Exclusive survey Alila and Elabe "Elected officials and housing construction in France"

The key points of the study:

• 86% of elected officials consider that there is a housing crisis in France, this conviction is even stronger among elected officials of municipalities with more than 10.000 inhabitants (90%), among those of Île-de-France (90 %) and among elected officials on the left (91%);
• 61% of elected officials consider that housing is one of the major challenges of their municipality / inter-municipality behind health, education and economic attractiveness;
• One in two elected officials report a lack of social housing: 47% consider that there is not enough housing in their city and 52% deplore a lack of social housing;
• Finally, 73% of elected officials consider that simplifying the procedures would increase the construction of social housing, and 71% of them consider that relaxing the loan envelope system to facilitate approvals would also have a beneficial effect. on the construction of social housing.

Elected officials deplore a lack of housing construction

Elected officials consider that construction is an effective response to the housing crisis and constitutes a major tool for social cohesion. Indeed, 59% of elected officials are convinced that "the construction of social housing would solve the housing crisis".

By the end of their terms of office in 2026, 89% of elected officials surveyed intend to authorize the construction of housing in their municipality, and 79% plan to authorize the construction of social housing there. In detail, elected officials from municipalities with fewer than 5.000 inhabitants aim to build an average of 145 housing units (including 72 social housing), while city councilors in municipalities with more than 30.000 inhabitants plan to build an average of 2.173 housing units (including 662 social housing units) .

The construction of housing in the service of economic attractiveness and a vector of social cohesion

For the elected officials questioned, the construction of housing contributes to the attractiveness of the territory and to social cohesion: 97% consider that housing is "an important element of attractiveness" and 96% consider that it is "an essential factor. integration and social cohesion. ". Elected officials consider that housing weighs heavily on the purchasing power of citizens (88%) and the argument of job creation induced by the sector is also widely shared.

Visibly confident in ecological awareness and in the development of good construction practices, almost all elected officials (96%) believe "that by doing differently, we can build new housing while respecting the environment ".

Ways to increase housing construction

It is the lack of available land (cited by 36% of elected officials) and the lack of means to finance public infrastructure (13%) that are cited as the main obstacles to construction.

To increase the construction of social housing, elected officials recommend:

• Simplification of procedures (73%);
• The relaxation of the loan envelope system to facilitate approvals (71%), especially in Ile-de-France (83%);
• The reduction in the time taken to obtain approvals (68%);
• Financial incentive schemes for municipalities that build (65%);
• The dematerialization of construction permit instruction procedures (36%).

Hervé Legros, CEO of ALILA, declares: “I would like to thank the elected officials who agreed to share with us their findings on the construction of housing in France. Their observations correspond in every way to those that we can draw up in the municipalities and intercommunalities with which we work. While housing should be a basic commodity accessible to as many people as possible, it weighs heavily on the purchasing power of the French. Elected officials like ALILA, social landlords and associations alike, all share the same observation: the housing deficit, including social housing, is glaring.

Our elected officials are making proposals to resolve the housing crisis that we share. Let's put them in place, make construction one of the levers of economic recovery, and build the housing essential to social cohesion that many municipalities badly need. "

Bernard Sananès, President of ELABE, adds: “Long presented in public debate as hostile to social housing, the mayors questioned here testify to clear intentions: they will build social housing during their term of office. In a good place among the priority issues for their municipality, housing weighs heavily on the purchasing power of their citizens. In their view, construction is an effective response to the housing crisis and constitutes a lever for economic attractiveness, employment and social cohesion. If the decision to build, according to them, comes up against a lack of land and available resources, especially in dense areas, solutions exist: breaking down the barrier of administrative complexity and providing financial incentives for building municipalities. Finally, opposing housing and the environment appears to be a rearguard battle for elected officials convinced that new housing can be built while respecting the environment ”.