After real estate professionals, it is the turn of elected officials from all political stripes to warn about the housing crisis. Metropolises, medium-sized towns, small towns: all levels of the territories have called on the government to act to resolve this critical situation. “We share a very strong concern about the crisis in which the country is sinking day after day, alerted this Thursday morning to the press Nathalie Appéré, general secretary of France Urbaine and mayor (PS) of Rennes. At the same time, the government is looking elsewhere. »
This appeal was made alongside Romain Colas, vice-president of the Association of small towns in France and mayor (PS) of Boussy-Saint-Antoine (Essonne), Jean-Philippe Dugoin-Clément, vice-president of the Association of mayors of Île-de-France and mayor (IDU) de Mennecy (Essonne), Jérôme Baloge, vice-president of Intercommunality of France and mayor (Radical Party) de Niort and Thierry Repentin, Deputy Secretary General of the Association of Mayors of France and Presidents of Intercommunality and Mayor (DVG) from Chambery.
“The crisis is global and concerns all levels of communitieswarns Romain Colas. In the peri-urban areas, the tension is tremendous, while in the town centers it is the opposite, where, for lack of sufficient investment, we find ourselves in a situation of vacancy of accommodation. »
The abolition of the disputed housing tax
For elected officials, the government is primarily responsible. They point the finger in particular at the abolition of the housing tax. “It was a major fault”, denounces Jean-Philippe Dugoin-Clément, who sees in it the loss of an incentive to build. Or even the zero net land take (ZAN), a source of contradiction between the need to build and the need to limit urban sprawl.
All criticize the State for its inaction, in particular with the last-minute postponement of the National Council for Refoundation (CNR) dedicated to housing. “We have lost count of the number of working groups in which we have participated”, Nathalie Appéré is surprised.
Blaming us for the housing crisis is damn inflated
Nathalie Appéré, General Secretary of France Urbaine
Accused of being partly responsible for the current construction crisis, in particular by Emmanuel Macron – In Challenges, the President of the Republic believed that “mayors, placed at the head of large metropolises, no longer want to build” –, local elected officials denounce a trial of intent.
“To blame us for the housing crisis is damn inflated”, protests Nathalie Appéré. “We want to respond to this need, to assume our responsibilities, but we do not have the means available”, answers Romain Colas.
The actors call for more measures adapted to the local needs of each community. Are cited pell-mell a strengthening of the autonomy of the mayors on the management of Airbnb-type tourist rentals to fight against their proliferation, the increase in the wasteland fund to build on already artificialized areas, the supervision of the price of land when c is necessary or the overhaul of taxes on vacant housing and second homes.
Once again, the CNR Logement, whose conclusions will be delivered on Monday, June 5, is expected to meet the expectations of stakeholders, from real estate professionals to elected officials.
