Rent setting: renewal, capping and revision

It is important to distinguish two cases:

1) Either the lease is a civil law lease because the accommodation does not constitute the tenant's main residence. In this case, there is, in theory, no constraint on the determination of the rent.

2) Either the lease is subject to the law of July 1989 and by extension to the ALUR law of 2014 - student lease, mobility, tacitly renewable leases of 1 year (furnished) or 3 years (unfurnished).  In that case, a certain number of rules apply :

• for setting the rent in the event of first rental or renewal;
• the revision of this rent during the lease or between 2 leases;
• and finally in certain agglomerations the rent capping with the concept of reference rent.

In the case of a lease governed by a civil law, we strongly recommend that landlords follow the rules for setting rents under the ALUR law in order to remain in line with market standards and therefore offer a competitive rent.

Fixing rents
The rules depend on the geographical location of your accommodation (tense area or outside tense area). To determine if your accommodation is in a tense area and the rules for setting the rent, we advise you to visit the clear and concise Anil website, as well as this administration site.


Rent caps in certain municipalities
On an experimental basis, some municipalities can set up a complementary framework for rents by introducing ceilings. In this case, the rent cannot be higher at the same time: 

• the rent of the previous tenant,
• and, the maximum reference rent which is fixed by type of housing and by district. 

This mechanism is already in force in the following cities :

• Paris since 01/07/2019 - official site
• Lille, Hellemmes et Lommes - official site
• Paris La plaine commune - Seine-Saint-Denis since 01/06/2021 - official site
  Aubervilliers, La Courneuve, Épinay-sur-Seine, L'Île-Saint-Denis, Pierrefitte-sur-Seine, Saint-Denis, Saint-Ouen-sur-Seine, Stains et Villetaneuse.
• Lyon et Villeurbanne since 01/11/2021 - official  site
• Paris Est Ensemble since 01/12/2021 - official site
  Bagnolet, Bobigny, Bondy, Le Pré-Saint-Gervais, Les Lilas, Montreuil, Noisy-le-Sec, Pantin et Romainville.
• Montpellier since 01/07/2022 - official site
• Bordeaux since 15/07/2022 - official site

This list is not necessarily exhaustive and is constantly changing. In case of doubt, contact your town hall to find out if your town is concerned.

Important
If an owner does not comply with the rent regulations, she/he runs the risk of being sentenced to an administrative fine of up to €5,000 for a natural person and €15,000 for a legal entity.