TOwners contact her every day. And regularly, she receives calls from people considering getting started. From Châtelaillon-Plage, a seaside resort south of La Rochelle, Cécile Duval measures daily the dynamism of short-term rentals and the effects on her concierge activity.
From her outpost, she also notes the fever that grips certain owners: “Many overestimate potential income, imagining that they will rent all year round, like in La Rochelle, or in “Châtel”. rental remains very seasonal. » Cécile Duval similarly sees colleagues disappearing as quickly as they appeared, a year or two after their installation. “It’s very time-consuming if you want to do it well. » For her part, she limits her activity, which complements that of an independent real estate agent, to the management of four houses.
Time-consuming
The evolution of concierge services is directly linked to the rise in power of platforms. “The arrival of Airbnb has completely transformed the activity,” confirms Valérie, who has worked for nearly twenty years for Bon Séjour en France, a Relais agency specializing in seasonal rentals.
According to a study carried out by the University of La Rochelle, advertisements on Abritel and Airbnb increased from 1,325 in 2016 to 5,067 in 2022, in the Île de Ré where the ten municipalities are preparing to apply quotas. For those familiar with the area, the figure would even rise to 6,000 if we add rentals that go under the radar. There are currently around forty concierge services in this tourist hotspot, with significant turnover.
“We have no collective agreement, no APE code. Today, in France, you can list butcher shops, not concierge services”
“It looks nice like that, but it’s not just handing out keys and doing a little cleaning on the way out,” adds a professional from the island. “If you are alone and insufficiently organized, you can very quickly become overwhelmed. » Professionals receive on average 20% excluding tax of rental income.
Become an identified actor
To alleviate the labor shortage, Hoomy, which is very present on the Atlantic coast, is preparing to launch work-study training. The issues? Professionalize, remedy recruitment difficulties but also give credibility to the profession. “On regulatory issues, we are very frustrated not to be at the negotiating table,” laments the founder of the Nantes company, Thierry Violleau, who initiated the creation of the network of Rental Conciergeries of France (CLF ). “But it’s not surprising since we don’t exist: we have no collective agreement, no APE code [celui attribué par l’Insee selon l‘activité principale, NDLR]. Today, in France, you can list butcher shops, not concierge services. »
A supporter of regulation, this boss of 65 employees considers that the profession can be an actor in transformation: “The business is colossal and generates a lot of 'black people', it is normal that it is regulated. If tomorrow we had to identify housing, ensure the application of a charter, that would pose no problem for me. We all stand to gain if wealth goes to creating value. »
