While the real estate market in France tends to stabilize, Marseille is recording the strongest increase of the large cities, proof of the continued strong enthusiasm of buyers for the Marseille city.
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Real estate prices have continued to increase in Marseille since 2022. A trend which has continued, even accentuated this year again, with an increase of 4.3% recorded since January 1, higher than in Nice ( +3.9%) or Toulouse (+2%), according to the annual national barometer of BestAgents.
“Marseille has always been a city apart, it has always been a different market, we are rarely correlated with cities like Paris Bordeaux or Lyonunderlines Anthony Valeix, director of the “Côte et Ville Marseille” agencythere is a enthusiasm especially for the quality of life, the sun, and for the city itself”.
The health crisis has also been there. Even if the Covid effect has subsided, there remains stronger demand “in terms of comfort”. “The criteria have changed a lot for people, notably the exteriors, the space, the volumes and above all the quality of life.”
Covid was a detonator, people moved closer to the south, and in particular to Marseille.
Anthony Valeix, real estate agency director in MarseilleFrance 3 Provence-Alpes
“There has always been a craze for Marseille and there always will be”, he believes.
An attraction which can also depending Challengepartner of this barometer, can be explained by relatively affordable prices – on average around €3,600/m² for an apartment – in comparison with its neighbors Nice or Aix-en-Provence which are priced at more than €5,000 /m. Of course, in the Marseille city, the disparities are very strong from one district to another. The beautiful neighborhoods of the 7th, 8th and 12th arrondissements are the most expensive, around twice as much as the popular arrondissements of the 3rd, 14th and 15th. Within the perimeter of a district, prices vary greatly, as in the 11th, where six districts and eleven have house prices of more than 4,000 euros.
Nicolas Peltier, commercial director of the “Café Immo” agency, recalls that Marseille has long been undervalued compared to Bordeaux or Lyon: “we still have a significant gap to fill with these cities, people are not mistaken and know that they can find a living environment and a type of good in Marseille that they cannot find elsewhere.”
That day, the Marseille agent accompanied a couple looking for the “rare pearls” in his budget… for ten months. Prices remain too high to trigger purchases. “Our budget is not sufficient for a property as we would like to have, with a small exterior, parking, a little peace and quiet, it's difficult to find in Marseille”, explains Madam. Today, they are visiting a 90 m² pavilion for sale at 349,000 euros, in the highly sought-after Saint-Barnabé district. “I see properties that have been on sale for several months, so I think they are necessarily not at the price”notes the buyer.
Despite the rise in prices, the demand is there. The stabilization of rates at 3.5% comparable to those of 2000-2010, after a surge to 5%, revives the dynamic. “What is certain is that the somewhat difficult and wait-and-see period that we experienced when rates soared is completely behind us,” analyzes Nicolas Peltier, commercial director of the “Café Immo” agency.
“We can see that it’s been six months since things picked up well, even if there may have been a small correction on certain properties, we are back on a very, very positive dynamic,” he continues.
As soon as we have quality properties in consistent price ranges, there is demand, there are visits, buyers have returned to the market in force.
Nicolas Peltier, sales director of the “Café de l’Immo” agencyFrance 3 Provence-Alpes
Demand up 16% for a supply of goods for sale down 6% since the start of the year. “Prices vary a bit in all directions, you can have two apartments in the same building at a really very different price, it’s even complicated for us agencies to have a fair estimate,” confides Anthony Valeix. “But there is supply, you have to look for it, it’s true, he reassures.
Will this trend continue in 2025? Credit rates set by banks will play a role in market developments in the coming months.
Article written with Baptiste Gaby-Chartier, journalist at France 3 Provence-Alpes.
