Is the city of Lyon a future great attraction?

France’s second biggest city has more to boast about than its dynamism and popularity. With 480,000 inhabitants in the city and 1,430,000 more with the suburbs and satellite towns, Lyon is also a strategic place geographically speaking. to the French Riviera, it is an ideal place to live if you are crazy about skiing in the French Alps or in secondary stations in the Jura or the Vosges.

Today, Lyon is in full expansion! With the extensions of tube lines, upgrading of roads, the rehabilitation of the Saone coastline, the construction of ‘OL Land’ – the brand new sport centre, works are taking place everywhere in the capital of Rhone-Alpes. Even if the estate market is on the up (7% average price increases last year), targeted areas are such as la Part-Dieu, Gerland and Charlemagne are only just keeping their heads above the water.

Have a look at the main sites which will be offering very enthusiastic projects:

1. A new leisure space:

From 2014, inhabitants of Lyon will have access to the new leisure zone and shops of Confluence in the Gerland district. This project will be based on the other side of the Rhone, one of the main rivers of France, thanks to the continuation of a tramway line.

As far as activities are concerned, 1000 apartments will be available soon in the Bon-Lait residential area. Shops, schools and child care centres are opening their doors. It is therefore the right moment to make the first move if you want to buy old apartments (generally from the beginning of c20^th) which face the Rhone shorelines. To give you an idea, the average price is around €2,500 per square metre.

2. Apartments for young people:

In the 8^th arrondissement, 2 or 3-room apartments look cheap and are located in peaceful surroundings. Influenced by prices that soared in the Monplaisir district (€3,200 per square metre today), young couples or single people are opting to install themselves in the Grange-Blanche area. But be careful, prices are rising there so there’s no time to lose if you want a bargain. These buildings often have to be renovated with the square metre priced at €2,000, but you could easily find a 3-room apartment at the Place Bachut. This area has plenty of potential and you could still find a €150,000 furnished house in good condition available.

3. The new Villeurbanne:

Thanks to the new materials this area has been equipped with, Villeurbanne has moved forward a gear. Long having been considered as the retreat of those who couldn’t afford a house in the centre of Lyon, people will be able to find some bargains here. The major axis of Villeurbanne, the cours Emile Zola, will undergo an overall restructuring in order to give more space to pedestrians and cyclists.

Moreover, the Henri-Barbusse area will be redrawn. You’ll find a cinema, 25,000sqm of shops and offices, and between 600 and 1,000 brand new apartments. You should take advantage asap! To give you an idea of prices, you have to shell out €2,000 to €2,500 per square metre in the oldest properties, and over €3,200 for recent buildings.

4. The industrial zone in conversion:

It is probably one of the riskiest gambles of Lyon’s projects: transforming the former huge industrial site of Le Carré de Soie into a leisure pole. It is obviously an ideal place for property developers to do business. Within about 10 years, over 800,000 square metres of offices and buildings will open their doors. According to experts, prices should boom by 15% in the next three years. Its attractiveness comes from the closeness of the Place Bellecour (the town centre of Lyon) and the Saint-Exupéry Airport.

Beyond its football club of which the city of Lyon owes its international renown, it has become a trendy place through new dynamism, developers’ affluence and the construction of brand new facilities.

Tags: French apartments for young, French leasebacks, French Property, Lyon, properties in French Alps, properties in Rhone Alpes, renovation projects in France

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