The rental market remains very tight, with fewer and fewer properties available.

"I have barely 90 apartments for rent in Paris," including about ten parking spaces, and "22 apartments available in Lyon," said Zahir Keenoo, president of Foncia ADB, on Wednesday, to illustrate the scarcity of rental supply.

Sandrine Aucis, Foncia's development and leasing director in Paris, has "experienced periods with 150 to 200 properties to rent", proof of the "drastic decrease in stock".

According to figures published Wednesday by the group, a leader in rental management in France, the number of available rental properties has decreased by 7% in 2025 compared to 2024 and the number of rental contracts signed has decreased by 3,5%.

"It's impossible to accommodate all the students who arrive," Zahir Keenoo stressed at a press conference. "The pressure is high in major cities, student towns, and tourist areas."

For households looking for a place, it is indeed "very complicated because there is almost nothing available", reports Bertrand, 31, a father-to-be who is looking to move to get an extra bedroom.

In four months of searching, they only visited four apartments with his wife. "There are so few offers for a three-room apartment," the rare listings "are displayed for barely two hours or are extremely expensive," continues Bertrand, a Paris resident, who prefers to keep his surname private.

"We can't even find an apartment to submit applications to" and "we are faced with real estate agents with an aggressive and contemptuous tone because they have no difficulty finding tenants," he testifies.

The situation had already been complicated for several years and "it's getting worse and worse," notes Yann Jéhanno, president of the Laforêt France network.

Abyss of the works

The main cause, according to the head of Foncia, is the discouragement of landlords, particularly those facing renovation needs.

Among the 12.000 landlords who withdrew the management mandate entrusted to Foncia, 47% chose to sell because of "increasing regulatory constraints and degraded profitability", the company reports.

Others have notably chosen to do without an agency, to opt for seasonal rentals or to wait to do the work themselves.

Frédéric, a retired real estate professional who wished to remain anonymous, confirms that the cost of renovations has become the main obstacle to the profitability of his rental properties. This starts with the energy-efficiency upgrades that have become mandatory for re-letting certain properties.

On a personal level, he has invested in real estate throughout his career and now owns around fifty properties - a situation that does not concern the majority of landlords, with only 246.000 individuals owning more than ten properties, according to INSEE.

In addition to the tens of thousands of euros in renovation costs, there are the government levies: "income tax, general social contribution (CSG), wealth tax on real estate, property tax—I'm at about 84% withheld. There's nothing left," complains Frédéric. This year, his "cash flow is negative, so I have to dip into my savings."

"The rental stock is turning over less, there will be no solution until we revive investment," says Yann Jéhanno.

"The current constraints do not contribute to strengthening the supply in sufficient quantity," adds Loïc Cantin, president of the National Federation of Real Estate.

The government's announcements on this point could inspire some optimism. Last week, a rental investment scheme was slipped into the draft budget for 2026, on which the government staked its responsibility by invoking Article 49.3.

The scheme takes up the principles of the "private landlord status", but with more advantageous sliders for landlords, including of older housing provided that significant work is carried out.

Illustrative image of the article via Depositphotos.com.