Investor Re-Entry Drives Fierce Competition in Tunis Property Market

Tunisian real estate investors are streaming back into the city’s housing market, fuelling sharp price increases and intensifying competition for prime properties in areas like La Marsa, Lac 2, and the urban core. Local agents say that bidding contests are back in vogue for the first time since the pandemic slowdown, squeezing out many first-time buyers in districts favoured for rental yield and lifestyle.

Global Volatility Sends Capital Searching for Local Shelter

This renewed push comes after two quieter years, when fears over inflation, regional security instability, and volatility in the euro and dollar saw investors shy away from longer-term commitments or move cash offshore. But with Iranian oil markets turbulent after last week’s Supreme Leader funeral, and European weather disasters raising climate-risk premiums, investors from Tunis—and expatriates from France and Germany—are doubling down on local bricks and mortar. "Real estate here is a hard asset, sheltered from wild currency swings and the shocks hitting Paris or Milan," one veteran agent at Agence ImmoLac told The Daily Tunis in a phone interview on Friday.

Nowhere is this more evident than along Avenue de la Corniche, where prices for three-bedroom flats last week topped 5,300 TND/m², up from just 4,200 TND/m² a year ago. Meanwhile, in the old Medina, dozens of dilapidated homes once ignored by foreign buyers are being snapped up by Tunis-based syndicates for renovation and short-term rental.

La Marsa, Lac 2 and the Medina Pull in the Bidders

Agencies in La Marsa report that typical centrally located apartments now attract up to nine formal offers within five days of listing. January-to-June 2026 figures from the Chambre Nationale des Promoteurs Immobiliers show transactions in the Marsa-Gammarth corridor jumped 26% by volume over the same period in 2025. The average asking price in Lac 2 surpassed the symbolic 8,100 TND/m² threshold in late June, according to platform Tayara Immo.

Market watchers link this activity to a wave of new tax incentives launched in February, which allow for full VAT deduction on residential purchases made by residents repatriating foreign earnings. Meanwhile, the City of Tunis has fast-tracked permits for renovations in Sidi Bou Saïd, feeding hopeful speculation from investors betting on rising rents during the forthcoming Mediterranean Games. "For investors who sat on the sidelines in 2024, the market is back—so long as you move quickly," said a property consultant specialising in historic homes around Place de la Kasbah.

Prospective buyers should brace for more competition. New supply is thin, as developers have struggled to secure euro-denominated construction loans and imported building materials due to supply chain friction. With rental yields steadying at 6-7% in key districts, many in the sector predict further price increases through the end of 2026. For now, those hoping to secure a prime foothold in Tunis’s most sought-after neighbourhoods will need to be ready to act—and offer above listing price.