Luxury real estate in fashion in La Rochelle - France Blue

La Rochelle has a special real estate segment offering luxury residential properties for investors. In the context of the housing crisis, this sector is attracting a lot of interest. "This is because such properties are quite rare in the area," says Angelique Sotell, director of Christie's agency.

Christie's, located on Old Port, specializes in luxury real estate and auction, they deal in the most expensive properties in Charente-Maritimes.

A 16th-century mansion

The entrance to the mansion is Christie's.

Christie's sale listings include a 16th century mansion located in the heart of La Rochelle. This object fits perfectly with Christie's catalog. "It is a two-storey mansion of 300 square meters, built in the sixteenth century, but inside there are rooms dating back to the eighteenth century," explains Angelique Sotell. The plaster on the ceiling, the original parquet, the typical La Rochelle tiles in the courtyard ... Visually, everything is up to Christie's level.

What audience is Christie's offering for 2 million euros?

"Most of our customers are foreigners, or if they are French, they have just returned from abroad," Angelique Sotell elaborates. She also noticed that recently American buyers have started to return after the end of the sanitation crisis. In addition, the choice of buyers depends on the location of the property. "In La Rochelle, clients are asking for an apartment in the city, while on the Isle of Ré we sell a lot of secondary housing."

Despite all this, Angelique Sawtelle and her staff are well aware of the current problem, so they scrutinize each case. "For example, for this mansion, we want to sell it to a family who will live here for a long time, not turn it into apartments," says the Christie's director. Such properties are rare in La Rochelle, and that's no accident, as Angelique Sotell points out, "many of them have been turned into apartments, and preserved properties can be counted on the fingers of one hand."