• The municipality, which framed the number of furnished tourist accommodation per owner before the summer, will vote this Thursday for an increase in the housing tax on second homes.

  • Objective: to fight against the consequences of attractiveness, to breathe new life into the real estate market which suffers from an insufficient supply and to fill the coffers in the process.

  • Real estate agents have observed a return to the rental of furnished tourist accommodation after the first restriction measure.

Will the successive municipal decisions to curb the Airbnb phenomenon and the immobilization of part of the city's real estate stock breathe new life into the Marseilles market?

"There is a shortage of housing," notes Jean Berthoz, president of the union of real estate unions Marseille-Provence-Corse (United).

In real estate agencies, we traditionally have a rental turnover rate of 10%.

There, we are at 3% ”.

As a result, rents are climbing, with an average increase in 2019-2020 of 8.36% for two rooms, and 5.68% for three rooms, according to the study conducted by Unis and published in June.

Over the same period, the volume of available ads fell 8.15%, adds the study.

Fight against the consequences of attractiveness

Blame it on the growing attractiveness of the city in which many people currently want to settle.

The fault also with some 9,000 housing units reserved for short-term rental, as many properties that are not on the rental market.

Last May, the municipality decided to limit the number of furnished tourist accommodation per owner to one.

To this is added the deliberation of this Thursday which increases the housing tax by 60% on second homes.

"We are targeting people who act as a professional without status and work on different platforms to get around the night limit (120 per year)", explains Laurent Lhadit, assistant for the economy and tourism.

“The idea is to fight against the consequences of attractiveness and the people who have based their economy on short-term rentals, not against attractiveness itself,” continues the elected official.

A 30% increase in long-term furnished rental properties

With already some fruits harvested. “In June, we noticed a 30% increase in long-term furnished rental properties. This means that previously Airbnb homes are starting to be rented out, ”observes Jean Berthoz. But not enough to meet the growing demand for real estate in Marseille, where "facilities are stagnant for lack of supply".

Is this increase in the housing tax likely to put property back on the rental market?

"The other cities that have done it before us have had positive feedback," says Laurent Ladhit, who does not hide the dual objective of this measure.

This increase in the housing tax will "help to try to find healthy finances," adds the deputy to the economy.

"The housing tax is already very high in Marseille, and they do not have a lot of levers to find money," includes Jean Berthoz.

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Marseille: Towards an increase in the housing tax on second homes

  • Marseilles

  • Immovable

  • Airbnb

  • Economy