The law creates EPIFE, a public real estate company operational in 2027 to manage the State's real estate assets.

The management of the approximately 97 million square meters occupied or owned by the State must gradually change its model. Law No. 2026-795 of August 18, 2026, creates the State Real Estate and Land Establishment (EPIFE), a public land trust tasked with exercising the function of owner more directly.

The new entity will take the form of a national public establishment of an industrial and commercial nature. It will be created through the transformation of the public limited company Agence de gestion de l'immobilier de l'État (AGILE), no later than January 1, 2027.

A property company responsible for managing and renovating public buildings

EPIFE's mission will be to manage, maintain, operate, and renovate the buildings it will own. It will have to optimize their use and contribute to the State's objectives in terms of ecological and energy transition.

His skills will cover a wide range of real estate transactions:

• building maintenance and renovation;
• development, construction and restructuring work;
• the rehabilitation or demolition of real estate;
• the acquisition of real estate and property rights;
• the carrying out of studies, consulting services and services;
• the updating of data relating to the condition and use of heritage.

The buildings may be made available to state services, local authorities, public institutions, or other public or private bodies. These uses will take the form of leases or permits for the occupation of public property, under conditions that must preserve the continuity of public service.

Property transfers organized gradually by decree

The law does not mandate the immediate transfer of all state-owned real estate. Buildings belonging to the public or private domain of the state and its public institutions may be transferred free of charge to EPIFE.

For state-owned property, a decree will establish the list of properties concerned and set the date of their transfer. Transactions involving the property of a public institution must be approved by its board of directors and formalized by a notarial deed.

Each transfer must be preceded by the necessary studies, analyses, and assessments to determine the characteristics and condition of the property. This preliminary step will allow the property company to establish its maintenance needs and plan the corresponding investments.

The government departments will become tenants of the transferred buildings.

Ministries, agencies, and other government departments will continue to occupy the buildings necessary for their missions, but will be progressively relieved of their property management responsibilities. They will retain the responsibility for defining their needs in terms of space, equipment, and public access facilities.

According to the Ministry of Public Action and Accounts, government agencies will pay rent to EPIFE. This rent should be adjusted based on real estate market values. However, the precise methods for calculating and adjusting these rents must be defined in the contracts signed with the occupants.

The State Property Directorate will continue to define the interministerial property policy. It will also oversee the institution, which is under the authority of the minister responsible for state property.

More programming for energy renovation

EPIFE will contribute to the preparation and implementation of a state real estate strategy document. This will define multi-year guidelines for the management, streamlining, enhancement, and ecological transition of the heritage.

A five-year objectives and performance contract will implement this strategy. The law notably includes targets relating to carbon neutrality and the accessibility of buildings for people with disabilities, accompanied by monitoring indicators.

The real estate company will be able to use several financing mechanisms to carry out its operations, including global performance contracts, partnership agreements, and deferred payment energy performance contracts. It will also be able to take out loans and real estate leases.

For construction companies, engineering firms, project managers, and maintenance operators, the creation of EPIFE could lead to more centralized and stable work scheduling. However, the timeline and actual volume of contracts will depend on the pace of property transfers and the financial resources allocated to the agency.

Transforming or repurposing goods that have become useless

The institution will need to find the best use for buildings that are no longer required for a public service mission. Several solutions could be implemented:

• optimization of occupied surfaces;
• sharing of buildings between several administrations;
• change of use;
• long-term rental;
• temporary occupation;
• restructuring, promotion or sale of the property.

When a sale is being considered, EPIFE must inform the relevant local authorities and the inter-municipal public establishment with its own tax base. The sale must not jeopardize the continuity of public service.

The institution may create subsidiaries or acquire stakes in companies operating within its area of ​​expertise. However, the share of capital held by private individuals in companies controlled by EPIFE may not exceed 30% of the group's consolidated capital.

Revenues from rents and property appreciation

The economic model presented by the government will rely primarily on rents paid by the occupying administrations. These will be supplemented by income from the buildings, proceeds from sales, commercial transactions, subsidies, and loans.

The revenue generated from the repurposing of vacant or underutilized spaces must be reinvested in the maintenance, renovation, and modernization of existing buildings. In the medium term, the government believes this approach could also reduce expenses and generate budget savings. However, these results will depend on the quality of the transferred buildings, the necessary renovations, and the actual level of rental income.

A first experiment in Normandy and the North

The government announces a gradual rollout starting in 2027. The first phase is to involve administrative centers bringing together several ministries in Normandy and in the Nord department.

This experiment should allow us to test the distribution of responsibilities between the property company, the State Real Estate Directorate and the occupying administrations before a possible extension to other real estate complexes.

EPIFE will be required to submit an annual report to Parliament outlining its activities and several multi-year investment programming scenarios. These scenarios must focus in particular on renovation, energy efficiency, and heritage enhancement.

“I commend the commitment of parliamentarians from across the political spectrum who championed the bill that initiated this structural reform of the State’s real estate policy. The State’s assets belong to all French citizens: they deserve optimized management and a public policy that meets the challenges of renovation, ecological transition, and improving the working conditions of public employees. With this future public real estate company, the State is committing to a long-term vision for its asset management policy, benefiting public employees, users, and, more broadly, all citizens,” declared David Amiel, Minister of Public Action and Accounts.

“EPIFE will sustainably strengthen the role of property owner by progressively bringing together, within a single institution, the skills necessary to better understand, maintain, and renovate the State's real estate assets. It will also allow for better valuation of these assets by identifying the most suitable use for each property. This organization will foster the structuring of a State real estate sector, serving government departments and their real estate projects, and will enable more efficient and stable investment planning for a public asset base that is economically optimized, better maintained, and more resilient,” believes Sylviane Bourguet, Director of State Real Estate.