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CHARENTE PROPERTIES * ESTATE AGENTS * FISHING LAKES IN THE CHARENTE |
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The Charente remains one of those special areas where property bargains can still be found. We have renovation projects, fishing lakes, woodland, barn conversions and a wide range of properties for sale in the Dordogne and Charente. Please feel free to search our properties for sale database.
Generally, the French property market is always quiet over mid-winter. Whether native purchasers or others (read mainly British) by end November those that have not bought a property have called-off their search and are more involved in other matters such as Christmas/families/skiing etc. This continues up to usually mid-February when, especially with either early spring weather or an early Easter, people again wake-up and there are usually keen purchasers wishing to get on with finding a Charente property to buy and to be able to use during the summer. So, is this now happening? At the time of writing, mid-February, we may be seeing the first signs of coming out of winter. Whilst there may not be much activity on the Charente streets, enquiries by e-mail for property for sale are picking up and some sales are starting to be made. Whilst certainly it is a "buyers market" with at present more Charente properties than buyers and the French economy is, like many others at present, rather "fragile" all is not gloom and doom. Property prices in the Charente are remaining at least stable. A recent survey by "Notaires de France/FNAIM" shows that house prices grew by 5.6% in the period to September 2007 but that there were significant differences across the country. Paris prices went up by an overall 6.6%, the normally buoyant Cote d`Azur around 5% although Nice itself went up by 9%. In the south west Bordeaux 8% and the highest was 13% at St. Etienne in the Rhone Alps. Interesting also is the quantity of "foreign" buyers. The Mediterranean "property hot-spots" such as Cap Ferrat saw 64% of property buyers as non-French, whilst primarily the ski resorts of Chamonix (58%) and Gets (55%) in the Alps saw large numbers of foreign property buyers. Around 20% of sales in the Dordogne and Creuse were to foreigners dropping to 15% in the Gers and Charente, 10% elsewhere in the South West. Of these "foreigners" the British continue to dominate representing about 60% of foreign property buyers. The Notaires summary makes interesting reading for 2008:- "Prices will continue to rise to around the level of inflation. That remains particularly true for property hot spots and large towns. Nevertheless, in certain regions where economic activity is fragile or where foreign buyers are absent, prices are likely to stagnate. A uniform rise in prices is over". As far as we are concerned here in our Charente estate agents office, we are getting heavily booked for appointments leading up to Easter from both potential French and British buyers, thankfully looking for generally different properties. So, despite some Media "gloom" it seems that there is some disposable money about and that, as ever, many people prefer to place their hard-earned monies in property as opposed to more shaky investments. And, that's apart from the sunshine…………………… With such a wide range of properties for sale including land, woodland, fishing lakes, village houses, châteaux, farmhouses and barns for conversion, we are certain that you will find your ideal Charente property here. |
