Leboncoin Refocusing on Real Estate to Take on French Specialists

Aurélien Flament, Director of Real Estate at Leboncoin, recently spoke with the local agent-facing publication Journal de l'Agence about the platform’s growing ambitions in the real estate sector. With new ownership and increased investment, Leboncoin is looking to strengthen its position against specialized portals like SeLoger.

Despite a sharp drop in property transactions in 2024, Flament said that Leboncoin’s real estate traffic remained strong, benefiting from the wider reach of its general classifieds platform. The site now attracts 14 million unique visitors per month for real estate alone.

"Even when the French were prevented from their real estate project due to unfavorable credit conditions, their desire remained," Flament said. "They remained curious and consulted our ads, 90% of which come from professionals."

Following its acquisition by Blackstone and Permira, Leboncoin has tripled its technical resources and is rolling out more frequent updates. Marketing efforts have intensified, particularly in Île-de-France, where the brand has struggled with awareness.

"In reality, we don’t have an audience problem in this region. Rather, we have a brand awareness problem," Flament noted. "The communications campaign we ran in 2024 allowed us to gain 8 awareness points, which is huge."

Leboncoin is also investing in AI-powered tools to help agents. Features in development include automated ad optimization, competitive benchmarking, and expanded messaging capabilities for real estate professionals. A call-tracking service is being tested to help agents capture missed leads.

While these upgrades are aimed at improving agent performance, they will also come with pricing adjustments. Flament defended this, arguing that Leboncoin plays a fundamental role in connecting buyers and sellers. "It is therefore normal that, given the promise it delivers, its services should be priced."

With a renewed focus on real estate, backed by aggressive investment and new technology, Leboncoin is aiming to redefine its role in the French property market.

All quotes auto-translated from French. The original interview can be found here.