Loiret Property Insight

Overview

Loiret is a French department, part of the Centre region of France. The French department is home to 645,000 inhabitants. The name originates from a neighbouring river. The Loiret department offers an incredibly rich history and many buildings, manoirs, churches and castles are still standing, witnesses of the past. The main town of Loiret is Orléans, a pleasant place which benefits a lot from its location.

Loiret is particularly liked by Parisians in search for quietness, as the department is a mere hour from the French capital. A mainly rural, green, ideal place to rest indeed, away from the gloom and noise of Paris. With its many lakes, canals and rivers, water lovers will be glad to live in or visit Loiret. This abundance of water as well as the many forests of the area contribute - if needed – to creating the relaxed amosphere.

When it comes to property, Loiret is a land of prestige where many prestigious properties can be purchased, often being good value for money too! From the classic farmhouses, maisons de maitre, manor houses or winegrowers’ houses, to smaller town houses, there is style and comfort on offer anywhere, in a preserved environment.

Loiret Immobilier & Property Market Trends

Property prices in France in 2008 are about €3,200 /sq m. Buying property in Loiret costs €2,159 /sq m, which is very inexpensive when considering the relative proximity to Paris. Property can be rented for around €9.68 /sq m /month, which is under the national average (€12.44 /sq m / month).

Houses: in the Centre region of France, as a whole, it costs on average €1,900 to buy a property. Loiret being a sought-after department, prices are slightly higher there than in other departments of the region.

When it comes to apartments, the cheapest properties are 3-bedroom apartments which cost €1,740 /sq m. It costs €1,850 /sq m to buy in Loiret (€2,040 for studio flats, always more sought-after also). In the Centre region as a whole, it costs €1,810 /sq m when the national average is €2,390 /sq m.

To get updated info about property prices in Loiret, please browse our French Property Market Reports published in the News Section every month.

5 Reasons to Buy a Property in Loiret

• Culture, art and historical heritage: the weight of history in this part of France and in Centre as a whole is very heavy. Loiret is honeycombed with buildings, monuments and venues recalling past times such as the Middle Ages or the Renaissance period. Culture lovers will be delighted, as along the much beaten track there are discreet, refined places or buildings such as mills or canal locks in almost untouched conditions. Many properties can be bought within a few miles from such beauties, which gives an even higher value to property in Loiret.

• Good food: famous local specialities are the Pithiviers, a cake made from eggs, rum, almonds, sugar and butter and originally called Carnute. Other ingredients were then introduced by the Romans and refined for centuries. Another speciality – little known as well – is the Cotignac, a soft quince paste with a jelly aspect, stored in a wooden package. This was once a treat offered to important persons visiting the town (of Orleans). The treat is yours nowadays for a couple of euros to indulge your tastebuds.

• Thriving tourism: Loiret is a department of castles. Massive crowds visit the area in summer, which really makes you feel like you are back in the 18th century’s France. This makes it a very good investment to buy in Loiret, especially if you have a gite or guest house project. Indeed, along with the castles, Loiret offers plenty of very authentic and interesting places such as abbeys and churches which means that one trip will not be enough to explore all of the department. An ideal place to create a ‘theme guest house’ offering a route of the best French châteaux for instance.

• Transport links: Loiret is easy to access as it is a mere hour to the south of Paris. By plane, fly to Paris and transfer to the department or land in Tours that offers international flights. By train, tgv high-speed trains are offered and stop in Orleans – a good alternative is to take the Eurostar to Orleans. By road, one of the many motorways leading to Paris from the north of France, and then the A10 leading to Orleans ot the A77 to the west of the department.

• Rental opportunities and return on investment: Loiret is ideal if you plan to buy-to-let. Property, even if it is more expensive here than eleswehere in Centre, is easily rented and the area is sought- after. Developing a loyal clientele of foreigners or Frenchmen is quite easy indeed. Needless to say that the department offer a fast reate of return on investment.

Local Property Market: 5 Popular Towns

• Gien property: Gien is a very old town already occupied by the Romans. Located close to Paris, this town is quite elegant, being built along the river Loire. Its culture and economy are being developed. Its town centre is lovely and offers a number of inexpensive town houses.
• Ingré property: Ingré is located close to Orléans and offers a relatively inexpensive alternative to living in the biggest town of Loiret. Being in the past a town where kings came to hunt, Ingré has a quite rich history and is appreciated for providing all the assets of a town though it is surrounded with a rural environment.
• Olivet property: like Gien, Olivet is located next to a river, the Loiret, and surrounded by woods. Listed by Unesco as part of the world heritage, the town boasts a number of interesting buildings and monuments. The street market is pleasant, a great place to meet the locals. Property in Olivet is quite sought after and thus easy to sell or rent.
• Orléans property: Orléans is a lively, young town with a great past. Sought after for its closeness to Paris and for being a very good student town. Orleans offers a varied economy and good transport links. A very nice place to settle or to invest in.
• Saran property: a town of 15,000 inhabitants, Saran is a rural location. Lovers of greenery will love the town, which offers all the daily amenities in a preserved environment.

Property Styles and Architecture in Loiret

Due to the demand and the traditional aspect of many Loiret properties, buying a house there is not risky as property is sold or rented easily.

• Mansions: Loiret offers interesting mansions for sale. These properties can be both in rural or urban areas and offer very high-standard accommodation. In Loiret as in the Centre region, stone is used quite a lot to build walls. Tuf is widely used to create refined decorations. Mansions thus make use of these materials. They have a very large, symmetrical layout recalling masters’ houses but with even greater dimensions. They are available at prices over €400,000 generally speaking but given the demand they are easy to sell or rent.

• Maisons de Maitre: maisons de maitre in Loiret often boast a very colonial aspect. Their symmetrical layout and steeply pitched roof give them a prestigious, impressive appearance. Some of them have exposed stones used to build walls. Dormer windows are also a hallmark of master houses int he Centre region. Outbuildings and a vast garden generally come with the property.

• Winegrowers houses: maisons de vigneron properties are traditional Centre region’s houses. In this area of France, many wines are produced amongst the most prestigious of France. Winegrowers' houses are large wood and stone properties with a great Bed and Breakfast / gite potential. Wood is massively used to build them, with exposed beams, wooden furniture and stairs for instance. Wood panelling is also common. These properties are generally advertised at prices over €300,000.

Click here for more info about the Architecture in Centre.