“Ideally, prices should drop by 12 to 15%”, indicates the president of Century 21

“It’s been eight years since we’ve seen a decrease in the volume of transactions,” said affirmed, Monday, June 26, on franceinfo Charles Marinakis, the president of Century 21 France, the first network in volume of real estate transactions, which publishes these figures for the first half of 2023. “Because of the rise in borrowing rates, some French people are seeing their ability to borrow greatly reduced.” The average mortgage rate increased (excluding insurance) from 1.06% in December 2022 to 3.28% in May 2023, according to the CSA housing credit observatory.

Regional disparities

Real estate prices have only fallen back slightly. “The prices unfortunately have not yet adjusted,” continues the boss of the network of real estate agencies. They fell by 1.7% for apartments at 4,198 euros per square meter, which is still more expensive than in 2021. But the drop does not concern individual houses for which the price continues to rise very slightly, with an increase of 0.9% over one year.

There are disparities depending on the region: -4% in Ile-de-France, +6% in Brittany. “There is no longer a real estate market but real estate markets”, according to Charles Marinakis.

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Faced with prices that do not fall, the buyer has two options: either he buys less, or he brings more personal contribution. The boss of Century 21 hopes for a drop in real estate prices of 12 to 15%. “We are far from it. The initial objective of the acquisition of the main residence is to have the comfort of life and to put his family in the shelter. It is not to make a capital gain! This n is not the initial vocation of real estate investment”, concludes Charles Marinakis.

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