The maison de maître for sale in Réunion takes the face of the prosperous Creole house: a timber residence with pierced fretwork, ringed by a veranda, under a hipped roof of shingle or sheet metal, built by planter and merchant families from Saint-Denis to Saint-Pierre and in the highlands. This section is not confined to that heritage, however: it gathers all the fine residences of the island, contemporary villas with a pool on the west coast, architect-designed houses and large properties overlooking the Indian Ocean, wherever the living space exceeds 300 m² or the price approaches a million euros and the property belongs neither to the chateaux, nor the manor houses, nor the historic monuments. Discover here the maisons de maître and fine residences for sale offered by private owners, agencies and Réunionese notaries.
This page reviews the types of property found, the areas where they stand, the materials and the checks to make, from the coast to the cirques. Our guide to buying prestige property in France usefully completes the process.
As of 28 September 2026, the section lists 267 properties in France (the section does not yet have enough listings in Réunion for a reliable calculation) at a median asking price of €978,000 (average €1,520,334); 80% of properties are offered between €485,000 and €2,750,000, for a median living space of 372 m² on 1.0 hectare of land, or €2,864 per m² of living space. These are asking prices, before negotiation; they compare with the actual sale prices in the previous section, which are generally lower.
| Asking price | Listings | Share |
|---|---|---|
| under €500,000 | 33 | 12 % |
| €500,000 to €800,000 | 58 | 22 % |
| €800,000 to €1.2M | 70 | 26 % |
| €1.2M to €2M | 67 | 25 % |
| €2M to €5M | 31 | 12 % |
| over €5M | 8 | 3 % |
Statistics calculated on the listings published in the section on 28 September 2026; they change daily with new listings and withdrawals.
The Creole cottage is the basic unit: a timber frame on a base of volcanic stone, a veranda open across the façade, cut fretwork, a roof of shingle or painted sheet metal, louvred shutters. The maisons de maître of the sugar estates stand apart through their scale, their reception rooms and their planted avenue; some are protected, as in the east or at Saint-Denis, and former sugar factories survive around them. In the highlands, at Hell-Bourg, Cilaos or the Plaine des Palmistes, the holiday cottages display panelling of great refinement. On the west coast, today's fine residence is a contemporary villa opening onto the lagoon.
Outbuildings vary with altitude: an outdoor kitchen, a bread oven, a basin, gardens of spices, lychees and vanilla on the windward side; a pool, a pool house and terraces on the dry coast. Fireplaces are rare, since it is cross-ventilation that cools the house. Owners of old cottages often have them restored by craftsmen trained in traditional framing and joinery.
The west coast, from Saint-Paul to Saint-Leu by way of Saint-Gilles-les-Bains, L'Hermitage and La Saline, brings together the upmarket villas and the largest budgets, under a dry climate. The north, around Saint-Denis and Sainte-Marie, offers notables' houses and residences on the heights. In the south, Saint-Pierre, Saint-Louis, L'Entre-Deux and Le Tampon offer large properties on the mid-slopes, while the wetter east, from Saint-Benoît to Sainte-Rose, keeps former sugar estates. The cirques of Salazie and Cilaos, included in the UNESCO World Heritage property, appeal through their cottages and their calm. Prices drop as one climbs, yet so do services, a trade-off each buyer must weigh.
Roland-Garros airport, near Saint-Denis, and Pierrefonds airport, at Saint-Pierre, serve the island, and the Route des Tamarins spares travellers the congestion of the coastal road between Saint-Paul and L'Étang-Salé. The journey between north and south stays slow at peak hours, a criterion to weigh against the workplace and the children's school.
Check the title first: inheritance-based joint ownership is common in Réunion and a sale closes only with everyone's consent. On the shoreline, the zone des cinquante pas géométriques, a coastal strip forming part of the State's public domain, requires regularisation if the property encroaches on it. The local plan and the risk-prevention plans specify what may be built, taking account of flooding, landslides in the ravines and cirques, beach erosion and, in the south-east, the Piton de la Fournaise volcano.
Cyclones call for a firmly fixed roof, sturdy shutters and well-sized drainage; termites, especially dry-wood species, eat roof timbers and fretwork, and the humidity of the east rots woodwork. In the highlands and near the national park, protection rules govern extensions. For a recent villa, check the compliance of the pool and enlargements, then the ten-year warranties. A surveyor used to Creole timber framing is the best judge of hidden rot.
On ma-propriete.fr, listings are published by private owners, agencies and notaries; refine by living space, land, view and outbuildings, then let an e-mail alert watch for new arrivals in your place. To widen the horizon, browse the luxury properties for sale in Réunion, including the agricultural estates and character houses of the surrounding area.
