This small French town has seen its property tax jump by more than 150% in ten years, a shock for residents. Between a restricted municipal budget and services to maintain, this case reveals the financial challenges that villages face to ensure their survival.
The property tax, this local tax which weighs on property owners each year, experiences significant variations from one municipality to another. While some cities are moderately increasing their rates, others are showing considerable increases, sometimes causing incomprehension among residents. In this small town in Essonne, this dynamic has reached impressive levels, with an increase of more than 150% in a decade.
This gradual increase, which is of significant proportions for residents, partly reflects local decisions linked to the evolution of rental bases, but also management constrained by municipal budgets under pressure. This phenomenon raises a dilemma for mayors who wonder how to preserve the financial balance of the city while sparing taxpayers.
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A record increase for this small French town
Over the last ten years, the town of Souzy-la-Briche in Essonne has seen its property tax increase by 153.7%, an increase which makes it one of the highest in France, even surpassing larger towns. large. The mayor, Christian Gourinexplains this situation by a crucial budgetary necessity for the survival of the municipality. “We have increased the municipal share very little over the last 25 years; it was becoming untenable ” he explains. In addition to inflation, it is the rental bases, which set the reference value for the tax, which have been reevaluated upwards, directly impacting the calculation of the property tax.
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For residents like Jacques, a retired pastry chef living alone, the bill reaches this year 3,308 euros for his 280 m² property. ” It's terrible ” he confides. For him, this increase adds to a general increase in the cost of living, to the point of making him consider moving. “We worked all our lives to afford this place, he sighs. If it continues to increase, I will no longer be able to pay. ” he explains. Marc, another resident of Souzy-la-Briche, also finds himself confronted to a property tax of 3,700 euros for a house of 200 m²an increase of 208% since its installation in 1997.
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A local tax at the heart of municipal budgets
The household waste collection tax (TEOM) has also seen a marked increase in municipalities such as Souzy-la-Briche. Calculated on the same basis as the property tax, this additional tax has tripled in six years for residents of the commune, due to adjustments made by the Entre Juine and Renarde intercommunality. At the same time, the municipal tax rate has also skyrocketed from 2021, now reaching 18.63%.
Property tax revenues, which “more than doubled” between 2020 and 2023, rtoday represent 45% of the budget of Souzy-la-Bricheaccording to the mayor. “IWe have to pay fixed costs, staff, maintain green spaces and roads, maintain aging buildings… Here, there is not a euro that is spent without being weighed several times, “ explains the local elected official. As a sign of solidarity and due to lack of resources, elected officials themselves get involved in maintenance tasks, for example repainting the walls of the municipal school. Catherine, a resident since 1984, acknowledges that the property tax increase “stings a little,” but believes that “ the town hall has no money, and it offers lots of things to children for Halloween and Christmasl. “
