taxation of tourist rentals, zero-interest loan… the government is marginally reviewing its budget

2023-10-19 10:30:01

“We hoped until the end”, recognizes the Renaissance MP for Finistère Annaïg Le Meur. She had tabled with the socialist deputy for Pyrénées-Atlantiques Inaki Echaniz a transpartisan amendment to the draft budget, aiming to make the taxation of long-term rentals as attractive as that of tourist rentals. “Three hundred and forty-seven deputies, i.e. the majority, had co-signed it, and the Minister of Housing gave us his support”, supports his colleague. Their proposal to create a 40% reduction on all rental income was nevertheless rejected by the government when it used article 49.3 to adopt, without a vote, the finance bill at first reading at the National Assembly, Wednesday October 18.

Instead, the government, pressed by elected officials from all sides to review taxation which contributes, in tourist areas, to reducing the number of available housing, chose a solution that the Ministry of Finance considers “balanced” : classified tourist accommodation will no longer benefit from the 71% reduction, which applies up to 188,700 euros of turnover. They will now be considered as classic furnished accommodation, with a 50% reduction if the turnover is less than 77,700 euros, except in rural areas not affected by the housing crisis. This tax rate will remain much more favorable than that of long-term empty rentals, for which the reduction is maintained at 30%.

Create a “supply shock”

The renewal of the zero-interest loan (PTZ), intended to support first-time home buyers, has been clarified. The government did not accept the amendment voted by the deputies in committee aimed at keeping it the same. Except if it is used as part of social home ownership, the PTZ will be limited to the purchase of new collective housing in stressed areas or old housing to renovate in non-strained areas. But the income ceilings allowing them to benefit from it are increased, and this loan can represent, for the most modest, up to 50% of the purchase amount. A new slice is also created, “in order to allow the middle classes to obtain a PTZ covering 20% ​​of the purchase amount”, specifies Bercy. The objective is to grant 40,000 PTZs in 2024, almost as many as in 2023, but targeting the areas where it is most difficult to find housing.

Also read the interview: Article reserved for our subscribers Patrice Vergriete, Minister of Housing: we must “align the taxation of furnished tourist accommodation, traditional furnished accommodation and empty rentals”

Although it did not follow the parliamentarians on these first two points, the government nevertheless adopted some of their amendments. Such as that of Jean-Paul Mattei, president of the MoDem group in the National Assembly, aiming to create a “supply shock, by freeing up land more quickly” : an owner who sells, by the end of 2025, land where collective housing will be built will benefit from a reduction of 60% to 75% on his capital gain. Mr. Mattei greets “a first step” and hope “a more comprehensive reform of housing taxation before spring”.

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