After declining in 2023 and 2024, the real estate agency market is rebounding in 2025. Real estate transactions, which represent a significant portion of real estate agencies' revenue, are on the rise again. The number of existing home sales (over a rolling 12-month period) decreased from approximately 1,115,000 at the end of 2022 to 780,000 at the end of September 2024. For the 2025 fiscal year, the number of transactions is estimated at 921,000. This level is still lower than in 2022, but it signals a potential recovery.
In this context, real estate agencies play a key role. They act as intermediaries between sellers and buyers. They bring their expertise and manage the legal (contracts, leases), administrative (visits, rents), and commercial (listing, negotiation) aspects. But they were also the first to be impacted by this sudden slowdown in activity. In this climate of uncertainty, combined with intense competition, agencies must differentiate themselves.
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In 2025According to initial estimates from EPSIMAS, the sector's revenue is expected to exceed 15 billion euros. Despite a decline in revenue in 2023 and 2024, the sector's trend has been upward over the last ten years.
As of early 2025, transaction volume remains low compared to the past decade, despite a slight rebound. The sales rate per 1,000 residents stands at 11.8‰. This is a moderate figure but higher than the volumes observed during the crises of 2009 and 2014. Furthermore, some signs of recovery are evident in early 2025. On the one hand, interest rates on new home loans have been trending downward since their peak in January 2024. Estimated at 4.17% at that time, this rate fell to 3.2% in March 2025. However, to date, it has still not crossed the 3% threshold, as some industry professionals had expected for this year.
Furthermore, at the end of 2023, the household savings rate remained very high at 17.5%, one of the highest in Europe. This high savings rate is expected to continue into 2024, exceeding 18%. It serves as a safety net for households and supports their ability to invest in real estate. The downward trend in borrowing rates and the slowdown in inflation, combined with a high savings rate and a slight increase in household purchasing power in 2024, are all indicators of a possible recovery in 2025 and 2026.
These indicators still need to be put into perspective, particularly with political instability (especially the rapid succession of governments) and the prevailing economic uncertainty. Household confidence in the economy has been declining for several years. After a period of stabilization at the beginning of the year, it began to fall again in August 2025.
The rental segment remains a pillar of the real estate market—and, consequently, of the real estate agency market. In 2025, rents will increase by 3.3%. The average rent will reach €723/month for 42.5 m². That is €17.03 per square meter. However, significant regional disparities should be noted. Rents are 78 % higher in Île-de-France than in the provinces. In Paris, this gap amounts to +164%.
Demand for rental housing is heavily concentrated in Île-de-France (29% of searches). This concentration is the main factor explaining the significant gap in rents between this region and the rest of France. Studio apartments and one-bedroom units dominate the rental market in terms of number (34% of rentals). In addition, furnished units account for 59% of the supply.
Amid rising rental pressures, shared housing is on the rise. In 2025, the average rent for a room in a shared apartment stands at €508/month (+6.71% year-over-year). The provinces recorded the sharpest year-over-year increase in shared housing rents (+7.7%). Meanwhile, in the Île-de-France region, shared housing rents declined slightly (−1.7%). In Paris, a room in a shared apartment costs €747 per month. Students account for more than half of all roommates (56.8%). It is also worth noting that the Visale guarantee is being used more and more frequently (14% of applications).
The supply is tightening. New energy regulations (DPE) and the end of tax aid (notably Pinel) are intensifying pressure on supply. Meanwhile, demand in certain areas continues to grow. Thus, rents continue to tend to rise in many large cities.
Sources: Notaries.fr ; Observatory LOCservice ; INSEE ; EPSIMAS
The real estate industry is highly seasonal, which influences the pace of work throughout the year. Although overall revenue remains relatively stable year-round, certain periods experience notable spikes in activity. In particular, August and December stand out as the busiest months nationwide. This increase in activity can be explained by calendar-related factors. Conversely, July traditionally sees a slowdown in activity.
Consumer interest in the topic of «real estate agencies» on Google, meanwhile, remains relatively stable throughout the year. Only in December—particularly as the holiday season approaches—does consumer interest appear to decline seasonally.
Faced with various economic uncertainties and intense competition, real estate agencies must differentiate themselves. To do this, some focus on their client targeting. By specializing in certain types of properties, for example. Or simply by implementing significant targeted marketing and sales efforts.
Others, on the contrary, diversify. Some real estate agencies are not content with simple intermediation, but take on the role of a single point of contact for all types of real estate projects. Long-term rental management was already common for real estate agencies in France, but for several years now, some have also been offering short-term rental management services. Some are even rethinking their positioning, becoming hybrids between real estate agencies and concierge services.
Finally, many new agencies also rely on their location. The choice of location is, as in many other sectors, a key success factor for real estate agencies. Thus, it is possible to secure a foothold by favoring areas with low competitive density and high real estate activity.
Sources: EPSIMAS
After a difficult 2023 and 2024, the sector is showing a modest rebound in 2025. However, if the sector returns to its previous growth trajectory, it could experience an average annual growth rate of more than 6.18% between 2025 and 2030. This scenario has already been observed in the sector. In 2008 and 2009, the real estate agency market experienced a significant decline before rebounding. Between 2012 and 2014–2015, agency revenue declined again, before regaining upward momentum starting in 2016.
Although the recovery in 2025 will still be moderate, the sector is likely to return to a growth trajectory. Between 2016 and 2022, the sector experienced rapid growth, averaging more than 10% per year. Thus, despite the sharp decline observed since 2022, the sector’s trend remains upward (5.42% average annual growth between 2015 and 2024).
The NAF code for a real estate agency is the 68.31Z - Real estate agencies.
This subclass includes:
This subclass also includes:
This subclass does not include:
A few other relevant NAF codes for the real estate market:
Source : INSEE
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