In the cities of Paris, Lille (Hellemmes and Lomme), Lyon, Villeurbanne, the municipalities of Est Ensemble and Plaine Commune in Seine-Saint-Denis, and soon Montpellier (from July 1) as well as in Bordeaux ( by the end of 2022), the current rent control prohibits landlords from freely setting the rent for their homes.
In reality, it is a question of “double supervision”: housing located in a tight zone, even in a municipality that does not practice this “additional supervision”, must already comply with a legal limit when they are re-let: the where applicable, the newcomer’s rent must not exceed that of the previous tenant.
With one exception: the landlord can increase the rent if it had been undervalued (based on at least three examples of rents in the area with similar characteristics, or six for agglomerations of more than one million inhabitants). inhabitants) and if the consumption of the accommodation is less than 331 kWh per square meter and per year.
Regarding “double-framed” rents, these rents cannot exceed a certain ceiling per square meter, the level of which is set annually by prefectural decree.
In Paris, for example, the annual ceilings apply to new leases signed from July 1 of the current year until June 30 of the following year. In Lyon/Villeurbanne, the period runs from November 1 of year N to October 31 of year N+1.
Housing affected by rent control
Rent control applies to property rented as a principal residence. Those rented as a second home, sublet, or furnished accommodation are not affected by the device. Housing subject to the law of 1948, those approved by Anah (excluding intermediate rent agreements) and social housing (HLM) are also excluded.
Fixing the rent
For a first rental
The amount of the rent excluding charges and excluding “rent supplement” must not exceed the “increased reference rent”, which varies according to the districts, the number of rooms in the accommodation, its type (furnished/unfurnished) and its rental period. construction. To find out the reference rents (“reduced” and “increased”), it will be necessary to refer to the online tool of the Ile-de-France prefecture for housing in the Paris region, or to the Service- public.fr for other areas (Lille/Hellemmes/Lomme, Lyon/Villeurbanne).
Owners have the option of applying a “additional rent” under certain conditions: if the accommodation has special characteristics (location, comfort).
Be careful, however, not to interpret these particular characteristics too broadly: they must be determining ยป compared to accommodation of the same category, and located in the same geographical area. For example, a view of the Eiffel Tower may warrant this supplement, but the view should not be minimal or truncated significantly. In addition, the carrying out of energy saving work or charges are not considered as elements justifying this additional rent.
TO KNOW
The basic rent, the reference rent, the increased reference rent, and the additional rent if it is applied must be entered on the lease.
For a lease renewal
If the basic rent is lower than the “reduced” reference rent, the rent can increase the rent, but it must notify the tenant six months before the end of the lease in a formal way (registered letter A/R, bailiff’s deed, or delivered by hand against signature), and the new rent cannot exceed the “minus reference rent”. This increase will also have to be spread out (by one third per year for a three-year lease, for example);
Note that if the rent of the lease coming to an end is higher than the “increased reference rent”, the tenant can also ask the landlord for a reduction in rent. This request must be made at least five months before the end of the lease in a formal manner, specify the new amount of the proposed rent and the increased reference rent used to determine it.
For a new rental after less than 18 months of occupation
The basic rent, which must not exceed the increased reference rent, may be increased in relation to the old lease if the latter had not been revised during the previous 12 months (by increasing it by the annual variation of the Rent Reference Index), if improvement or upgrading work has been carried out since the departure of the last tenant, or if the rent had been undervalued.
For a new rental after 18 months and more of occupancy
The conditions for fixing the rent are the same as for a first rental.