One would think that the historical capital of France would be the most concentrated home of the French. However, in reality, foreign property buyers like Italian investors in Paris real estate are making up more than ten percent of the buyers of apartments, homes and offices in the City of Lights. Paris is geographically split into three districts, and in all of them foreign buyers are easily closing in on ownership of one out of ten properties. This kind of foreign presence hasn’t been seen in France in at least a decade and half.
A number of local market watchers have been measuring the property trend and even more are keeping an eye on what’s going since the shift first started appearing. Buyers are coming into Paris from Asia, northern Africa and Portugal, but the major players’ home is a bit south, Italy. The overseas or out-of-country buyer has also gained an advantage by the fact that domestic French buyers have not been very active as well. While the French have been increasing their buying activity in the core center of Paris, the outer area of town has seen a decrease in French interests. Foreigners like Italian investors in Paris real estate have stepped in a filled some of the market vacuum.
As mentioned earlier, Italian investors in Paris real estate are one of the biggest real estate players in the French capital. They comprised at least 17 percent of the transactions in 2014. Only the Chinese and Portuguese had a heavier level of purchase, with 22 and 29 percent involvement, respectively. Interestingly, however, these property buyers are not new transplants. In almost all the cases the buyers, while being of foreign background, have been residents in Paris for years. They are simply exercising their ability to buy after years of waiting for a prime market that was in their favor.
In some respects, the issue of buying European property may simply be an issue of the grass being greener on the other side of the fence, depending which side of the fence you start on. The French, instead of solidifying more roots in their home country, have been putting down investments in Spain. 18 percent of the out-of-country property buyers in the Iberian peninsula are from France, and at least half of the properties listed are within an easy day’s driving distance from France. The British are still the main player in Spain, but the French are not far behind, finding something very attractive in a location that’s different but still close to the home grounds.
Getting into Paris, though, isn’t suddenly an easy walk in the park, even for Italian investors in Paris real estate. Anyone who has never been in the City and suddenly gets a burning desire to buy property there should do one of two things: rent an apartment and live there for a while, or alternatively hire a good property consultant to find the right location in the right neighborhood. For those who choose the latter and don’t have the time to acclimate before putting down roots Parisian style, one of the best advisers to work with is WIRE Consulting. Not only have they put together the requisite research on the latest properties available, they also have a depth of knowledge and experience that can’t be substituted by textbooks or fancy marketing.
So if you want to have a piece of the City of Lights with the Italians, connect with WIRE Consulting and set up a time to discuss. The rest of the arrangements can be managed by their professionals from that point forward.
