Condominium managers: stop the manager bashing

Yes, abuses must be punished. No, they do not represent an entire profession.

Once again, the profession of condominium manager has been presented in a caricatured and reductive way, fueling a climate of systematic distrust towards a profession that is nevertheless essential to the proper functioning of the French real estate stock.

While reprehensible practices exist and must be fought with the utmost firmness, FNAIM rejects trustee bashing and the conflations that cast opprobrium on tens of thousands of professionals and collaborators engaged daily in the service of millions of co-owners.

According to Loïc Cantin, President of FNAIM: "This is an insult to these women and men who perform a demanding, complex and largely misunderstood job, constantly exposed to systematic criticism, even though they provide essential services to the collective life of buildings."

FNAIM constantly reminds us that any fraudulent practice, any serious breach or any abuse must be punished.

This is precisely why the Federation has been fighting tirelessly for several years for the effective implementation of the control and sanction commission provided for by the ELAN law, within the National Council for Real Estate Transactions and Management (CNTGI) - a commission that still does not exist to this day, despite the commitments made by the public authorities.

For Loïc Cantin: "The profession needs a genuine regulatory tool. The oversight committee is not a threat to property managers; it is a protection for co-owners and for the vast majority of professionals who carry out their work diligently."

A profession far removed from the caricatures

Contrary to some preconceived notions, recent studies reveal a much more nuanced reality. An IPSOS survey conducted in 2025 shows that 62% of residents are satisfied with the management of their condominium, with 10% being very satisfied. Among owners, this figure rises to 66%.

The study also highlights a key point: a lack of understanding of the property manager's actual role fuels much of the tension. 34% of respondents have only a vague idea of ​​it, and 14% admit they don't clearly know what their responsibilities are. This confusion breeds misunderstandings and suspicions.

Another key finding: the cost of fees is largely overestimated. 40% of co-owners are unaware of the actual amount of these fees, and many estimate them well above reality.

For Loïc Cantin: “We often hear ‘the property manager is expensive’ or ‘the property manager does nothing.’ The figures mainly show that co-ownership is a complex and poorly understood world, and that the lack of education fuels tensions. This doesn’t justify any abuse, but it does require us to move beyond caricatures.”

Property managers on the front line facing the major challenges of co-owned properties

Energy transition, rising energy costs, digitalization, building security, aging building stock: the property management profession has never been so demanding or so exposed.

Property managers are now central players in energy renovation, supporting co-ownerships in increasingly complex technical, legal, and financial decisions. The IPSOS survey also shows that co-owners identify the property manager as a key contact for initiating these transformations.

For several years, FNAIM has been multiplying its actions to raise the profession's skills: enhanced training, support for members, transparency tools, promotion of verified customer reviews, constant commitment to better regulation.

Finally creating the oversight committee: an urgent matter

For FNAIM, the priority is clear and unchanged: to establish without delay the CNTGI oversight committee, as required by law, in order to:

• swiftly punish abuses,
• remove the failing actors,
• to restore trust,
• to protect both co-owners and the professionals involved.

Transparency and regulation are essential. Widespread denigration, however, is irresponsible and counterproductive.

Illustrative image of the article via Depositphotos.com.