Does the place of residence influence the purchasing power of French households? Four years after the yellow vests crisis, France Stratgie provides a very nuanced response in two studies published Thursday.
Based on the latest data available from Insee, dated 2017, the studies point to relatively homogeneous food expenditure across the territory. Those of transport and accommodation vary more from one region to another, with for example significantly higher real estate costs in the Paris region than in the seven other territories selected for the study.
But it is also in the Paris region that the budget available after paying compulsory expenses is the highest (1165 euros per month per consumption unit, ie for a single person or for the first adult counted within the household), due to higher incomes. In the other seven regions, the budget remaining for households after constrained expenditure ranges from 808 euros (northern France) to 938 euros (east). On average, the study does not point no major difference between territories, with the exception of the Paris metropolitan areanotes Alain Trannoy, one of the authors.
Far from cities, the housing budget compensates for the transport budget
More generally, France Stratgie notes that the financial well-being of households depends less on their location than on their financial resources and their status as owner or tenant.
The crisis of yellow vests began with the increase in the carbon tax, we said to ourselves that the transport budget should weigh much more heavily for households far from city centers but the housing budget, which is lower far from cities, actually compensates for this increase in the budget transport, decrypts Mr. Trannoy. Similarly, Parisian households certainly have the greatest purchasing power in absolute value, but they make considerable sacrifices in terms of the surface area of their accommodation.
Differences in salary opportunities
Despite the nuanced conclusions of the studies, Alain Trannoy notes differences in salary and professional opportunities from one territory to another.
Industrial activities were very widely present in rural areas, they have greatly declined and employment has grown significantly in major cities, he adds. A development likely to feed dissatisfaction in terms of standard of living and financial well-being among the inhabitants of rural areas.
The strong return of inflation in 2022, to levels not seen since the 1980s, could however upset the conclusions of France Stratgie, which plans to publish an updated note in the coming days.
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