Living the bohemian life

Property investors are discovering the charms of one of Paris' oldest areas...

Le Marais, meaning marsh, is one of the oldest areas of Paris and comprises parts of the 3rd and 4th arrondissements. In the 16th and 17th centuries les grandes familles built large houses in the area, including Henry IV's Place Royale in 1605, which would later become the Place des Vosges.

Le Marais has a fascination with British buyers," says Stuart Baldock of buying agent Property Vision. "There is no fundamental collapse in the French property market and investors are discovering that there are lovely old properties there.".

Brits on the rise

Laurel Conway of Philip Hawkes estate agency in Paris has already sold a number of large properties this year. "If an apartment has a lot of potential it will sell, however, buyers are expecting bargains and sellers don't want to drop their prices, so there are fewer transactions at the moment."

While Italians are the main foreign buyers in the city, the British, she says, like to buy smaller properties in Bohemian areas; and Le Marais is well situated for the Eurostar terminal at Gard du Nord.