Investing in Paris: an Olympic rebrand for the French capital

All eyes are on Paris this summer as a cast of 10,500 athletes from 206 territories gather to compete in the 2024 Olympic Games. For the French capital, the Games provide not only the opportunity to host the world’s greatest sporting event, but also a step change in how it is viewed internationally. With its exquisite historic centre, a UNESCO World Heritage Site largely unchanged for over a century, Paris is rebranding itself as a modern, sustainable and green city, and property investors are watching with interest.

Creating a sustainable city

“The Parisian authorities set out a legacy and sustainability plan from the outset that aims to make the 2024 Games the greenest ever held,” says Roddy Aris, Partner in Knight Frank’s International team. “In addition, they’ve announced plans to make the city more sustainable in the longer-term. One example is the goal of planting 170,000 new trees by 2026 to help mitigate some effects of climate change. Trees have a cooling effect in built-up areas. They absorb carbon dioxide, improve air quality and are vital for biodiversity and along with the natural beauty and shade they provide, these will all improve the quality of life in Paris with hugely positive advantages for residents and visitors.”

Specifically for the Olympics, Paris has pledged to halve the carbon emissions of previous Games, minimising the use of diesel generators and relying on 100% renewable energy during the weeks of sporting activity. Some 95% of competition venues are pre-existing buildings, and in a concerted effort to persuade Parisians out of their cars and onto two wheels, 55 miles of new cycle lanes have been put in place.

Perhaps the most dramatic image of the ‘new Paris’ is Notre Dame, the cathedral that acts as the symbol of the city. Engulfed by a devasting fire in 2019 and now being rebuilt with a planned opening date of December 2024, it is, says Aris, a phoenix rising from the ashes, outwardly as before but much stronger and improved in its construction, a perfect reflection of what is happening right around Paris.

“The Games are serving as an accelerator to clean the River Seine with the aim that all Parisians can enjoy access to it by 2025,” says Aris. “Although this is a mammoth task, you have to admire their ambition. Paris looked across the Channel to the greenery of London parks and knew it had to up its game. Once the Games are completed, Place de la Concorde will become pedestrianised, creating a spectacular promenade similar to the Trocadero, a gorgeous destination for residents, bang in the middle of Paris.”

Property locations

Overseas investors have had their eye on the Parisian property market for some time. Figures from the Notaires de France show that in 2022 the number of international buyers reached the highest level for a decade while consultancy firm EY shows that France led European nations in attracting the highest level of foreign direct investment over the past four years. This interest was driven in large part by Paris’ booming finance sector. In 2022, 2,800 employees in finance left London for Paris, easily outnumbering those heading to the main rival European cities of Frankfurt and Dublin.

“Paris is a small, compact city and the logical move for those investing in property is to stay as central as possible,” says Aris. “Prime areas include the hugely beautiful and architectural magnificent 6^th, 7^th and 8^th arrondissements, and also the leafy avenues of the 16^th. For interesting value, look to parts of the 9^th around Notre-Dame-de-Lorette and where the 9^th meets the 17^th, the Batignolles, a quirky and thoroughly Parisian area with handsome architecture and few tourists.”

While prime prices per square metre in the ever-popular Left Bank 6^th and 7^th arrondissements typically average €18,000 to €22,000, those in the 9^th are closer to €13,000 to €15,000. Prices in the prime central arrondissements are defying the slowdown in the wider market says Alison Ashby, Director and local expert in Paris, with access to the very best homes reaching over €50,000 per square metre. This year the agency sold two Hôtel Particuliers, large historic townhouses with gardens, in the 16^th, each for between €50 million and €80 million.

“Fully furnished and totally renovated homes are a priority for international buyers,” says Ashby. “Properties most in demand are architecturally inspired residences with bespoke furnishings, classic in style, featuring views across the River Seine or the Eiffel Tower.”

Two apartments currently for sale provide an up-close view of the Eiffel Tower. In the 16^th, a three-bedroom modern home with views also to the Seine is for sale at €9,100,000. In the 7^th, a four-bedroom apartment with a balcony on the Champs de Mars is priced at €9,500,000. The turnkey 1925 home has been furnished and renovated by its owner, an experienced developer based between London and Paris. “The location and the finishes on this home are precisely what international buyers at this price point want,” says Aris. “Minimalist but wonderfully welcoming, smart and chic.”

Close to the Champs-Elysées in the fashionable 8^th, an airy two-bedroom duplex home minutes from the Parque Monceau and with good links to the business district, is for sale at €3,950,000.

“For investors thinking about renting, it is important to keep in mind that the Airbnb model does not work in Paris,” says Aris. “Short-term rentals are only legal if the property has a rental licence and very few do. When homes with rental licences come up for sale, they carry a hefty premium. Long-term rentals of a year or more, work well.”

Bear in mind too that many apartment buildings have common areas that fall well below the standards of other European capital cities. At best these can be described as having a characterful, shabby-chic vibe with charming if small cast-iron lifts. Unlike most major capital cities around the world, Paris has no branded residences – its compact size and protected status offering up limited opportunities for redevelopment – and there are very few serviced apartments.

“The demand for both branded residences and for apartments with excellent communal facilities, gyms, pool, reception area and full-time concierge for example, is huge, and calling out for a creative developer to fill the gap,” says Aris. “If you could buy a residence serviced by a five-star international hospitality brand off the Avenue Montaigne in the 8^th arrondissement for example, it would undoubtedly set record prices in the city.” 

As viewers worldwide tune in to watch the Olympics and Paralympics, they’ll see the full beauty of Paris. The beach volleyball is being held on the Champs de Mars with the imposing backdrop of the Eiffel Tower, while the Trocadero is the place to watch athletics and road cycling events. The venue for basketball, BMX biking and skateboarding is the historic Place de la Concorde, while the fencers will do battle under the glass dome of the Grand Palais. The scene is set for an extraordinary summer of outstanding sport in superb locations.

“Just as with the London Olympics in 2012, it feels inevitable that the Paris Games will have a positive effect on life in the city,” concludes Aris. “As a heavily protected World Heritage UNESCO Site, Paris cannot reinvent itself, but it can improve itself, and it has. The bones of the city are magnificent, the architecture, the monuments, the cultural sites. Now they are adding greenery, looking at reducing traffic and improving the quality of life for everyone in Paris. It’s a magnificent rebrand in a city that in so many ways, remains supremely unchanged.”

Learn more about our International team or contact Roddy Aris directly.