I Julien Lacombe, section representative in charge of real estate in Tarn-et-Garonne before the Chamber of Notaries of the Court of Appeal of Toulouse, takes stock of a somewhat complicated year 2023.
According to the database of Notaries of France, called Perval, Me Julien Lacombe, departmental real estate referrer, organized this Thursday the annual press conference on the state of the market of 2023 in Tarn-et-Garonne. Who says that the housing crisis, inflation and frozen bank loans, with extortionate interest rates of 6.1%, logically mean a decline in real estate sales: – 24%. On building land this is even 33%. However, average prices are not decreasing: €1,810 per square meter for old apartments (+3.6%) and €180,000 for the purchase of an old house (-1.1%)*. “Strangely, prices are still rising and this is causing a slowing or even blocking effect as potential buyers wait for a drop while sellers remain locked in to their prices,” Me Lacombe explains.
Julien Lacombe detailed the 2023 valuation in the premises of the Garrisson notary office in Montauban.
In terms of sales volumes, it should still be noted that Tarn is – 21%, Haute-Garonne – 31% and Ariège – 19%. And across the province, homes fell by 3.3%, while the department remained at -1.6%. A lesser evil.
However, if a slight lull can occur in the coming months, France’s notaries estimate that we can expect a price drop of -4.4% in the provinces by April 2024. “In Tarn-et-Garonne, second homes are holding up, but what is especially missing from the market are starters. It’s a concern. The only first-time buyers who bought in 2023 are those who inherited or benefited from a family contribution,” analyzes Me Lacombe.
White Quercy, a coveted spot in the department
In the provincial city, sales of old apartments recorded a nice increase of 5.9%, with €1,950 per square meter, while houses fell by 7.1% to €211,500. “It is a reality: people who can no longer carry out operations in Toulouse come here looking for small buildings with better profitability. The development dynamics of the city center also have an influence,” says Me Lacombe. The Fonneuve (+6.6%), city center (+8.6%) and Sapiac (+5%) districts are the most popular sectors in terms of price per square meter. In Pomponne and Fonneuve we are talking about a decline between 4.8% and 7.2%. As elsewhere, T3 (44%) and T2 (26%) are the most coveted.
For houses, the best performers in terms of average sales prices are: Bressols (+14.9%), Beaumont-de-Lomagne (+12.8%), Verdun-sur-Garonne (+11.7%) and Septfonds (+ 9.4%). Note, however, that the so-called “Gascony” sector, bordering the Gers, recorded the largest decline at -8.8%. It is not surprising that with regard to future structuring developments such as the LGV or the motorway junction, the south of the department recorded +0.8% with an average price of €211,800 for an individual home. The most attractive area remains the east of Quercy, the only one where average prices are increasing: +8.6% for houses (€155,900) and +5.9% for apartments (€1,340 per month per square meter). For the “Garonne and Confluent” sector, in the west, the picture is less rosy: – 3.8% for houses (€ 150,000) and stagnation for apartments (€ 1,310 per square meter). However, note that Castelsarrasin shows an increase of 5.3% for € 1,400 per square meter in an apartment.
In Beaumont-de-Lomagne, the average price per square meter for old houses has increased.
Anecdotally, we can note that a transaction for €1,133,800 was registered in Saint-Beauzeil, in Quercy blanc, and an apartment was sold for €725,000 in Saint-Aignan. Finally, it is interesting to know that 30% of the properties sold have been occupied for less than 5 years. “A counterintuitive turnover,” acknowledged Me Lacombe, who promised to refine this metric for next year.
*All data mentioned are median prices.