And it seems that space, inside and outside, has become the key element of their property search:
- 1 in 3 French express the desire to have a dwelling with a larger surface area.
- 1 in 4 people want an outdoor space, whether it be a balcony, a terrace or a garden.
- 36% of respondents chose outside space as the most important criteria in their research
- 1 in 3 potential buyers now want their property to be in a quiet location and close to nature.
- 17% of French people now consider that proximity to the workplace is a less important criterion.
+65% research on houses with garden...
Another study, this time carried out by the portal Seloger.com, shows that the French are turning more towards country houses. Even if the daily newspaper Les Echos recalls that it is too early to show structural change in the property market, a desire to live "green" is clearly identifiable.
- The most sought-after properties on the portal are the houses in cities averaging 50,000 inhabitants or less, CLOSE to large conurbations, except Île-de-France.
- Between 60 and 65% of the research on the Seloger portal focuses on houses for sale with a garden, compared with 35 to 40% on apartments.
- Apartment searches in Paris decreased by -20%, and -12.5% for apartments and houses in small crown.
- Property searches in the provinces of France increased by +5%, particularly in Brittany, where the consultation rate has increased by +17% since the start of confinement.
For Patrice Besse, president of the eponymous property group, "there is a kind of awareness of the quality of life in the countryside.The people who are confined to it feel privileged (…) The research over the past few weeks has been concentrated on unusually attractive places: L'Allier, the Périgord or the Dordogne will be to watch," he confided
Capelli study methodology: A sample of 1,000 people, representative of the French population aged 18 and over.The interviews were conducted via a self-administered online questionnaire from April 10 to 14, 2020.
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