Centre’s property market is not particularly notable for its highs or lows. In fact house prices sit just below the French average (at least it’s central in one respect). Prices throughout the region’s six departments vary by up to €500, with the priciest, Indre-et-Loire, commanding an average of €1,742 per square metre, dropping to €1,226 in Cher.
Within Indre-et-Loire, Tours is one of the costliest districts, with prices averaging out at €2,230 per square metre. Not only does Tours boast an airport served by the low-cost carriers, TGV and good motorway links, but it is also right at the midst of the Loire châteaux trail. The city itself is full of parks and gardens, nestled between the white stone buildings with their grey slate roofs. The medieval district features halftimbered buildings while bars and restaurants are clustered in Place Plumereau and weekly markets are held along Boulevard Berranger.
Despite property weighing in at just €1,619, Chinon doesn’t offer any less charm. The town itself rises above the river bank, culminating in its château. Loches is cheaper still, with the average house costing €1,416, and is also brimming with charm with its walled château and 10thcentury church.
In the north, Eure-et-Loir can thank UNESCO-listed city Chartres for its relatively high prices. The department’s average property price stands at €1,704 per square metre, rising to €2,001 in and around Chartres. It is the capital of France’s ‘Cosmetics Valley’, so named because of the concentration of cosmetics research centres and factories around Chartres, employing up to 16,000 people and generating a turnover of €2.5bn.
Between the two, Loir-et- Cher acts as a cheaper buffer – with house prices averaging out at €1,445 per square metre. However, within this department there is a vast difference between apartment prices in Vendôme, with its TGV link to Paris and Blois. The former commands prices of €1,747 per square metre, thanks to its superb transport links to Paris (just 40 minutes by train), and the town itself counts the ruins of Vendôme castle, the Gothic-style Trinity church and old gate of St George among its monuments.
Blois, meanwhile, offers spectacular views over the Loire, with the city winding up and around two hills, as well as surprisingly low property prices, with an average of just €1,594 per square metre.
By any other name
Bordering Loir-et-Cher to the east, Cher hardly lives up to its name. Average prices are just €1,226 per square metre here dropping to €948 in Châteaumeillant. Bourges is the most sought-after district, pushing prices up to €1,511 per square metre, thanks to its pretty parks and squares, lively social calendar – more than 100 festivals, shows and concerts are held around the city every year – and imposing cathedral and palais.
The city is surrounded by 135ha of green marshland, traditionally employed as defence, but now a showcase of natural flora and fauna and used to provide the city with an abundance of fresh vegetables.
Loiret to the north is home to regional capital Orléans. Consequently prices are higher here, at €1,678 per square metre, but the city is widely held to warrant the extra expenditure. The surrounding landscape is among the most impressive in France, with the biggest stateowned forest in France and the lakes of Sologne nearby, while inside the city, the Parc de la Source boasts a rose garden and butterfly house, and there are numerous bars, restaurants and museums.
The southernmost department, Indre, named for its river, is the most rural of Centre’s departments, and therefore the cheapest, with prices averaging €1,160 per square metre. Even prefecture Châteauroux boasts 450ha of parks; that’s 52m2 for every resident, including the Jardins des Cordeliers and the Parc de Loisirs de Belle Isle. To the edge of the city are the government- owned Châteauroux forest and the Brenne national park. The old town nestles on the banks of the Indre, while the newer suburbs are spread further inland.
Source: French Property Buying Guide 2010 / 2011
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