Rent control: nearly four out of ten advertisements exceed the legal ceilings

Nearly four out of ten rental advertisements exceed the legal ceilings in cities subject to rent control, with a deterioration considered “unprecedented” in Paris, noted Thursday the Housing Foundation.

In total, 37% of the announcements analyzed in France exceed the legal ceilings, a figure up five points compared to 2025, and nine points compared to 2024.

“According to our data covering more than 10,000 advertisements published between August 2025 and August 2026, the system favored by tenants, applied in nearly 70 municipalities, is respected in an increasingly unequal manner by landlords depending on the territory,” estimates the 6th barometer of the Foundation devoted to the subject.

The gap “even continues to widen”, particularly in Paris, where the development is considered “the most worrying”, with an increase from 31% to 46% in one year of lessors who exceed the ceiling rent. An “unprecedented level (...), despite the voluntarism displayed on the part of the City to sanction recalcitrant landlords”, underlines the report.

Small surface area furnished properties more concerned

The Foundation explains this deterioration by the contraction of the year-round rental market in the capital “in connection with the rise in interest rates and the development of vacant or occasional housing”.

“We can also think that, during a turbulent year marked by the announced end of supervision and legal disputes, certain recalcitrant landlords may have felt authorized to deviate from the rent ceilings,” she analyzes, also denouncing the abusive use of “rent supplement” to circumvent the law.

The rent control system is in fact set to end in November if no law is adopted by then, but the government has already announced a debate in the Senate in October.

In the Paris suburbs, negative trends are confirmed in Est Ensemble (36% of rents offered above the legal ceilings) and in Plaine-Commune (61%). Conversely, results are still improving in regional metropolises, particularly in Montpellier, Bordeaux, Lille and Lyon-Villeurbanne.

The deterioration is most marked in furnished rented accommodation, and for the smallest areas. Although rent overruns are more frequent, their average amount nevertheless decreases, going from 191 euros to 159 euros.

The Foundation also notes that the owners of the least energy-efficient housing, classified “G”, offer the most rent overruns (36%).

According to the general delegate of the Christophe Robert Foundation, “beyond the essential issue of perpetuating the system, it is imperative to enforce its application”.