French property market

Latest figures suggest that old favourites France and Spain are regaining their popularity with buyers of holiday homes. But the picture is not so positive for investors wanting a sizeable return on their purchases, with some former European hotspots now looking decidedly chilly.

In today’s shaky market, investors are keen to snap up a stable investment and leaseback could provide that for them – they buy the property and hand it over to the developer for a fixed term, who then rents it out on behalf of the client for an agreed return.
The downside is that, often leaseback schemes don’t offer any personal usage - so if a buyer was purchasing a holiday home rather than an investment property, the idea of leaseback may not suit them.

The authors conclude that, whilst property prices in some towns and cities might drop by as much as 20% in 2009, in other cases prices could remain stable over the year. Those places that appear to be in the best position to resist the present property crisis were Toulouse, Nantes, Strasbourg, Cannes, Nice, Montpellier and Caen.
By contrast, those likely to suffer most were Brive, Périgueux, Vesou and Rodez.