Where is “the France of owners” dear to Nicolas Sarkozy? Are we moving towards a France of tenants? We are getting closer slowly but surely. The rate of homeowners (57.2% according to INSEE, one of the lowest rates in the European Union) is still slightly in the majority but, casually, it has been steadily declining for ten years . And therefore the share of tenants (more than 40%) increases. “This new trend reveals not a preference of the French to be or remain a tenant but rather an inability to become an owner», deciphers Robin Rivaton, essayist and recognized real estate specialist.
With the fall in credit rates and prices, the purchasing power of the French has increased again over the past year. But households have only recovered a third of the loss of purchasing power suffered after the sudden surge in rates at the start of 2022. The critical situation in new housing is, moreover, preventing the French from realizing their dream of buy a house with a garden. Consequence: households who wish to become owners are condemned to remain tenants. To the great dismay of young people who see the waiting list to rent accommodation explode.
Not all French people necessarily have the means to become owners. “Property has virtues but can also be a trap, particularly for those who do not maintain their home, which thus loses value.», Claims Me Xavier Lièvre, Parisian notary and president of the “Promoting access to housing” commission. “More and more households will have to give up the traditional residential route (tenant then owner) and risk of arriving at retirement without assetsretorts Robin Rivaton. For 20 years, these retirees will pay high rents and receive significantly reduced income.»
This is how 75% of French people want to access property. The desire is still there, despite the housing crisis, but the means, not always. And the ownership rates are affected by very low scores. An observation that applies to Paris but also to the nine other large cities. None has an ownership rate higher than the national average. It is in Strasbourg and Lille that it is lowest, between 27% and 28%, according to the latest study published by INSEE (2020 figures). And in Nice and Marseille it is the highest: 47% for one and 43% for the other.
Fortunately, over the past year, prices have been falling in the 10 largest cities in France. But not enough to compensate for the sudden surge in credit rates. The declines are limited to a range between -3% and -9%, over the last 12 months, according to the National Real Estate Federation (Fnaim) (see below). Nice is the only city in the top 10 where prices have not fallen in a year. Worse: in recent months, this decline has already tended to melt like snow in the sun. So much so that they stabilize in Lyon or increase again as in Lille.
Elsewhere, particularly in medium-sized towns, real estate costs less, between 1000 and 3000 euros per m². But, according to Fnaim, prices have already started to rise again. This is the case in Quimper (+12.6% in 3 months!), Saint-Nazaire (+6.7%) and La Roche-sur-Yon (+1.9%). Where the ownership rate ranges between 48% and 55%. “Outside of big cities, being a tenant at 35 is seen as a failure!», concludes Corinne Jolly, president of PAP.
