Guest of France Bleu Paris, deputy mayor Ian Brossat unveiled on Tuesday an assessment of the platform for reporting excessive rents. 100,000 euros were returned to tenants “who were taken illegally”.
Since January 1, and the establishment of a platform to denounce landlords who do not respect rent controls in Paris, 1,181 reports have been made. 183 formal notices were issued and 20 fines were issued against owners, announced Ian Brossat, deputy mayor of Paris in charge of housing and new PCF senator, guest of France Bleu Paris on Tuesday September 26.
These figures are not that high, recognizes the elected communist: “For us the main thing is that there are reports, it is very important, there are still many, more than a thousand tenants who report abusive rents to us. Which is essential for us, “It’s that in the end the owners in these cases adjust their rents and bring themselves into line with what is provided for by law.”
43 tenants reimbursed
According to Ian Brossat, there is “Already 43 tenants have obtained reimbursement of the sums that their landlord had taken from them and which were overpayments, since the owner exceeded the authorized rent. In total, that’s almost 100,000 euros that have been returned to tenants who have been taken illegally.
But the senator recognizes that there are also tenants who do not dare to take the reporting steps, for fear of losing their housing. Ian Brossat recalls that after the report on the platform, “it is the city of Paris which takes all the steps, on behalf of the tenant. It is we who will write to the owner, it is we who will put him on notice, and who will ensure that the sums unduly taken from the tenant are returned to the injured tenant”.
“There are still tenants who self-censor. The law is on their side, the city of Paris is available to tenants.”
Ian Brossat, deputy mayoron France Bleu Paris
43 owners have committed to lowering their rent, that’s not much, but “we will continue to mobilize our teams, and in the end all the reports will be processed. It takes a certain time, we have to study the files, there are contradictions, some owners are defending themselves, including in court. there is no reimbursement, there will be fines and it is the city of Paris which will impose these fines.
Studios and 2 rooms represent 80% of abuse
The city of Paris also comes from “pronounce a maximum fine of 5,000 euros”the maximum provided by law, “and we will go to this maximum because there is a law, it must be respected and it is not normal for tenants to be charged illegally.”
According to the Paris elected official, rent control is effective: “what is extremely clear is that until 2019, there was no rent control and rents had literally exploded in Paris. Since we put in place rent control, it there is relative stability in Parisian rent levels”. But the chosen one notices that there is “still abuse on small areas. Most of the abuse today, 80%, is concentrated on studios and two-room apartments. This is why we decided to crack down.”