Spotlight on Montpellier property hot spots (April, 08)

Languedoc-Roussillon’s regional capital Montpellier was recently in the spotlight in French current affairs magazine L’Expansion. The university city was put under the microscope in a special property issue (February 2008) and several Montpellier property areas were highlighted as having potential for the year ahead, despite the French property market being generally acknowledged as having settled after 12 consecutive years of strong growth.

The Montpellier property quarters singled out for special mention were the historic centre (known as l’Ecusson), the under-construction Port Marianne area, and the neighbouring towns of Lattes and Castelnau.

With its medieval heritage, pretty squares and a maze of narrow, atmospheric streets, the Ecusson has always been a highly desirable address, and apartments within its characterful buildings command high prices compared to the rest of the city.

According to the Expansion report, it is smaller, one- or two-bedroom apartments that are most in demand; consequently, there is more available in terms of larger homes, for which prices currently hover between €2,600 - 3,200 per square metre. For this kind of money you can pick up impressive, 150 square metre dwellings with large reception rooms in the areas around Place de la Canourgue (one of the city’s most attractive spots), rue Foch (where all the smart shops are), and the Sainte-Anne quarter.

Castelnau is the first town you hit as you head east out of Montpellier, and it is connected to the city by the second tramway line. A comfortable, quiet and classy suburb, it is inhabited by families and professionals who want city centre proximity without the hustle and bustle.

According to l’Expansion, Montpellier property here offers good value for money. Houses can be bought from around €300,000; estate agent Pierre Heimke of Century 21 says that Castelnau property prices flattened out in 2006, although they are not yet in decline.

In Montpellier’s south east, the Port Marianne area is currently something of a building site, but give it a few more years and it will be the jewel in Montpellier’s crown, if the city authorities are to be believed. The foundations of a brand new mairie, designed by leading French architects Jean Nouvel and François Fontès, are currently being laid, and a host of new build residences are rising out of the ground.

L’Espace Millenium is just one example of an attractive apartment block in this area, where one- and two-bedroom apartments are priced at €4000 – 4,200 per square metre. According to Jean-Luc Poidevin of major French developer Nexity, buyers are mainly investors or seniors who have sold their main residence with a view to downsizing or retiring in the sunny Languedoc climate.

Last, but not least, there’s Lattes. A ten-minute drive to the east of Montpellier, this recently-built suburb is a conglomeration of attractive villas and bungalows owned by middle-aged, middle management types or older folk.

With some 18,000 inhabitants (the commune of Lattes includes Boirargues and Maurin), Lattes is a popular spot, not least because of its proximity to both the city and its airport (five minutes away, at Fréjorgues). A high-speed TGV train station is planned to open in Boirargues in 2010, and Montpellier’s third tramway line, when built, will extend as far as Lattes.

Montpellier property prices per square metre here are €3,406* for apartments and €3,265 for houses. A one-bed, 50 square metre apartment rents out for around €680 a month and as such is quoted as a good investment, particularly as this kind of product is hard to find in the south of Montpellier itself. With real estate values in Lattes rising 11 per cent (apartments) year-on-year, this suburb would seem to be well and truly on the up.

*Figures taken from www.seloger.com December 2007