Paris: the City aims to achieve a “fully respected” rent control
This is an ambitious objective supported by the Parisian majority: “to limit abuse as much as possible and eventually achieve a framework for rents that is fully respected”. Ian Brossat, deputy mayor of Paris in charge of housing, presented this Thursday, January 5 the new platform that will allow Parisians to report excessive rents.
“Absolute priority” of this second term of the mayor of Paris Anne Hidalgo, the housing policy must pass according to Ian Brossat by the supervision of rents and by a better respect of the device. An ambitious wish, while according to the figures of the Observatory of rents of the Parisian agglomeration (Olap) put forward by the deputy in charge of housing, “a third of the leases signed in Paris would exceed the ceiling rent” – also called reference rent increased – by approximately 12% on average. That is an average of 161 euros overpaid by tenants.
A platform accessible to all
To achieve this, the municipality fought to obtain the transfer of competence – held by the regional prefecture – to monitor and sanction landlords who do not comply with rent controls. And to facilitate the procedures for injured tenants, it has made available to them a brand new platform, available on the City of Paris website but which only concerns people who signed a lease after July 1, 2019. , the latter have access to a simplified tool to check that their rent complies with the law.
“Parisians must not self-censor themselves”, launches Ian Brossat, who “invites” them, “as soon as they have a doubt, to check if their rent is in conformity and if necessary, to report an abuse. “. Open since January 1, the platform already has 2,000 unique visitors, and 15 abuses have already been reported, he welcomes, where only “a dozen fines had been drawn up for 120 reports in three years” when the competence was held by the regional prefecture.
However, according to the elected official, it is a question of allowing the middle classes to continue to be able to live in Paris, while most of the abuses observed concern small areas, studios and other maids’ rooms, rented to the most modest families. “On less than 15 m2, 80% of advertisements do not respect the rent control”, assures Ian Brossat, who takes the example of a case recently reported to the town hall, with an unfurnished 2-room apartment of 22 m2 rented 746 euros per month in the 18thwhen it should be rented 623 euros maximum.
A dozen agents on the spot
In addition, a dozen agents from the City of Paris are now assigned to this task, “both on the examination of files and on communication” specifies the housing assistant, ensuring that he is ready to “put the means necessary” so that the Parisians appropriate the device and seize the opportunity to be helped in the process. “The simple fact that the Parisians seize us will make things justified”, wants to believe the elected communist, who adds that the but is not to impose fines on the offending owners but to ensure that the rents are made in conformity with the law.
And the City is ready to launch procedures. First, in formal notice to the owner, asking him to adjust the amount of rent in the leaseand to pay the overpayments to the tenant within two months, then in the event of refusal or no response from him, he will then inform the owner of the penalties he incurs, and the terms of appeal, delivered to him another month to answer.
But if at the end of this period, the owner has not moved and does not wish to play the conciliation card, it imposes a fine against him of up to 5,000 euros for a natural person, and 15,000 euros for a legal person. “But the objective is not to get as far as the fine”, we are told repeatedly, especially when we know that “revenues are collected by the State”, ironically Ian Brossat, who initiated the steps for the City to be the beneficiary.