+ 8.4% for houses, + 7.1% for old apartments and + 5.2% for building plots. Prices in the Toulouse metropolitan area have not escaped the national upward trend. Faced with this phenomenon, the most modest households will struggle to become homeowners. This is the observation made by the speakers of the last Lab Immo of La Dépêche which was held at the Meeting Lab in Toulouse on April 12th.

Added to this is an anxiety-provoking international context which reinforces the feeling of uncertainty preventing property candidates from projecting themselves. Result: with a volume of transactions down 17% in the first quarter of 2022 according to the Orpi agency network, the real estate market is entering a new phase.

A glass ceiling?

At this rate, can you still become a homeowner in Toulouse? “Today, four districts of the hyper center are over 5,000 € per m2 and Saint-Etienne is not far from 6,000 €, notes Philippe Ruquet, delegate in charge of relations with the media of the Chamber of Notaries of the Court of Appeal of Toulouse. But what is most significant are the nine neighborhoods that follow in the ranking which practically show a price of more than €4,000”.

However, for the notary, this dynamic will come up against a glass ceiling. If the prices in the old will not fall this year, the trend will rather be stabilization. But despite these prices, Toulouse is still an attractive city. “The Toulouse metropolis is the center of attraction for the region. France’s fourth largest city is only seventh in terms of real estate prices. It is therefore always interesting to invest in Toulouse given the fundamentals”, analyzes Philippe Ruquet.

Toulouse, still just as attractive

As for Jacques Rubio, general manager regions of Kaufman & Broad, he wants to be less optimistic on the evolution of prices in the nine. “The rates displayed today are those for permits filed in 2021. Unfortunately, they will have to be revised upwards in the next six months because the costs of the work have increased sharply”, warns the director.

In addition to having a lower supply than demand, the price of new construction could exceed the average of €6,000 per m2. “It is certain that certain households could no longer buy”. Despite everything, even in the new, the Pink City retains its attractiveness compared to other metropolises. However, given the current crisis, the average of €4,000 per m2 for new builds in the Toulouse urban area is becoming a distant memory.

Social Policy

“Today, in addition to not controlling the production price, we are not supplied with materials which have seen their cost soar,” confirms Stéphane Aubay, president of the Federation of property developers in Occitanie. Construction costs are revised upwards by 10%, which will naturally impact the price per m2”.

But households can be reassured that several tools exist to help them access property. This is the case of the zero-rate loan from the town hall of Toulouse or accession at controlled prices. “Toulouse is the first city in France to be included in its PLU. For any operation of more than 15 housing units, 20% must be at a controlled price,” welcomes Bertrand Serp, president of Toulouse Métropole Habitat, the public housing office.

Controlled prices can represent 30 to 40% discount on the price per m2. These tools are used to fight against the gentrification of Toulouse neighborhoods and allow households to stay in the city. “There is an effort to be made on social accession and it is one of the priorities of our mandate to allow low-income households to become owners. 70% of French people are eligible for social housing,” discovered Bertrand Serp.