Bordeaux : renewed enthusiasm

Radia Amar - 25 February 2020

After witnessing an adjustment in prices in 2018 and 2019, Bordeaux’s property market is again very lively, attracting executives and retirees won over by the city for its beautiful architecture, quality living conditions and, of course, its wine.

“Over 15 % of our clients are foreigners or French buyers living abroad and wanting to invest in Bordeaux,” says Aymeric Sabatié-Garat, manager of the Bordeaux branch of the Barnes agency, an international signature for high-end real estate services with over 90 offices in France and abroad. With a team of 14 consultants, an agency in Les Grands-Hommes and soon a new address near the Parc Bordelais, Barnes is now a major player in prestige real estate in Bordeaux and its surrounding region. “City-dwellers aim for apartments ideally located in highly-prized neighbourhoods in the town centre : the “GoldenTriangle” and its periphery, Jardin Public and Les Chartrons. With prices well sustained, select properties presented by Barnes fetch on average 5,500 to 6,500 € per sq.m, with the most exceptional ranging from 7,500 to 9,000 € per sq.m.” Clients with families look for houses near schools with good reputations and parks, ie. Jardin Public, Saint-Seurin, Croix-Blanche, Le Bouscat and Caudéran, near the Parc Bordelais. The most frequent searches focus on houses from 150 to 300 m2 with gardens. “These residences post prices from 5,500 to 7,000 € per sq.m on average, while the most desirable addresses - especially those giving directly onto the Jardin Public or Parc Bordelais - can exceed 8,000 € per sq.m.”

Presenting itself as a “neighbourhood agency”, La Bordelaise de l’Immobilier benefits from the expertise of its manager, Pascal Boulonne, who has devoted himself to the market for sales in Bordeaux for more than two decades. “Based at the heart of the city, we often operate in neighbourhoods close to the agency, where our clients are mainly in search of apartments to serve as their main homes. Some buyers are also looking for houses in the centre, though the scarcity of available properties imposes a natural limit on this market. As for rental investors, after the significant rise in prices that hit the market from 2016 to 2018, then stagnation in 2019, they are now adopting a “wait-and-see” approach.” Pascal Boulonne distinguishes between two buyer profiles in Bordeaux : young couples and families - the latter aiming to be close to schools in neighbourhoods on the periphery of the hyper-centre such as Jardin Public, Gambetta, Saint-Seurin and Croix Blanche. “In these areas, houses can be found on average within 800,000 € and sometimes require some refurbishment. For a property with a garden, you need a budget of at least 1 million euros. As for apartments, the starting price for a 2-bedroomed property is around 400,000 € and can attain 700,000 € for an equivalent example in the most highly-prized neighbourhoods such as the “Golden Triangle”, or if the apartment offers the most sought-after assets such as a prime location, an advantageous outlook, an upper floor, a lift or, ideally, an outdoor area.”