Lyon – No. 5 in Europe for property investors

Lyon, a safer investment than ever

According to the study “Emerging Trends in Real Estate – Europe 2007”, published by the Urban Land Institute (ULI) and PricewaterhouseCoopers in February 2007, Lyon was rated one of the Top 5 European capitals for property investors.

This makes Lyon an attractive alternative to London and Paris, essentially due to lower costs.

For example, in the office sector more than 56% of investor transactions were purchases, while just 17% were sales.

This trend is borne out by the statistics:

In 2007, €1.133 billion was invested in the Lyon metropolitan area, an increase of 48% on 2006 (€766M invested):

	44% of sums invested were for tertiary-sector property,
	20% in the logistics sector,
	17% for industrial premises and
	19% for commercial sites.

In 2007, were sold to investors:

	194,000 sqm of offices,
	177,000 sqm of industrial space, and
	367,000 sqm of logistics buildings.

This can be explained not only by:

	stable interest rates, but also by
	a diversified range of products available on the market in Lyon, combined with
	the fact that investors can split risks between three different property sectors (offices, logistics, industrial premises).

In parallel, 2007 also saw the market in Lyon experience increases in the numbers of acquisitions made by user companies.

Foreign investment continues to increase

The proportion of foreign investment in Lyon is positively tangible: 42% of investors in the Lyon area have their headquarters overseas.

38% of sums invested in office space were invested speculatively; the same applies to:

	56% of sums invested in logistics premises and
	11% for industrial sites.

These figures show that investors are not afraid to speculate in Lyon, and confirms their confidence in the city’s property market.

Furthermore, the excellent occupancy rates for office, industrial and logistics spaces in Lyon, combined with stable prices per square metre – some of the lowest in Europe – signifies a bright future for the city’s property market.

These are not the only factors, though: the high quality of the property on the market combined with the major urban projects currently under way in the Lyon area will also play a decisive role.

These elements are backed by:

	a strong collaboration between public and private partners, and
	an efficient business prospecting and start-up services.