Chartres Property Insight

Chartres is a French commune part of the Eure et Loir department and the Centre region. Accounting for 40,000 inhabitants, the town with its agglomeration reaches 80,000 inhabitants. The town is renowned for its medieval narrow streets and rich property and architectural legacy (especially half-timbered houses and tuf-walled houses).

Overview

Located only 60 miles from Paris, the town represents the rural idyll. In years gone by, Chartres was religiously and intellectually a very influential place. Nowadays the French commune is a renowned pilgrimage town. Many cultural events take place, which show the dynamism of the local authorities in this field. The theatre is also very active.

When it comes to property, Chartres has plenty to offer. The town is only 60 minutes from the heart of Paris by train. The town centre is wonderfully preserved and cobbled streets as well as many different types of stone houses are simply stunning. Property in the ancient town centre is particularly sought-after as the demand is steady and tourism is successful in the old French town. As a drawback prices are not the most interesting but many bargains can be found, and when compared to prices in Paris, prospective property buyers do not think twice.

Chartres Immobilier & Property Market Trends

Properties in Chartres in 2008 cost €2,552 / sq m. Below is a table comparing property prices per square metre in Chartres with other figures:

Property prices in Chartres seem expensive but given the location, transport infrastructures, style of the town and rental opportunities, it is still financially very interesting to invest there. When it comes to apartment prices, Chartres offers large goods at fairly low price per square metre:

Very interesting prices if you wish to buy a large apartment, and a great rental potential: these are two signs showing the good health of the market in Chartres, and the fast return on investment when buying property in Eure et Loir as a whole.

To get updated info about the property prices in Eure et Loir, please browse our French Property Market Reports published in the News Section every month.

4 Reasons to Buy a Property in Chartres

• Culture, art and historical heritage: the town has an outstanding cultural and historical heritage. First of all, the cathedral, described by many as the Acropolis of the western world for it is huge, wonderful, astounding. Chartres has however much more on offer than the church. Amidst the interesting venues, museums, historical quarters and churches are very pleasant. Along with this, many quarters have beautiful frescos. No wonder why tourism is thriving there.

• Good food: Chartres offers the following food delights: the Mentchikoff, a refined chocolate wrapped with meringue. The Paté de Chartres, a gorgeous venison paté made from pheasant and partridge, along with foie gras and truffles. The Retrodor baguette bread is made from the best Beauce wheats and has a beautiful, mouthwatering golden crust. The Macaron is a small pastry made from almonds, found in several other regions of France. It is soft and sweet. The poule au pot casserole is formerly a great farmer’s meal which nowadays indulges any visitor’s taste buds. It is basically a hen served with vegetables such as carrots, leeks, onions, cloves and turnip. The Sablé de Beauce is a very nice flat cake made of puff pastry. Along with all these delights, holidaymakers and locals like to find the best produce at the street markets.

• Wine and alcoholic drinks: the Eurélienne beer, which means from Eure et Loir, is produced and bottled next to Chartres in a traditional family factory from selected raw materials. The produce is hand-made, without any machine involved and the beer is simply great and original. A must-taste indeed.

• Location – transport infrastructure: by train, get to Chartres through one of the 33 daily ones connecting the town to the heart of Paris, Montparnasse station (approximately 1 hour). Eurostar connections are available, with a change of train in Paris. By road, a motorway from Paris serves Chartres. By plane, Paris airports are accessible from Chartres by road: get to Orly in 45 minutes or to Roissy in 80 minutes. Train connections also exist.

Property Styles and Architecture in Chartres

Chartres is home to a large number of preserved properties, mainly gathered in the town centre. Most of them are half-timbered or stone houses in a stunningly good condition. Along with this, during the last decade the centre of the town has been protected by the law and reorganised to suit best the modern needs (including car parks) but respecting the heritage of Chartres.

• Half-timbered houses: in Chartres they are mainly town houses. Generally built on two floors, some of them can reach up to 4 storeys. More or less discreet, their front facade boasts colours ranging from yellow to brown or black. The steeply pitched roof is covered with flat red or brown tiles. Properties in the town centre (99% of them) do not have a garage and many are protected by a law preventing any amendment of the aspect and tightly controlling what is done. When willing to buy one of these properties, the best is to ask an architect if you plan any amendment to the outside of the house.

• Stone houses: many different types of stone houses are visible in Chartres. Some of them are partially half-timbering, others have tuf stones or coloured stones (beige, grey). The demand for such properties is sustained and makes it easy to rent or sell property.

Click here for more info about the Architecture in the Centre region.