The year 2025 is shaping up to be a pivotal period for many real estate professionals. Beyond the evolution of prices, interest rates, or transaction volumes, real estate agencies must reflect on how to integrate new parameters into their business model and address these emerging challenges.

Adapting to Political and Economic Fluctuations

Following the dissolution of the National Assembly, the motion of censure against the Barnier government, and the initial announcements from the Bayrou administration, recent political instability in France has affected the market and weakened buyer confidence. However, the adoption of the national budget on February 6 is expected to boost the country’s economic activity in 2025 and help buyers approach the year with a more positive outlook.

Loans and Interest Rates

In real estate, this year should mark a turning point for borrowers. After successive decreases, loan conditions are currently very favorable, with average 20-year rates hovering around 3%, largely due to the decline in inflation. Banks have also relaxed their lending criteria, offering particularly attractive conditions for first-time buyers.

Market experts anticipate that interest rates could rise slightly in the coming months. At the same time, the expansion of the Zero-Interest Loan (PTZ) to the entire country is expected to stimulate both the new-build market and, indirectly, the renovation segment in the existing housing stock.

Household Purchasing Power

The French economy closed 2024 with minimal growth. After slowing sharply last year, inflation is expected to continue easing in 2025, with an estimated rise of 1.6% compared to 2% in 2024, according to the Bank of France. Energy prices, one of the main inflation drivers in recent years, are forecast to fall significantly in early 2025, benefiting most households.

In this environment, French purchasing power should rise, with wages growing faster than inflation. According to WTW, the average employee salary could increase by 3.5% in 2025. This rise in purchasing power, combined with lower returns on savings products such as the Livret A or LEP, is likely to encourage households to consume or invest.

Furthermore, the drop in mortgage rates, combined with declining property prices in most major cities for over a year, has strengthened buyers’ purchasing capacity. According to SeLoger, the French have gained the equivalent of 8 additional square meters of purchasing power in one year.

Accounting for Regulatory Changes

Environmental Regulations

In recent years, building energy performance has been at the heart of regulatory changes, and 2025 brings several new measures that professionals must master to provide sound advice to their clients, including:

The expiration of Energy Performance Certificates (EPCs) issued before July 1, 2021, which must now be renewed for any sale or rental;
The ban on renting G-rated properties since January 1, with F-rated homes expected to follow in 2028;
The mandatory energy audit for the sale of individual E-rated properties, in addition to the EPC;
The requirement for a collective EPC for properties within condominiums of more than 50 units, and a Multi-Year Maintenance Plan for smaller ones;
adjustments to eligibility criteria for the MaPrimeRénov’ renovation incentive;
The tightening of regulations on short-term rentals (Le Meur law).

While these new regulations often imply additional investments for developers and property owners, they also create opportunities for market growth that should not be overlooked.

The Evolution of Real Estate Taxation

Every year brings new fiscal reforms aimed at encouraging sustainable investments and curbing real estate speculation. These legislative changes directly affect your clients, making it essential to stay informed to provide accurate guidance.

The 2025 Finance Act notably alters the strategy for non-professional furnished rental investors, who must now include the accumulated amortizations in their capital gains calculations upon resale.

Another noteworthy change is the potential tax exemption on donations to descendants intended for the purchase of a new primary residence or for financing energy-efficiency renovations.

Meanwhile, the adoption of the Finance Bill allows departments to increase transfer taxes (commonly referred to as notary fees), though this does not apply to first-time buyers. The city-department of Paris has already announced its intention to raise this tax from 4.5% to 5% as of April 1.

Leveraging Technological Advancements

2025 is expected to be another promising year for the rise of artificial intelligence (AI), blockchain, and immersive technologies such as virtual reality (VR) and augmented reality (AR)—all of which are revolutionizing how real estate professionals operate.

Artificial Intelligence

AI is widely regarded as a transformative force that will reshape how we live and work. Its integration into the daily operations of French businesses is accelerating: according to Bpifrance, 31% of SMEs already use generative AI, a figure that has doubled in just one year.

Experienced real estate professionals are now leveraging AI to improve productivity and profitability across numerous tasks, from writing property listings and emails to generating visit reports, meeting summaries, and optimizing social media communication.

AI-powered image generation and editing tools are also central to these new workflows, whether enhancing photo quality or creating virtual staging solutions, such as those offered by our home-staging partner Hoqi.

Looking ahead, AI promises to further advance the sector with tools capable of performing market analysis and predictive modeling, verifying the accuracy of listed prices, and identifying new investment opportunities.

Blockchain

Blockchain technology enhances data security and transaction transparency. By storing real estate information in a decentralized and tamper-proof way, it reduces the risks of fraud and error. This innovation also paves the way for smart contracts, which simplify and automate administrative processes, saving time and ensuring reliability.

Virtual Reality (VR) and Augmented Reality (AR)

These two technologies play a key role in transforming the client experience. Virtual tours enable potential buyers to explore properties remotely, while augmented reality overlays contextual information and real-time visualizations—such as layout options or renovation simulations.

These immersive tools help buyers make informed decisions and are particularly useful for international clients, properties located far away, or projects still under construction.

Real estate professionals must adapt to these transformations—technological, regulatory, and political alike—to remain competitive and deliver high-quality services to their clients. In the current environment, it is essential to challenge existing methods and leverage client knowledge and tracking tools to anticipate market shifts and seize emerging opportunities.

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