Luxury real estate in France 2026: 228 transactions a year despite crises, 35% of Parisian ultra-luxury in off-market, and wealthy buyers who keep buying

228 transactions in a year in the ultra-high-end segment despite economic uncertainty and persistent political instability (Actual Immo, March 2026). This is not a mass-market volume — and that is precisely why this market behaves as it does. The standard French real estate market has undergone two years of correction, a cautious recovery in 2025, and now enters stabilisation. 945,000 transactions over the twelve rolling months to end-December 2025 according to Notaires de France — up 12% year-on-year, prices up 1.6% nationally. A normalisation, not a boom.

The ultra-luxury segment does not obey the same cycles. Its buyers do not depend on credit rates — the majority pay cash or via international structures. They do not wait for the market to become "favourable" — they buy when a property matching their criteria appears, because they know it will not appear again soon.

In Paris, Île-de-France sales jumped +13% in Q3 2025. Average city price reaches €9,720/m², up +1.9% year-on-year. In the 6th and 7th arrondissements, exceptional properties with views reach €25,000-28,000/m² without negotiation. And in the segment above €5 million, 35% of transactions are now concluded off-market. The most desirable properties are not published — they are presented privately, to qualified buyers, by intermediaries vendors trust.

On the Côte d'Azur, over 70% of buyers are foreign — American, Swiss, Nordic, and since 2024 growing Middle Eastern buyers in post-conflict patrimonial mobility. At Cannes, prices can exceed €30,000/m² on exceptional properties. At Saint-Tropez, the median reaches €12,100/m² but can climb to €50,000/m² on exceptional estates. AC Private - Luxury concierge identifies exceptional properties before they reach the public market and accompanies the transaction in all its dimensions.

Sources: Actual Immo (March 2026) · Engel & Völkers France Market Report 2026 · Knight Frank Wealth Report 2025 · Notaires de France · Foncière Euris (2026)