Waiting can pay off. Or cost dearly. Five questions to find out which applies to you.
At the end of 2026, many owners are hesitating. Prices are softening, rates are climbing, and the 2027 budget is still being debated. Waiting can pay off, or cost dearly. There is no single answer, but five questions help you decide for your property.
1. Prices: a market running out of steam
According to the notaries' and INSEE indices, prices of existing homes fell by 1% in the second quarter of 2026, and by 0.8% over a year. Houses are falling more than flats: −1.3% over a year. Sales volumes, meanwhile, are holding at around 958,000 transactions over twelve months.
Notaries do not expect a rebound. In their autumn barometer, 60% see prices falling, 54% expect stability in the coming months and 46% a further fall; none expects a rise. Another telling answer: 88% advise a household moving home to sell before buying.
2. Rates: your buyers' budget
The French State's ten-year borrowing rate exceeded 4.9% in October, its highest since 2002, and banks are following: rate sheets at 3.86% on average in early October, up to 4.40% at some lenders. Every rise reduces what a buyer can borrow for the same monthly payment. If the trend continues, the 2027 buyer will have less budget than today's. Nobody can guarantee the opposite.
That cost is only offset by an identified gain.
3. The 2027 budget: measures still being debated
The 2027 finance bill contains several measures affecting sellers, but none has been voted. The National Assembly's vote on the first part, the one on taxes, has been postponed to 3 November; the Senate and then the final vote, expected in December, will follow.
- Second homes and let properties: on 16 October, MPs adopted an amendment that would cut from 22 to 17 years the holding period after which no income tax is due on the capital gain, if the home becomes the main residence of the buyer or of a tenant. The government opposed it.
- Family buyers: the bill creates a zero-rate loan reserved for parents of an unborn child or a child under three.
- Furnished lets: depreciation on furnished lettings would be capped, which is already prompting some owners to sell.
Do not decide on the basis of an amendment. A seller who has owned their second home for 17 to 21 years could gain by waiting for the final text. For everyone else, these measures alone do not justify postponing a sale.
4. The energy rating: two dates to know
On 1 January 2027, the electricity factor in the energy performance certificate (DPE) drops from 1.9 to 1.7. According to the government, nearly 300,000 electrically heated homes would leave bands F and G without any work. If your home is in this situation and close to a threshold, waiting for the new label can enhance the listing: a free certificate is enough, without redoing the assessment.
From 1 January 2028, homes rated F can no longer be re-let. Many landlords will sell in 2027: more supply, and therefore more competition for sellers of comparable properties. Listing before this wave means meeting buyers who are less spoilt for choice.
5. Your situation, often the real criterion
An empty property costs money every month: property tax, insurance, upkeep, frost-protection heating, risk of deterioration. An inheritance has its own deadlines, joint ownership its tensions, a purchase project its cut-off date. These constraints often weigh more than the market climate.
Example with figures: the cost of waiting a year
A fictitious case. An inherited, empty house, valued at €240,000.
| Property tax and insurance over a year | €2,400 |
| Upkeep, frost-protection heating, subscriptions | €1,800 |
| Price change if the fall in house prices continues (−1.3%) | −€3,100 |
| Likely cost of a year of waiting | about €7,300 |
That cost is only offset by an identified gain: a new energy label, voted tax rules, dividing the land or the end of a lease.
Time costs money and the market offers no prospect of a rise.
The new label arrives in January: prepare the sale now.
Have the capital gain calculated under both scenarios before signing.
For a let property rated F, see what to do with a property unsold for months; for an inherited property, sell or divide first. If your property is already on the market without results, reread the real causes of an unsold house: waiting will not fix them.
Our approach
We will not push you to sell at any cost. We look at what the property is worth today, what it could be worth after a recalculated energy rating, a division or works, and what waiting costs. Then we give you our opinion, backed by figures. Have your property assessed.
Frequently asked questions
Will prices rise again in 2027?
Nothing suggests so. No notary surveyed in autumn 2026 expects a rise, and rising rates are reducing buyers' budgets.
Has the capital gains reform been voted?
No. The 17-year amendment was adopted by MPs on 16 October 2026, but the vote on the first part of the budget has been postponed to 3 November, followed by the Senate and the final vote in December.
Should I wait for the new energy rating before selling?
Only if the home is electrically heated and close to the threshold of the next band up. Prepare the sale now and publish the listing with the new label.
How much does an empty property waiting to be sold cost?
Depending on the property, several thousand euros a year: property tax, insurance, upkeep, frost-protection heating, not to mention the risk of deterioration.
Sell before buying, or the other way round?
In a hesitant market, 88% of notaries advise selling first, to know your real budget and avoid a costly bridging loan.
Sounds like your property?
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