In France, prices of old real estate continued to fall in the second quarter of 2024, but at a less sustained pace, at -0.5%, after -1.5% in the first quarter of 2024 and -1.8% in the fourth quarter of 2023, according to the index. Notaries-Insee reference published Tuesday. Over one year, prices of old housing fell for the fourth consecutive quarter, with a drop of 4.9%. The rise in prices, continuous since the end of 2015, has slowed down sharply since mid-2022.
According to provisional data adjusted for seasonal variations, prices decreased by 5% for apartments and by 4.9% for houses.After having been waiting, buyers are in deep reflection or even skeptical. As for sellers who are not in a hurry, they are also waiting“, explains Élodie Frémont, spokesperson for the Chamber of Notaries in Paris, who is nevertheless pleased to see that “housing in crisis is self-regulating like a big boy“.
In Île-de-France, prices of existing housing will decrease in the second quarter of 2024, but at a slower pace than in previous quarters, at -0.9%, after -2.4% in the first quarter and -2% in the fourth quarter of 2023. The decline is more marked for houses (-1.4%) than for apartments (-0.7%), as in the previous quarter (-2.8% for houses and -2.3% for apartments).
A dynamic autumn?
Over one year, prices in the Paris region have fallen sharply (-7.2%). In the provinces, the drop in prices eased in the second quarter (-0.4% after -1.3%) and fell by 4.3% over one year, as in the first quarter. The number of transactions carried out over the last twelve months continued to fall to 792,000 at the end of June 2024, after 825,000 at the end of March and 872,000 at the end of December.
Good news for sellers but less encouraging for buyers, prices tend to stabilize or even increase slightly over the last three months in Ile-de-France. Enough to encourage buyers to hurry up?Buyers who were frustrated by not being able to buy two years ago may consider buying today but not right away because mortgage rates are still too high“, decrypts Élodie Frémont. For this Parisian notary, if the drop in rates continues, we can expect, as after Covid, a postponement of the usually dynamic spring to this fall.