Paradoxically, some sectors of the French economy are still on a drip, the next few months promise to be tricky on the unemployment front, but borrowing conditions have rarely been so favorable: mortgage rates are at their lowest.
“The previous record at the end of 2019 was broken in February 2021. This was then confirmed since rates now reach around 1% over twenty years”, confirms Pierre Chapon, the co-founder of the broker Pretto. Borrowers who took out a mortgage in April 2021 thus obtained an average rate of 0.87% over fifteen years, 0.99% over twenty years and 1.20% over twenty-five years, according to the Observatory. housing loan / CSA.
More good news, “The High Council for Financial Stability raised, in December 2020, the maximum authorized debt ratio from 33% to 35% of income, while allowing banks the possibility of granting loans in the nine over twenty-seven years at most, instead of twenty-five years previously ‘, recalls Maël Bernier, spokesperson for Meilleurtaux.com. A relaxation of borrowing conditions giving a little air to first-time borrowers, often limited in terms of debt ratio.
The picture is therefore idyllic on paper. The reality is a little less rosy, however. “Credit rates are very low … but not for everyone”, summarizes Cécile Roquelaure, director of studies at Empruntis. More than ever, it is necessary to show white paws to convince the banks. “Entrepreneurs and employees on fixed-term contracts find it difficult to borrow. For those in CDI, the banks are vigilant on the sector of activity and the size of the company ”, confirms Sandrine Allonier, research director of Vousfinancer.
Case-by-case study
The presence of partial unemployment on the payslips acts as an alarm signal. “Banks are cautious because the risks are higher in the event of short-time working. But that does not mean that we must refrain from trying: some establishments systematically refuse, others study on a case-by-case basis ”, recalls Pierre Chapon, from Pretto. A couple of catering employees earning 4,600 euros net to two was however refused by all the banks, because they did not take into account the income of the lady, in partial unemployment. The couple, however, had a debt ratio limited to 31%.
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