Tulle Property Insight

Located in the plateau of Limousin (Massif Central moutain range), Tulle is a discreet town, in the Correze department. It is Correze’s prefecture with a population of about 16,000 inhabitants called the Tullistes. The town is situated in a deeply embanked part of the Correze River. It stretches along both banks of this river over 3km. Tulle is the capital town of the Bas-Limousin Quercynois (lower part of Limousin, in the Quercy area).

Overview

Tulle is actually an industrial town with an old centre, grouped around a beautiful 16th century cathedral. It became renowned for its craft industry: lace has been produced in this town for ages. Firearms manufacturing was once the 2nd major industry of the town (after lace) that is also home to the last French accordion factory. Indeed, the Maugein accordion factory belongs to the four ones in production in the Correze department. You will besides be able to enjoy hearing accordion during the Accordion Festival. Let’s discover this quiet area of France that has an outstanding setting: surrounded with many lakes, Tulle offers splendid views over the Correze River.

Tulle Immobilier & Property Market Trends

The Limousin region is also affected by the financial crisis: prices are decreasing and the demand is deeply falling. Property prices in this French region were pretty stable before the crisis. Limousin belongs to the cheapest areas of France in terms of real estate.

81% of Tulle’s properties are main homes. Almost 15% of the total number of properties There is consequently a real potential if you plan to buy a second home there. Property prices for apartments to buy are clearly cheaper in the Limousin region than in the rest of France. The average price for a house to buy in Tulle is €114,900. Prices can yet vary: a 3-room property in the surroundings of the town cost about €88,300 and a 5-room one €125,800. As 48% of Tulle’s inhabitants rent their property, buy-to-let investment can be very interesting in the area.

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

6 Reasons to Buy a Property in Tulle

Tulle is a nice and tranquil town the inhabitants of which will be happy to welcome you! It has a pleasant setting: located in a region that has an unspoiled nature, it is a real heaven if you are looking for a quiet place to relax in.

• Lace industry: given the name of the town, we can guess that lace producing has a real importance for the local economy. In fact, tulle comes from this town. This openwork, thin, light and transparent lace is used for clothing (wedding dresses, veil, ribbons, etc) and the furniture (curtains, mats, mosquito nets). The boutique du poinct de Tulle allows people to discover the ancestral lace making history of the town.

• Museums: Tulle is home to numerous interesting museums. The musée du Cloître (Cloister Museum), the musée des Armes (Firearm Museum) and the musée de l’Accordéon (Accordion Museum) are worth visiting. The Cloister Museum has a permanent collection of accordions from the 19th century. The Firearm and Accordion Museums were brought together in 2003 to form the Musée de la Mémoire et des Industries Tullistes (Museum of Tulle’s Memory and Industries). This new museum reflects the industrial and social activities of the town. The long process of creating and producing a hand-crafted and industrial product is explained in details in this place.

• Religious heritage: Tulle has a rich religious heritage with amongst others a beautiful Gothic and Romanesque cathedral dating from the 12th century. The cathédrale Notre-Dame is situated at the heart of the old town. Its great door has a limousine architecture style. The cathedral also has a Benedictine cloister area which is home to the Cloister Museum.

• Local market: do not miss the vibrant local market held every week on Wednesay. You will find there beautiful lace, clothes and a plenty of delicious local produce!

• Events: an accordion festival is held in Tulle every year since 1998. It is called Les Nuits de Nacre (‘the nights of nacre’). This event takes place in the middle of September and is considered as the most important French accordion festival. Plenty of accordionists play in the town centre, it is really pleasant. There is also a lace festival - Festival International de la dentelle - that takes place in summer and last one month. Other events are organised throughout the year, amongst others sport ones…

• Location – Transport links: Tulle is located at the crossroads of several major routes of communication: Paris / Toulouse axis (A20 motorway), Bordeaux / Clermont-Ferrand axis (A89 motorway and rail road). Being located at 27km from Brive la Gaillarde, Tulle will definitely benefit from the airport that is being built there. Limoges’ international airport is also situated only one hour by car from Tulle.

Property Styles and Architecture in Tulle

• Stone houses: there are plenty of stone properties in Correze and Tulle is not an exception to the rule. Often of large dimensions, these properties are surrounded with a large garden and sometimes some outbuildings. These rural stone houses have an authentic character that will definitely seduce you.

• Cottages: these detached properties are perfect if you are looking for tranquillity and a peaceful place where to relax. The building material can vary, the houses can be constructed of wood or stone for instance. The roof of stone cottages is slated or made of tiles. Cottages are in most cases one-storey properties but they can have several floors as many of them have been restored and extended. These rural houses sometimes need to be renovated, but there are still bargains to be driven.

• Longere houses: this kind of houses is one of the most typical French house types. These charming properties are very sought-after. They are always built in a rectangular shape as their major feature is to have many outbuildings laid out in a row. Traditional longere houses in Limousin differ from the ones that can be found in western France. Longeres in Limousin have a more massive aspect and the roof bears red tiles. As regional materials were often used to build such properties, granite is used in the construction of Longeres throughout Limousin. Most of the time, longere houses only offer single storey accommodation.

Click here for more info about Limousin Architecture.