France European champion of secondary residences

European champion of secondary residences, France has noted a rejuvenation of owners of this type of property. Because with the advent of teleworking, more and more secondary residences are becoming semi-main residences.

With more than 3.6 million secondary residences in mainland France, France today ranks first in Europe. And according to a study by the Mercure real estate group, 40% of people questioned admit that they would like to have a second home. A desire which seems to have been reinforced with the Covid-19 crisis, according to the Mercure group, which recorded in 2021 an increase of almost 7% for the acquisition of this type of property.

Popular rural areas

Who says holiday home says seaside? Not necessarily, according to the study, which explains that rural areas are also popular. Some peri-urban areas have become very attractive after the various confinements, delivers Olivier de Chabot, general manager of the Mercure real estate group. Located 1 or 2 hours by train from major cities, they allow households to benefit from a more pleasant way of life with more surface area and beautiful exteriors while having an acceptable journey time when it is made once or twice a week. . One of the essential criteria looked at by buyers of semi-primary residences is their accessibility near a TGV station or a highway.

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Indeed, since the health crisis, teleworking has reshuffled the cards. This workplace flexibility means that, according to Mercury, the second home turns into a semi-main residence. After weekends and holidays, people now spend part of their week there: The desire for greenery and space, combined with increased use of telework, explain this trend. This new way of life makes it possible to combine a hybrid work rhythm between face-to-face and remote work, and a desire to improve one’s quality of life.

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The profile of buyers is also changing. If, unsurprisingly, it is wealthy households that own more second homes, the study notes that new profiles are appearing on the market, in particular younger people. Although currently two out of three second homes are owned by households aged 60 or over, the average age of buyers of this type of property has fallen sharply, with, since the health crisis, more and more more assets between 35 and 50 years old.

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