update on vacant housing in France

Vacant housing is in the government’s sights. “It is estimated that a third of these homes have been empty for less than six months, this is often the case between two rentals for example”, specifies the journalist Julien Duponchel. Nevertheless, “nearly a million have been vacant for more than two years”, adds the reporter. According to INSEE, unoccupied housing represents 8.3% of the entire French building stock.

The share of vacant housing is highest in central France, as well as Corsica and certain overseas departments. The phenomenon does not only affect rural areas. “8 of Marseille’s 16 arrondissements have more than 10% vacant housing”, notes the journalist, just like in Saint-Etienne (Loire) and Lille (North). State of disrepair may play a role, as may inheritance issues “with inheritance problems”, concludes Julien Duponchel.