Avignon : stable property prices

An agglomeration with over 90,000 inhabitants, Avignon is home to one of the most carefully preserved and beautifully presented architectural heritages in France. A fascinating and timeless address, very lively and pleasant to live in.

Set on the banks of the Rhône, Avignon is a real open-air museum : between the remarkable ramparts dating back to the 14th century, the spectacular Papal Palace (the largest Gothic construction built in the Middle Ages), the luxuriant Rocher des Doms, the surprsing Hôtel des Monnaies and the legendary Pont d’Avignon (originally the Pont Saint-Bénézet, built in the 12th century), the visitor doesn’t know where to start. Listed, of course, as part of UNESCO’s World Heritage, the “City of the Popes” also holds its famous “Festival d’Avignon” each summer, the most important theatre event in France (68th edition : July 4th to 27th, 2014), and offers lots of exhibitions and art-galleries. Enjoying a Mediterranean climate, the town is also conveniently situated close to two motorways (the A7 and A9), two TGV stations and an international airport (flights to the UK and Netherlands).

It’s therefore hardly surprising that Avignon’s property prices have remained stable compared to those in the rest of the Vaucluse, “especially as the area has a substantial job pool”, comments Luc Boissel, associate director of L’Immo du Particulier. Based in Avignon, this agency charges reduced fees (4.50 % including VAT, with a guaranteed minimum), part of which go to the “Ligue contre le Cancer 84”. “In the case of apartments, a studio costs around 70,000 € intra-muros, about 50,000 € on the periphery. Then one can expect to pay 500 € per sqm. in the working-class neighbourhood of Monclar, 4,000 € per sqm. for outstanding apartments intra-muros, with outdoor areas and parking facilities. The average price is thus almost 2,000 € per sqm.” Which is also the rate applied to houses in perfect condition, available in the independent neighbourhood of Montfavet (5 km from the town) and the neighbouring communes of Morières-lès-Avignon, Vedène and Saint-Saturnin-lès-Avignon. Building land, which is rather rare, ranges from 200 to 350 € per sqm. Noting that “Avignon is an attractive address for rental investors - especially within its walls”, Luc Boissel receives as many enquiries from young first-time buyers as from executives aged 30 to 45 or retirees.

Based on the median price determined by notaries in 2013 for intra-muros properties (2,400 € per sqm.), Guillaume Laplaud, associate director of the Agence du Centre Gauthier & Laplaud, notes a slight decline. “We, however, spec­ialize in properties of character, and we haven’t observed any declines in this market, which can attain prices up to 3,000 € per sqm.” Most of the enquiries he receives concern 1- and 2-bedroomed apartments with highly variable prices. As demonstrated by his last two sales : a 1-bedroomed intra-muros apartment of almost 60 m2 with renovation on the cards, priced at 112,500 €, and a 2-bedroomed apartment in a prestigious old building less than 100 metres from the Papal Palace with a terrace, lift and garage, which sold for 545,000 €. For building land : “You have to go outside Avignon. The neighbouring communes of Villeneuve-lès-Avignon and Les Angles (on the right bank of the Rhône) are interesting : depending on the quality of a plot, its location and surface area, the price per sqm. ranges from 180 to 300 €”. One-third of Guillaume Laplaud’s clients can afford to buy without needing a mortgage, and many of them dispose of significant personal down-payments. “Though some also obtain 100 % bank loans for small surface areas, as mortgage rates are so very low. It is, in fact, the right time to invest in this type of asset : you can find studios within the city walls at under 60,000 €.”

Michel Veyrier manages two agencies in Châteauneuf-du-Pape (15 km from Avignon) : Vinea Transaction, focusing on the sale of lovely vineyard properties, and Demeures du Grand Sud, specializing in high-quality residences (from 600,000 €) in Le Comtat Venaissin, and particularly Le Grand Avignon. He sketches out a portrait of the town : “The intra-muros market, where activity is going to develop even further thanks to the up-coming re-opening of the Carpentras-Avignon TGV railway line, offers quality and stability. The west side of town, between Rue de la République and the banks of the Rhône, is more than ever before a sound investment. Outside the city walls, you come across a residential area on the right bank of the Rhône - Villeneuve-lès-Avignon and Les Angles, fully integrated into the agglomeration of Avignon -, a more commercial and industrial zone in the direction of Sorgues, and the working-class neighbourhoods of Monclar and Saint-Ruf to the south”. In the case of high-end properties, Michel Veyrier’s clientele is mainly comprised of Parisians wanting to move to the south of France and “people who grew up here and want to return when they retire”. His most recent transaction was in fact a private mansion of 600 m2 with a garden of 400 m2 and a parking place, priced at 1.2 million euros.

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