French real estate investment volume drops 73% in 1Q09 - Cushman

Investment volumes in French real estate plunged 73% during the first quarter of 2009 from 1Q08, or e1.2bn against e4.4bn, according to realtor Cushman & Wakefield. The slowdown cut the number of transactions by 35%, and big deals virtually disappeared. Only one transaction over e100m was registered against 10 in all of 2007 - an acquisition by Casino's associated REIT Mercialys of 25 assets from the supermarket group for e334m. Due to the lack of financing, 91 of 96 registered transactions were below e50m, taking the average price transaction down to e12.5m against e30m during first quarter 2007. If office asset class remains the most attractive for investors with 52% of the invested amount, retail assets gained attractiveness and now represent 33% of total investment, or e1.2bn. On the other hand, only one hotel transaction has been registered so far this year. The Paris and its Ile-de-France region attracted only 58% of total investment during first quarter, against 69% in the same period in 2007 as other regions gained in attractiveness. (Full story to be published in Property Investor Europe 119 on Monday 4 May)