1 in 3 French people say their home is not suitable for the intense summer heat

The French fear extreme heat

Heat waves are seen as a serious threat to the well-being of residents. The increasingly frequent heatwave due to climate change highlights the inadequacy of a large part of the building stock to cope with high temperatures. Among the reasons given for considering housing as unsanitary, the lack of thermal comfort in summer is cited by 36% of French people (41% for the lack of thermal comfort in winter).

This concern is even more pronounced among young people under 35, where 40% of them consider their accommodation unsuitable for extreme heat. Residents of the Paris metropolitan area are also more affected by this problem, with 39% believing that their housing cannot withstand summer temperatures.

An aspiration for healthy buildings

Faced with this observation, the French express a strong aspiration to live in healthy housing*. 64% consider thermal comfort as the main criterion defining a healthy home, followed by natural light (60%) and indoor air quality (57%).

The figures also show that 83% of French people are in favor of stricter regulations to ensure the construction and renovation of healthy housing, which illustrates a growing demand from citizens for more suitable and sustainable living environments.

Technological solutions in demand

To improve their thermal comfort, the French are showing a strong interest in technological solutions. For example, 51% of respondents are interested in automatic temperature management systems in summer and winter, and 42% in the automatic lowering of shutters in case of strong sunlight.

The results of this study clearly show that the French increasingly recognize the importance of a healthy habitat adapted to climate change.

Illustrative image of the article via Depositphotos.com.