While prime rents are still holding up, rental values for secondary office properties in the Ile-de-France region of France have fallen by up to -10% over the past 12 months, according to new research by DTZ.

In the first quarter of 2009, investment volumes for the Ile-de-France region came in at under €400m comprising a total of 20 transactions. The drop in transactional activity was mostly due to the lack of financing, according to DTZ, with just two deals exceeding the €50m threshold during the first three months of the year.

Jean-Luc Chalard, managing director and responsible for marketing and transactions at DTZ, said: “The slowing down in the Ile-de-France office market is consistent with the one in the French economy. The numerous landlords (in the region) are renegotiating their current leases in order to retain their tenants and are reviewing office rents downward to keep them in line with the market.”