Existing properties: a stable market in the first quarter despite geopolitical tensions

Prices for existing properties are generally stable in France

In the first quarter of 2026, prices for existing homes rose by only 0,1% year-on-year compared to the first quarter of 2025. This stability, however, masks different trends depending on the type of property:

• Prices for older apartments increased by 0,6%;
• Prices for older homes fell by 0,2%.

The volume of real estate transactions also appears to be pausing. According to INSEE, the number of sales recorded over the last twelve months "is stabilizing; it had been increasing since October 2024, after a continuous decline since the end of April 2022."

Between April 2025 and the end of March 2026, 952.000 existing home sales were completed in France. This level remains stable compared to the twelve months ending December 2025, but still represents an increase of nearly 8% compared to the end of March 2025.

The geopolitical context is hindering the recovery of the real estate market

For notaries, the upturn in activity observed at the end of 2025 was quickly hampered by international tensions.

"The signs were positive at the end of 2025, we saw very encouraging prospects, but it is clear that in the face of the geopolitical context, the momentum was very quickly neutralized," commented Elodie Frémont, president of the real estate statistics commission of the notaries of Greater Paris.

The war in the Middle East has led to a sharp rise in hydrocarbon prices since the end of February, fueling fears of a return of inflation and a rise in interest rates.

In the real estate market, this situation is causing a wait-and-see attitude among both buyers and banks.

For Elodie Frémont, this translates into "a wait-and-see attitude on the part of potential buyers", while banking institutions examine "credit files with a little more severity, which means longer processing times for files, or even credit refusals".

"It is difficult to predict the real estate market given the international context," she added.

Persistent concerns about mortgage interest rates

Mortgage lending continues to grow, however. In March 2026, the volume of new loans granted increased by 9% compared to February.

The average interest rate for new mortgage loans was 3,22% in March, compared to 3,23% in February and 3,20% a year earlier, in March 2025.

Credit professionals, however, warn of the risk of many financing applications being blocked due to the squeeze between rising rates and maintaining the legal ceiling on usury rates.

As a reminder, the sharp rise in interest rates from mid-2022 was the main trigger of the real estate crisis which affected both the existing and new housing markets.

The Île-de-France region is supporting the rise in property prices.

Compared to the last quarter of 2025, prices for existing homes rose by 0,2% nationally. According to INSEE-Notaires, this increase is "driven solely by homes in the Île-de-France region, as prices for existing homes in the rest of France remained stable over the quarter."

In the Paris region, prices increased by 0,9% compared to the last quarter of 2025 and by 0,6% over a year.

The increase mainly concerns apartments in the Île-de-France region, whose prices have risen by 1% over a year, while houses continue their decline with a drop of 0,4%.

The largest increases are observed:

• in the inner suburbs: +1,3%;
• In Paris: +1%.

In the capital, the average price of apartments has now reached 9.600 euros per m³.

Outside of Île-de-France, prices for older properties have remained generally stable over the past year.

Finally, INSEE has revised downwards the price evolution for the fourth quarter of 2025, from +0,5% to +0,3% compared to the previous quarter.

Illustrative image of the article via Depositphotos.com.