While waiting for MaPrimeRénov', winter without a boiler or insulation

Residents of Noisy-le-Grand, Hyppolite Thiébot and his partner Jade thought they had planned their property purchase well in advance to avoid this situation with the arrival of winter. As soon as they signed the preliminary sales agreement in November 2024, the couple had begun the process of applying for MaPrimeRénov' grants.

But faced with the time required to prepare and submit a file, and especially faced with the overload of the system, a year later they have "no visibility" on the response time of the National Housing Agency (Anah), which distributes the aid.

Without a decision to grant the MaPrimeRénov' subsidy, it is impossible to start the planned 70.000 euros of energy renovation work, for which the couple with very modest incomes can hope for 63.000 euros of aid.

The rest of the home renovations were completed, and the family moved in in July. However, there was no boiler to connect the radiators to. Some of the windows were so thin they shattered at the slightest impact. And spaces were left for insulating the interior wall behind the new kitchen and for ventilation behind the toilet.

"I'm itching to finish the work, but I can't even start it," grumbles Hyppolite Thiébot, who did most of the work himself. "The plan was to do everything at the same time and before it got cold," he recalls.

"No choice"

As winter approached, "we were forced to finance some expenses ourselves, because we have no choice, otherwise we get cold," the PE teacher told AFP.

They bought three electric oil-filled radiators, sealed the natural vents, and added an old hot water tank they found on a secondhand website. The couple, parents of a one-and-a-half-year-old daughter, also had to pay out of pocket for a window to replace the temporary plexiglass panel in the kitchen. "We can't get through the winter like this!"

"We asked the parents for help to insulate the attic" and "gain three to four degrees" in the bedrooms on the floor below, explains Mr. Thiébot. "It was really cold, all the heat was going towards the roof."

But the ground floor, with its icy floor, will not be heated this winter. "We have single glazing, so whatever we do, it will be cold. Winter is going to be a bit harsh, that's for sure, but we've prepared for it."

Reporting this "critical situation" to Anah, Hyppolite Thiébot received a "somewhat abrupt" response to his email requesting information after three months of waiting: Anah 93 is overwhelmed by an "exceptional volume of requests" and orders them "not to systematically follow up on the progress of the files, because these repeated requests slow down the overall processing", which is a minimum of six months.

Cases postponed to 2026

The national average processing time is four months according to Anah, which acknowledges "differences between territories and/or individual situations".

The public agency received nearly 115.000 applications between January and September, for a budget allocated for 100.000 comprehensive renovations. This surge in demand prompted the government to suspend the program for three months this summer.

All applications that do not fit within this budget will be postponed to 2026.

"There are entire families who will wait for years for real renovations, a solution to energy insecurity," because of the State's decision to "cut back the tap of aid to save money," warns Manuel Domergue, director of studies at the Foundation for Housing the Disadvantaged.

Without the MaPrimeRénov' grant, it would be impossible for the Thiébot family to cover all the planned energy-efficiency work. "We're abandoning the heat pump, we're abandoning the insulation of both facades from the outside, and we'll only insulate one wall from the inside and replace the windows."

Illustrative image of the article via Depositphotos.com.