“We must make housing a major national cause”, the alarm call from the French Building Federation

Pierre Martin, President, and Olivier Polge, Secretary General of the Gard Building Federation. Midi Libre – K. H.

Nothing is going well in the building sector: in the Gard, the construction of new housing has fallen by 39.3% and business failures are up by 63% due to a lack of sufficient activities.

First, the observation. Alarming!“The construction sector is mired in crisis despite multiple warnings from the Construction Federation”, says Pierre Martin, president of the FFB du Gard, during a situation update for the start of the school year. And he is not the only one to be worried. The legislative candidates he met to raise awareness last June agreed, “housing is a bomb and must be a priority issue”, they all told him in essence, regardless of political party.

“What we lack is a long-term vision”, insists Pierre Martin who is asking the National Assembly to “make housing a major cause national". And it is not the current political procrastination that reassures him. Neither him, nor the real estate developers, nor the banks, nor the buyers. In short, an entire system is completely seized up.

Housing represents 26% of a household budget

“Housing is the largest item of expenditure for households, it represents 26% of the budget, and even 40% for the most precarious", specifies Olivier Polge, the secretary general of the FFB du Gard. In this already tense context, the housing shortage is making the situation worse. It would be necessary to build 350,000 to 500,000 homes per year for ten years to meet demand. In 2024, we will be at 250,000. Not enough homes automatically leads to an increase in land prices and soaring rents.

“Continue MaprimRenov in its current system”

Renovating thermal sieves has become obvious to everyone. And to help owners carry out the necessary work, the government has set up aid via Ma PrimRénov in 2020. “But it tried to change the conditions, recalls Pierre Martin, the Gard president of the FFB, by forcing the owners to hire six trades. For example, redoing in a single project, windows, insulation, boiler… Impossible for most individuals to face such expenses and constraints. The FFB  managed to suspend it but until the end of 2024. We are therefore asking for the PrimRénov to be maintained in its current system, by strengthening controls to massify renovation while combating fraud”.

If we add to the equation, material prices that have taken the full brunt of inflation and borrowing rates around 3.8%, we get a very complicated situation for all building professionals: business failures have increased by 63% in one year, employment has fallen by 4% (in a sector with 11,300 employees) and even by 43% for temporary workers, concrete consumption has fallen by 31% in 2024.

And private developers are closing down, leaving craftsmen in the lurch, due to not having been able to market at least 60% of their program before launching it.

“Even in renovation, which represents 60% of the activity, 90% of craftsmen tell us that the order books are empty”, adds Olivier Polge.

Relaunching a zero-rate loan

The FFB du Gard warns: “Less activity also means less tax revenue for the State”. And proposes solutions to relaunch the housing even if, with the inertia of the sector, it will take a long time. "We would like to see the reestablishment of a universal zero-rate loan for the youngest and the most modest or the creation of a loan at a preferential rate two points lower than the average rate". For private rental investment, the FFB is calling for the extension of the Pinel scheme or "the creation of a private lessor status".

And to have "areadable, realistic and coherent political vision over time", Pierre Martin adds "the implementation of a concerted five-year plan and a National Construction Council. Without visibility, 150,000 jobs are at risk by 2025."

"All that would cost nothing, assures Olivier Polge. It's just common sense and oil in the wheels.”