Dorogne property market demand is on the rise but prices stay low

OVER the past few days there have been a number of articles in the press from around the world that suggest some signs of a recovery in the global economy.

In the Dordogne, there's a spring in the local economy's step too.

Earlier this week, the ECB president, Jean-Claude Trichet said at a meeting of central bankers in Basle, Switzerland that the world economy is close to a turning point.

He said that policymakers were seeing "encouraging" signs of a recovery.

The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), were slightly more cautious and said that there were "tentative signs of at least a pause" in the  economic slowdown in the UK, France and Italy.

According to the research consultancy, Jones Lang La Salle, all indicators point to recovery in Europe.

Their Head of European Capital Markets said "this view that some markets are close to their prime yield ceilings is largley based on improving buyer sentiment for the best quality product, where investors believe yields have reached a level where they feel confident to transact."

He went on to say "it also represents investors seeking to secure the very best assets before the bottom of the market on the assumption that the best assets are typically traded before markets pick up again."

The French National Statictics Institute (INSEE) announced earlier this week that inflation in April 2009 was at its lowest level since 1957.

There are further signs too of recovery in the US housing market where spending on the construction of news homes rose in March by 0.3% after five consecutive months of decline.

Demand for property in the Dordogne is on the rise too. After a long and bitter economic winter the general sentiment seems to be that spring has finally arrived.

The number of transactions is increasing which stimulates the market following robust price corrections.

Earlier in the year there was a flurry of panic selling. Now, the dust is settling and prices have found their level. 

The good news for buyers is that even though the French property market  is generally considered to be on the move again it will not mean that prices increase beyond their current levels.