A call to reverse the real estate downturn: A call for owners of 3 million vacant residential properties to put them back on the market. Christophe Dupra.

Christophe Dupre, CEO of Qlower, gives tips on encouraging property owners to rent out their empty homes in urban areas.

The housing crisis in France is a challenge that intensifies every year. However, there is an untapped resource right at hand: three million empty dwellings scattered across the country. Some of these vacant properties are the answer to the population's growing housing needs. As real estate professionals, it is our duty to shed light on this problem and offer concrete and stimulating solutions so that each owner can act on their own level.

The map of unfilled places: a focus of vacant residential properties in''France

Untoccupied dwellings account for 8% of France's existing housing stock. Let's identify where these three million vacant properties are concentrated. Empty dwellings are not evenly distributed throughout the country. They are mainly concentrated in large cities such as Paris, where the vacancy rate is around 7.5% (source: APUR, 2020), but also in some declining rural areas, especially in the famous "diagonal of emptiness". This urban concentration is often due to speculative investment and sometimes simply to tenant negligence or fear. In rural areas, vacancy and lack of economic appeal leave many homes without tenants. This second pool of housing is less well suited to address the current''housing shortage problems. The dynamics of spatial attractiveness and the adaptation of urban planning policies remain important prerequisites for any effective strategy to reuse these empty dwellings in rural areas. At the same time, in urban areas, a clear and sustained political desire can make a significant proportion of these empty dwellings affordable.

Local and global strategies to encourage the revitalization of empty housing.

How can owners be encouraged to rent out these vacant residential properties in urban settings? Consider two specific actions and the possibility of creating an incentivizing environment for owners who now choose to forego possible''rental income.

Big projects: converting offices and commercial space into residential

Offices, commercial spaces, government buildings, and surface parking lots are not included in vacant housing statistics. These buildings, often outdated in terms of environmental performance, are the targets of large-scale projects for conversion to residential use, mostly undertaken by social and institutional landlords. The State's desire in this respect is clearly demonstrated (the regime of deviation from the local urban plan implemented by the Elan Law in 2018). Currently, it is not possible to construct or demolish buildings without first examining the change of purpose and development of the property. Thus, over the last 10 years''some 2,000 living spaces were created from buildings previously used for commercial activities, mainly in Paris.

Small projects: revitalizing 100,000 unused service rooms

A characteristic feature of Paris and some historic centers is the 85% of unoccupied service rooms according to the last census of 2015. Often not complying with quality standards, located on upper floors without elevators, having a floor area below the minimum allowed for half of the rooms, service rooms are part of the solution. The main objective is to facilitate their consolidation for rental or sale purposes. This local initiative can be accompanied by renovation assistance with a commitment to renting out''as the main dwelling.

Local policy: making life easier for owners by minimizing risks

Like the "Rent Compassionately" program in the city of Paris, local initiatives are taking off. Guaranteed payment of rent and utilities, restoration in case of damage, rental management delegated to an accredited organization, and the opportunity to reduce taxable income. These benefits offered by Paris represent an excellent answer, but unfortunately have had limited success. It may be regretted that this program is only available for bare apartments and is subject to taxation,''which ranges from unfavorable to absorbing.

General policy: restore landlords' confidence or induce sales

The residential property tax has just morphed into a tax on secondary housing and a tax on vacant residential properties. This is the first step in the state's plan to create enforcement measures to encourage owners to take care of their properties. Making renting easier: There are many tools and services available today to make it easier to rent and manage rental housing: repair estimates, furniture kit delivery, rental management software, automated record keeping, etc. Offering and managing rental housing has never been easier. At the same time''the cost of external management has fallen to around 6% of rent in the general case. The problem of over-protection of tenants in France remains to be solved. This principle is justified but sometimes abused, and every week the press publishes eloquent cases (rare though they are, but ones that cause outrage), always to the detriment of the landlord who maintains the image of an oil tycoon. Facilitate the sale: The downward trend is clear. Even if owners refuse to believe it, expectation is now working against them. Once the period of denial of falling prices passes, owners will put up for sale those properties that only bring rising costs. Let's trust our city officials to increase the tax pressure on these vacant or secondary properties,''which do not generate income.

Property ownership and its product

Discussing the housing crisis without focusing on urban vacancy is a mistake. Seasonal rentals are just a convenient scapegoat for ephemeral housing policy. Rather than adding temporary tax incentives that generate hunting decisions, let's create the necessary accompanying measures to create a favorable rental environment for vacant housing. Guarantee property ownership and its product. Let's stabilize the fiscal system for rentals, whether bare or furnished, removed from any temporary posterity. Let's stop shrinking the rental market with drastic measures that undermine trust, especially the definition''energy efficiency. A constant reminder that 3 million landlords offer housing to one in five French households. It is time to bring together landlords, real estate professionals and public authorities to create a sustainable rental market accessible to all.