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 31st July 2010
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Will new TGV line boost house prices?When the new TGV link between Paris and Strasburg was finally opened to passengers on June 10, it was the culmination of a long and cherished dream to have a high-speed land connection between these two major French cities. Strasbourg will also become a kind of railway hub towards many other destinations in Europe.Thanks to the new service, journey times between the capital of France and one of the self-styled capitals of Europe are now just two hours twenty minutes – cutting by almost half the length of the previous journey. The speed of the rail link will undoubtedly be a great help to MEP’s travelling to and from Strasbourg, and for business people and anyone else wanting to travel between Paris, Strasbourg and the rest of Europe. Prices But will it boost property prices in the area? Typically the arrival of a new or improved TGV in a town does put up property prices. And in Colmar, a town now on the TGV line between Strasbourg and Mulhouse, some estate agents claim there has already been an impact of the new service, pne which occurred well before it was operational. ‘It seems to have an effect on prices per m2, which rose by 11.5% in 2005 and 7.4% in 2006,’ says Emmanuel Colin, director of agency Orpi-Rfi. ‘It’s difficult to measure it precisely, but we think that the rise in prices linked to it has not finished yet and that lots of investors are doing to invest in our region.’ Reims That’s certainly the hope in Reims, between Paris and Strasbourg in the Champagne-Ardenne region. There are two TGV stations in this historic town and the authorities have started to build 120,000m2 of office space near one and a 172 hectare business park near the other. Many new homes are under construction too. They clearly expect that many companies will be looking to relocate to Reims from Paris, which is now just 45 minutes away by train. However, there has been no massive housing boom so far – nor in parts of neighbouring region Lorraine - and certainly not much interest from Parisians looking to find cheaper property and to commute to work from Reims. ‘My agency is based just 500 metres from the station and up to now not a single Parisian has come to see me saying they’d like to buy in Reims so they can travel to work in Paris by TGV,’ Fabrice Malvy, of estate agents Reims-Immo groupe, told the French newspaper Libération. Businesses Olivier Renard from Pérou-Immobilier, is a little more upbeat. He told the same journal that in coming years there would be a growing population and demand for housing in Reims. ‘But it will come as a result of the arrival of new businesses,’ he said. Over in Strasbourg itself there is also a note of caution. ‘TGV is the talk of the town and everybody is waiting to see what it will do to the prices,’ said Florent Fischer from the Foncia agency on the eve of the new service. ‘So far we haven't registered a major increase, but let's wait for the trains to roll in.’ That seem to be the message in much of the area affected by the new TGV Est; property prices may rise but it could take time for the full effect of the new service to feed through. Michael Streeter FrenchEntrée property editor See also: Will President Sarkozy affect the housing market? Letting the train take the strain Property Buyer`s Guide Home Page Looking for a property in France? Use FrenchEntrée's Property Finders to help you find your property and to help you through the buying process 
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