January 5th, 2010 | 
Author: Dordogne has long been one of the most popular destinations for people going on a french holiday. However, the latest French national census has shown that its also a popular choice for people permanently residing in France.
Over the course of the last year, the region’s population has increased by 0.6% from 417,011 to 419,494 inhabitants. Sudouest.com reports that many people are settling in the countryside of the Dordogne and the Perigord, with the greatest increase in the south of the region.
Whilst cities and other urbanised areas, such as the municipal towns, have seen a small decrease in population numbers, smaller villages have been more popular. The area with the largest increase was Boulazac, which rose from sixth place to fifth place among the most significant towns in the Dordogne. Over 350 people have taken up residence in the town, an increase of 5.6% between the last two censuses. This was the single most significant increase – other towns saw relatively small numbers of extra residents, with no other area attracting more than 100 people.
Although the increase in population was fairly small in the greater nation-wide picture of population growth, it is statistically significant as it shows an increase in the ‘legal’ population of the region. As SudOuest.com highlights, this is the basis for calculating regional funding and the power wielded by municipal councils.
In another report, Sudouest.com speculated that the coming year may see the Dordogne become an even more popular choice for residence. The French real estate market has reportedly stabilised after a turbulent period, and although the picturesque region remains one of the most desirable areas in the country, house prices have become more affordable over the course of the past year. Sudouest has predicted that this may attract English expatriates in numbers unseen since the property market for France became extremely competitive towards the turn of the century.
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