how to revive long-term rental investment?

Among the numerous texts debated in Parliament, as part of the 2026 budget, there is the draft status of the private lessor. What is it about? And what is the objective?

It all starts from one observation: there is a lack of affordable housing, particularly in big cities, and private rentals. There is a shortage of rental properties.

In recent years, the number of long-term rental homes (with 3-year leases) has continued to decline. Just in Paris and its region, every year, according to the Parisian Urban Planning Workshop (LITTLE), thousands of apartments are leaving the private rental stock. And as soon as a rental ad is online, hundreds of calls and candidates rush in.

The phenomenon is not new but it is increasing. Private landlords are turning away from long-term rentals, believing that the cost is high, that there are too many taxes and not enough profitability.

Some choose furnished accommodation (one-year lease), others choose seasonal tourist rentals (shorter, less restrictive in terms of regulations: no rent control in particular), with the consequence of practically no longer finding traditional rentals for residents in certain sectors, in tense areas.

As for the new, since the end of the Pinel investment system (it was already a trend), the share of private investors has been reduced by half. Which is an obstacle to building or rehabilitating housing.

Many players in the sector are calling for the establishment of a private landlord status (project proposed by the former Minister of Housing Valérie Létard and reintroduced by the current Minister of Cities and Housing). This involves establishing a lasting status for donors.

Recognize the role of the private investor as an economic and social actor who, by investing his money in a property that he rents out, allows families or students to find accommodation. In addition, this makes it possible to build or renovate housing.

It is therefore beneficial for those who finally find accommodation, for the building industry, for the craftsmen. It is also good for employment and for the environment since it is associated with decent, new or renovated housing. The idea is to recognize the private lessor as a “housing producer”.

This will be under discussion in Parliament (with all the current uncertainties surrounding the examination of the budget), with several avenues and amendments. Assistance in the form of depreciation, a tax reduction, or even a tax bonus if the investor rents his home at a “moderate” rent.

There is also the simplification of the different rental regimes, the strengthening of legal and financial guarantees. It remains to find a fair balance. The answer will not only be fiscal, it must also be social.

The objective is to have more properties in long-term bare rental, and to constitute one of the levers to relaunch this gateway to the residential journey. Produce more, give visibility and make housing a basic necessity. With the aim of encouraging and inciting, rather than constraining.