Activity in the residential real estate market, encouraged by interest rates on housing loans that fell to an all-time low of 1.50% in December, was once again buoyant in 2016, illustrated by the 6% increase in existing home sales. Furthermore, prices for both new and existing properties were up again, by 2.9% and 1.7%, respectively, while the latter market segment recorded price rises of 4.4% and 3.1%, respectively, in Paris and the Île de France region. The slight increase in interest rates in first-quarter 2017 looks to have amplified this upturn in activity, encouraging some borrowers to bring forward their transactions in order to benefit from the existing accommodative financial conditions.