Every year, around 15% to 20% of new constructions are started even though there has been an at-least equivalent increase in the number of dwellings that have been vacant for more than two years in the same municipality. This constitutes a non-negligible stock to address both housing needs and to fight urban sprawl, depopulation of town centres and land take.

France has an enormous housing stock, the second largest per inhabitant among Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) countries. This situation is explained by several decades of high construction levels. Despite this, according to the National Institute of Statistics and Economic Studies (Insee), one in ten individuals is confronted with persistent difficulties in finding accommodation.

One solution to address this problem could be to make greater use of the existing stock; France currently has 3.1 million “vacant” dwellings. However, the vacancy period, features and location of these dwellings differ, and their actual potential use needs to be closely assessed depending on the characteristics of each region (see Chart).

Geographical analysis shows that, every year, around 15% of new constructions occur in a  municipality where an equal number of housing units  have been vacant for more than two years (20% for more than one year). This represents a non-negligible stock to address both housing needs and to fight urban sprawl, depopulation of town centres and land take.

Using this stock of vacant housing would require suitable public policies (investment, regulation, taxation) to encourage owners to put these dwellings back on the market, to foster renovation and refurbishment of the stock, and to revitalise districts with a large number of vacant housing units.

 

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