In Chamonix, second homes and furnished tourist accommodation in the sights

3 km away, relegated to the southern exit of the famous Haute-Savoie town, the very sober but cozy Foyer des jeunes travailleurs (FJT) is buckling under 60 unsatisfied housing requests from employees, seasonal or not, who cannot afford to rent elsewhere.

Yet they are "the economic force of Chamonix," says Pierre Slemett, founding member of the FJT: workers without whom tourism could not provide 70% of Chamonix's GDP, and who move to a half-hour drive away or crowd into sometimes "unsanitary" shared accommodation.

Tourist bonanza

To avoid "a real breakdown of the social fabric" without jeopardizing this "tourist bonanza," Mayor Eric Fournier (UDI) told AFP, he passed a local urban planning scheme (PLU) in March, banning the construction of new second homes, which already account for 70% of housing.

"A first in France," boasts the town hall of Chamonix, a 9.000-population mountain sports resort with the 5th most expensive real estate in France, with an average of 9.504 euros per m2 -- more than in Paris -- behind Val-d'Isère (14.986 euros), Courchevel, Megève and Méribel in 2025, according to the website meilleursagents.com.

In addition, a municipal decree now only authorizes furnished tourist rentals for "one property per person," while their supply is "exploding" via platforms such as Airbnb or Booking.com, assures Eric Fournier.

Finally, the mayor promises to impose "social diversity" -- 40% to 100% social housing -- in "12" buildable sectors.

Because in Courchevel, as in Saint-Tropez, the real estate pressure from tourism and high-end secondary housing excludes a growing segment of the permanent population.

"Airbnb is a disaster," says Robin Charrier, 30, an employee of a climbing gym. He has been at the FJT for a year, living in his 20 m² studio for 2 euros a month, and considers himself "lucky."

But, after a maximum three-year lease, and despite a permanent contract earning €1.900 net per month, "I'll consider negotiating with my grandparents to lend me their camper van," he sighs. He would then join those who sleep in their vans or cars along a departmental road outside Chamonix from spring onwards, to keep their jobs.

15°C, moldy mattress

At 30, Marion -- not her real name -- a contract worker for a local authority, hired for "€3.300 gross per month," initially found only a studio "a quarter of an hour from Cham." But it was very poorly insulated. For "€650 per month, but with electricity bills of €200 to €300 in the winter to keep a room at 15 degrees."

Clotilde -- also an assumed name --, a young mountain equipment saleswoman, after fleeing a three-person shared apartment in a two-room apartment "above a nightclub," rented a studio for "575 euros a month with 400 euros for electricity in the winter and a mattress that was moldy from the humidity," she sighs. "And 18 km by bike to get to work..."

Pierre Slemett regrets every day that he cannot accommodate the approximately 60 single people and couples with children who wait each year for one of the FJT's 70 apartments.

"The mayor's measures are very courageous because they won't make everyone happy among the owners," and therefore the voters a year before the municipal elections, "but I want to see the results, the price of land that is still buildable is crazy," worries the former municipal councilor: "how could a social landlord acquire it, build and offer moderate rents?"

"Many people here are calling the mayor's new PLU an electoral bluff," says Louise Sebah, manager of Alpes & Chalets, one of Chamonix's countless real estate agencies. This one belongs to François-Xavier Laffin, the main opposition figure and declared candidate against Eric Fournier in the 2026 municipal elections. "The measures announced by the town hall are not going to suddenly provide the necessary money to those who need permanent housing," asserts Louise Sebah.

For her, the demand for second homes, "still high", will push in particular "a very wealthy foreign clientele" towards "already built properties", and further increase the price per square meter.