The new home sales fell 13% in the third quarter. At the same time, housing starts increased by 11%. Professionals denounce the consequences of the austerity measures the government. An employee on a construction site offices and accommodation in Marseille.
The new home sales by developers are still down in the third quarter. They fell in France by 12.9% yoy in the third quarter, according to the Ministry of Housing, which reported Tuesday alongside a 11.4% increase in housing starts and permits 22.6% built between August and October 2011.
For all of 2011, the number of new homes sold by developers to fall, according to Michel Mouillart, professor of economics at the University of Paris X-Nanterre, between 97,000 and 98,000 against 115,000 in 2010, a down 15%, far from the record 127,000 in 2007. In 2012, Mr. Mouillart expects a further decline to 85,000, far off the figure of the previous crisis (79,000 in 2008). "The year 2012, with 340,000 starts in 2012 against 350,000 in 2011 should mark a decline that feeds the decline in demand. To reverse this decline, it will be tough in the absence of public support for devices private construction, "said Michel Mouillart.