Thanks to the recent Loc’Avantages scheme, homeowners can benefit from a tax credit by lowering the rent below the local average. But because of the method of calculating reference rents, the device is much more interesting in some municipalities than in others.
To encourage lower rental prices, the government set up the Loc’Avantages system in March 2021. This tool allows the owners of a rental property to obtain a tax reduction when they offer an attractive rent for their accommodation, reports Capital.
Thus, the lower the rent, the greater the tax advantage. But this advantage may be greater in some cities than in others while keeping rent close to average market prices, according to the Clameur observatory specializing in private rental stock. the rent calculation method reference is not the same everywhere.
Reference rents poorly adapted to reality
To benefit from the tax advantage (from 15% to 65% tax credit), landlords can offer a monthly rent that is 15%, 30% or 45% lower than the market price. Reference rents are obtained by applying a complex formula based on the surface area of the property. But the prices obtained sometimes have nothing to do with the reality of the local market.
Clameur has chosen seven major French cities (Angers, Toulouse, Boulogne-Billancourt, Rennes, Strasbourg, Lille, Lens). He then compared the amounts of the ceiling rents of the Loc’Avantages system with the real average rents observed in these municipalities. Result: Boulogne-Billancourt, a landlord can rent a 30 m apartment at the real market price and obtain a tax reduction.
Loc’Avantages: owners can apply for an agreement
The large accommodations favored by Loc’Avantages
In Lens, the ceiling rents for studios are also overestimated. There is a 5% difference between these and the market price. Rennes, Toulouse, Strasbourg and Lille, ceiling rents are underestimated for small surfaces. It is therefore less interesting to invest in these cities.
The device is also more advantageous for larger surfaces (two or three-room apartments). This is due to the calculation rule, which applies the same ceiling to properties of 20 to 40 m. For these large dwellings, ceiling rents are underestimated in all cities except Angers. Owners can therefore rent three-room apartments there at a slight discount and still benefit from the tax credit.
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