Buying a mill for sale in Haut-Rhin (68) means choosing an Alsatian department where the Ill, Thur, Doller and Fecht rivers once powered watermills for flour, as well as fulling mills and later cotton spinning mills linked to the rise of the Mulhouse textile industry in the 19th century. On this page, ma-propriete.fr brings together the mills for sale in Haut-Rhin: half-timbered watermills to restore, former flour or spinning mills converted to other uses, and millers' houses with outbuildings.
You will also find price benchmarks, based on regional trends, an overview of the areas where these properties are concentrated, and the specific points to check before buying a mill. To prepare your project, read our guide to buying a country house in France, whose advice on old buildings, outbuildings and financing applies fully to a mill.
There are no official statistics dedicated to mills: sales are too rare and too varied (a ruin to restore, a habitable mill, a flour mill with a turbine). The most reliable market benchmark remains the price of country houses, which a habitable mill resembles, with a premium for the water, the character and the water rights, and a discount for the work required.
DVF statistics (the French land-value database) do not cover Haut-Rhin: in Alsace-Moselle, sales are recorded in the Livre foncier and are not published in the DVF database. The benchmarks below are therefore those of the Grand Est region.
How much does a country house cost in Grand Est? According to DVF data (notarised sales) analysed by the ma-propriete.fr observatory, the median price of a country house in Grand Est stood at €150,000 in 2025, with an average price of €156,757 and a median price of €1,400/m² of living space (7,886 house sales in rural municipalities over the year). 10% of houses sold for less than €70,000 (floor price, 1st decile) and 10% for more than €255,000 (ceiling price, 9th decile). The typical country house offers 112 m² of living space on an average plot of 2,025 m², i.e. around 0.2 ha.
The region is well below the national median (€189,200). Since the second half of 2020, the regional median price has risen from €136,400 to €150,000, i.e. +10.0%; over one year (2024-2025) the change is +4.2%.
| 2025 indicator | Grand Est | France |
|---|---|---|
| Median price | €150,000 | €189,200 |
| Average price | €156,757 | €207,100 |
| Floor price (1st decile) | €70,000 | €90,000 |
| Ceiling price (9th decile) | €255,000 | €340,000 |
| Median price per m² of living space | €1,400/m² | €1,830/m² |
| Average living space | 112 m² | 108 m² |
| Average plot size | 2,025 m² | 3,181 m² |
| Number of sales in 2025 | 7,886 | 150,313 |
A regional average also hides large gaps between municipalities. A smallholding to renovate, a restored longère with its outbuildings, a farmhouse on several hectares of land or a manor house with parkland do not sell at the same price, and the location matters as much as the building: coastline, tourist area, peri-urban countryside close to a job market or deep countryside. The table below shows the median price of country houses in Grand Est by type of municipality (cumulative sales from mid-2020 to 2025) and its change between 2021 and 2025.
| Type of municipality | Median price 2020-2025 | Median price per m² | Change 2021-2025 | Sales 2020-2025 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tourist coastline * | €145,000 | €1,282/m² | -23.7% | 32 |
| Residential coastline | €140,000 | €1,354/m² | -17.9% | 565 |
| Inland tourist areas (hinterland, mountains) | €137,462 | €1,350/m² | +14.6% | 1,622 |
| Peri-urban countryside (city catchment area) | €165,000 | €1,529/m² | +6.2% | 22,855 |
| Deep countryside (outside urban influence) | €125,500 | €1,178/m² | +7.4% | 23,366 |
* Between 30 and 99 sales: indicative value.
Note: in Grand Est, the municipalities classified as "coastline" have no access to the sea. They are municipalities bordering lakes of more than 1,000 hectares (or, in Eure, the Seine estuary) covered by the 1986 Loi Littoral, which also applies to such inland lakes and estuaries.
These benchmarks help you assess a listing, estimate a property before putting it up for sale, or set your budget, whether you are looking for a holiday home, a permanent move to the French countryside or a property to turn into a rural gîte. To go further, see our observatory of country house prices in France (national, regional and departmental analysis, downloadable annual report) and work out the full cost of your purchase, including French notary fees, with our notary fees calculator.
Haut-Rhin is crossed by the Ill, which rises near Altkirch, by the Thur and Doller, which come down from the Vosges towards Thann and Masevaux, and by the Fecht, which waters the Munster valley. These rivers powered many watermills for flour, often in Alsatian half-timbering, but also fulling mills and later cotton spinning mills, as the Thur valley and the Mulhouse basin were once a stronghold of the French textile industry.
On the vineyards and the Alsace plain, around Colmar and the wine route, mostly smaller flour mills survive, often linked to a farm estate. As in Bas-Rhin, windmills are practically absent from the department, since water power was always favoured over wind.
The Thur and Doller valleys, around Thann, Masevaux and Cernay, concentrate former mills and textile sites converted to other uses, valued for their Vosges setting and access to Mulhouse. The Munster valley, along the Fecht, offers more rural mill buildings, close to the Hohneck massif and the Route des Crêtes. Around Colmar and on the wine route, between Turckheim and Kaysersberg, watermills benefit from a particularly sought-after wine-growing setting. Buyers should also expect competition from Mulhouse- and Colmar-based professionals seeking a countryside second home within easy commuting distance.
Areas close to the wine route and Colmar command prices notably above the regional average. Conversely, the Sundgau area, south of the department near Altkirch, and the industrial Thur and Doller valleys remain more affordable for a mill to renovate. The proximity of Switzerland and Germany, less than an hour from Mulhouse or Colmar, keeps up a regular cross-border demand for this type of older property.
Check the existence and scope of the water rights (a mill fondé en titre or holding an authorisation), the condition of the millrace, weir and sluice gates, and the ecological-continuity obligations on the Ill, the Thur and the Fecht. For a former industrial site (spinning mill, fulling mill), also check the history of soil contamination, common on former textile sites, before any renovation or hydroelectric project. A prior assessment by a specialist in older buildings avoids many unpleasant surprises.
As for the building, Alsatian half-timbering requires attention to damp at the bottom of the valley and the condition of the timber frame, while large former spinning-mill buildings often need substantial renovation. Outbuildings (barn, former workshop) make it possible to plan a gîte, an activity well established along the wine route and in the touristic Vosges valleys. It is also worth checking for any easements linked to the site's former industrial use, particularly for converted spinning-mill buildings.
On ma-propriete.fr, mill listings in Haut-Rhin are published by private sellers, estate agents and notaries. Filter by budget, living space and land area, set up an email alert to be told of new listings, and browse all mills for sale in Grand Est if your search extends beyond the department.
