Bordeaux Jardin Public : at the gateway to the hyper-centre

One of the most prestigious neighbourhoods in Bordeaux, Jardin Public offers a leafy residential environment of rare peacefulness, a stone’s throw from the “Golden Triangle”. A very highly-prized address with high and stable prices.

In immediate proximity to the hyper-centre of Bordeaux and all its liveliness, Jardin Public benefits from a very different quality of life thanks, in particular, to the existence of a magnificent natural area classified as National Heritage and consisting of about 34.5 acres (classic French garden, then an English-style park whose creation was decided in 1746). A real haven of peace and quiet at the very heart of the city, this residential neighbourhood brimming with high-class properties (private mansions, apartments of character, town houses…) benefits from easy access to all amenities : the tramway, ring-road, shops, schools…

“Bordeaux has put up good resistance to the general decline in prices. Though the assets of Le Jardin Public has made it one of the city’s most stable markets. More than ever before, it is a very sound value,” says Patricia Lescot-Delannoy, manageress of the Cabinet Corim, an independent agency opened in 1984, specializing in family homes and investors in the neighbourhoods of Jardin Public and Les Chartrons. “We are now seeing just as much demand for properties to renovate - with old features intact, to be revamped to suit today’s taste - as for those in good condition. If restoration is required, the price per sq. metre is about 3,000 €. If the property is in good overall condition, or just needs freshening up, one can expect to pay from 3,500 to 4,000 € per sqm. Prestigious properties then easily soar beyond 4,000 € per sqm.” Families, “including many transferred from Paris”, mainly look for houses offering living space of at least 150 m2 and a small garden. In need of renovation, a 19th-C. house of 190 m2 with old features and a small back garden recently found a taker for 500,000 €. “As for rental investors, they set their sights on 1- or 2-bedroomed apartments.”

Clients of Christie’s International Real Estate (Maxwell Storrie Baynes) focusing on Le Jardin Public mainly consist of Parisians and people already living in Bordeaux : “Self-employed professionals such as doctors and dentists, of all ages : young couples with children wanting to return to urban life, seniors who sell their houses outside Bordeaux to get closer to the centre, and retirees from Paris looking for a pied-à-terre in a lovely provincial city with a pleasant life-style,” explains Béatrice Blanchy, manageress of the agency for the past 4 years. Specializing in prestige properties all over town, and especially in the centre, Caudéran and Le Bouscat (a neighbourhood of Bordeaux and a commune on its border, both residential), she confirms that prices here are indeed stable : “This neighbourhood enjoys particularly steady demand which underpins its value on an on-going basis”. She is currently proposing a remarkable property priced at 1,160,000 € : on a quiet street near shops, in a handsome, refurbished stone building, an apartment of almost 220 m2, renovated throughout, offering old appointments (high moulded ceilings, generous volumes, fireplaces, parquet floors), a vast reception room of 65 m2, 3 bedrooms (one with a study), and a very large cellar. “Between Le Jardin Public and Les Chartrons, we are also handling the sale of a triplex apartment of over 260 m2, priced at around 1,050,000 €. It benefits from a lovely terrace with an open view, the tramway at the foot of the building, and closeness to a good choice of shops.”

After 25 years of experience acquired in Caudéran, Le Bouscat and Croix Blanche, property consultant Monique Lecomte set up shop in Le Bouscat. Her speciality consists of prestige homes (bourgeois apartments, high-end res­idences, stone houses and mansions…) in the most highly sought-after neighbourhoods in Bordeaux. Her clients are also from Paris and Bordeaux. “In Le Jardin Public, prices are not showing any declines. On the contrary, properties offering views of the park, which have already climbed to 7,000 € per sqm., may well see further rises.” A top-floor apartment enjoying this kind of view is currently up for sale : with living space of 100 m2 and a terrace of 20 m2, it is priced at 685,000 €. “We are also proposing another top-floor apartment to renovate, offering a view of the Quais de la Garonne, at 750,000 € : and a duplex of 150 m2 with a lovely terrace of 30 m2 and a lift, representing real added value.” What about houses ? “A house of 100 m2 with well-preserved old features and a small garden of 50 m2 recently sold for 489,000 €, while another of 150 m2 with compar­able stylishness, a garage but no garden, is on offer at 560,000 €.”