It was a request from local elected officials given the housing shortage. Twenty-four municipalities in the French Basque Country will be able to apply rent capping, under a decree published Wednesday in the Official Journal.
“A decree opens up the possibility of controlling rents to control their rise and protect the purchasing power of tenant residents”, welcomes the Ministry of Housing in a press release.
The municipalities authorized to apply it are Ahetze, Anglet, Arbonne, Arcangues, Ascain, Bassussarry, Bayonne, Biarritz, Bidart, Biriatou, Boucau, Ciboure, Guéthary, Hendaye, Jatxou, Lahonce, Larressore, Mouguerre, Saint-Jean-de- Luz, Saint-Pierre-d’Irube, Urcuit, Urrugne, Ustaritz and Villefranque.
The deleterious effects of second homes and furnished tourist accommodation
The Minister Delegate in charge of Housing, Patrice Vergriete, announced at the end of August the next application of this measure, which allows communities to set reference rents per square meter which cannot, except in exceptional circumstances, be exceeded.
It has been demanded for a long time by many local elected officials in the Basque Country, where the proliferation of second homes and furnished tourist accommodation is accused of preventing residents from finding proper housing. The amount of reference rents will be set by an order “during 2024”, according to the ministry.
Rent capping is already applied in the municipalities of Paris, Lille, Lyon, Villeurbanne, Montpellier and Bordeaux, and in the intermunicipalities of Seine-Saint-Denis Plaine Commune and Est Ensemble. It currently consists of an “experiment” at the national level, lasting until 2026, when the government may decide to make it permanent.
Patrice Vergriete, engaged in a project to decentralize housing policy, said he was in favor of communities being able to freely decide to apply rent caps, without having to request authorization from the State as is the case. is the case currently.