French property 'not affected' by credit crunch

France is one of the few countries that has not seen its property market suffer during the credit crunch, it has been claimed.

According to recent figures released by the French National Estate Agents Federation, prices of property in the country rose 1.7 per cent in the 12 months leading up to July 2008, a fact which Liam Bailey of Property Abroad has attributed to the lack of interest in the country from overseas investors.

"In the last two to three years thousands of savvy people with a pound to spare decided to put their money into overseas property, but did so mainly in … properties in emerging markets," he explained, adding that France did not become "swept up" in this trend and so still remains a viable option for overseas buyers.

Property firm Unique Living recently noted that demand for property in the south of France is still high, giving the region a strong position in the economic crisis.