The administrative court rendered its decision on Tuesday, January 24: the "anti-AirBNB" decree was suspended. The latter consisted of limiting the number of furnished seasonal rentals for tourists in the La Rochelle sector. Our concierge in La Rochelle will explain to you in detail what this decree consists of and what are the issues around it.
An “anti-AirBNB” order, what for?
Faced with the sharp increase in short-term rental accommodation, the agglomeration of La Rochelle wanted to crack down and toughen the rules, by introducing strict limitations: the decree stipulates that it is prohibited to rent accommodation under 35 square meters, which the city prefers to reserve for student rentals and young professionals, and this throughout the year. It is also impossible to own more than two properties for seasonal rental.
This deliberation was voted on Thursday, October 20, 2022 by the Community Council of the Urban Community of La Rochelle and must apply from June 2023. The primary purpose of this decree, according to the municipality, is to promote the year-round housing supply for the permanent population. Indeed, as indicated by Marie Nédellec, the elected leader of the project, “there is an urgent need to act to regulate tourist accommodation in La Rochelle. There is a real housing shortage. The situation has become urgent and we must find solutions”.
The agglomeration wishes to restore a balance between attractiveness, solidarity for the inhabitants and tourist and economic development. La Rochelle has seen, like many other cities, a sharp increase in the number of accommodation units intended for seasonal rental. This large number of requests offers substantial economic benefits but creates a shortage of housing for the inhabitants.
As of 2019, the La Rochelle conurbation was one of the first cities to regulate the rental of short-term furnished accommodation in a delimited area and in which the situation is tense, by introducing a unique registration number and an authorization to change accommodation. for temporary use, issued within the limit of three accommodations per owner and for a period of three years.
The objective of this decree was, according to the agglomeration, that part of the tourist accommodation could return to the year-round rental market, for families, students or even young working people who would like to settle in main residence in La Rochelle.
Seasonal rental makes people cringe
Since its deliberation last October, the decree had not only made people happy, especially on the side of the National Union for the Promotion of Holiday Rentals (UNPLV) which brings together the main players in holiday rentals. such as Abritel, AirBNB, Leboncoin, HomeToGo or CléVacances.
The association had pointed the finger at several measures voted, in particular the ban on owners from renting accommodation of less than 35 square meters, by issuing serious doubts on the legality of such a measure. The UNPLV considered that “this measure constitutes a disproportionate attack on several constitutional principles and European law, such as the right to property and the freedom to provide services”.
In addition, the structure had warned that “under these conditions, this new regulation risks giving rise to local disputes initiated by accommodation providers and local players in furnished tourist rentals”. Appeals have thus been filed, unsurprisingly given the financial challenges of seasonal rentals for owners.
It is finally the UNPI 17, the trade union chamber of the owners of Charente-Maritime, which filed an appeal in summary procedure to have the decree adopted by the La Rochelle agglomeration suspended. The UNPI 17, through its lawyer Victor Steinberg, disputes the shortage of housing in the city center of La Rochelle: "we are not at all in a phenomenon of loss of control, as affirmed by the community of agglomeration”.
The union chamber also disputes the principle of compensation, adopted in the city center, one of the most tense neighborhoods. It consists of the obligation for a furnished tourist accommodation owner to rent out another property, commercial premises or garage, on pain of no longer being able to exercise his tourist activity.
The compensation consists in transforming into housing premises not devolved to habitation (office, shop, etc.). This compensation thus makes it possible to reconstitute the "loss" of a dwelling by creating another dwelling. This room must have a surface area at least equivalent to that being the subject of a seasonal rental and be located in the same municipality. A so-called “change of use” authorization is then issued.
What follow-up to the “anti-AirBNB” decree?
Marie Nédellec, the elected representative from La Rochelle who defends the project, justifies: “all this compensation framework, it is not us who define it, it is the law”. Regarding the shortage, she argues that “all the documents we have produced demonstrate this housing shortage”. Finally, the elected representative from La Rochelle defends the right to housing: “we have a lot of inhabitants who are struggling to find housing today”.
The UNPI 17 finally won its case with the provisional suspension of the decree by the administrative court. The various protagonists of the case hope that this suspension will allow the opening of a debate in order to refine the contours of this deliberation to find the best possible compromise. The final judgment will be rendered at the end of the year, after studying the appeal filed on the merits of the file.
Eva Roger, director of our La Rochelle Concierge, do not think that the decree will have a real negative impact on seasonal rentals: “in my opinion, there will always be a lot of accommodation under rental management, the decree will above all make it possible to avoid abuse and to regulate a little plus short-term rentals. This can have a lot of positive spin-offs for our market.”
Other cities struggle with vacation rentals
La Rochelle is not the only city to denounce housing problems. The Ile de Ré, for example, which also has a YourHostHelper concierge service, a member of our franchise network, is facing a housing shortage. The Community of Communes (CDC) of the Ile de Ré ensures that it is "overwhelmed by short-term seasonal rentals". Like the elected officials of La Rochelle, those of the Ile de Ré are seriously considering imposing laws to regulate rentals from the spring of 2023. The inhabitants were consulted at the end of 2022 and a decision must be taken soon.
Not far from there, the Vendée municipality of Sables-d'Olonne has imposed quotas for short-term tourist rentals, from 1,5% to 10% maximum depending on the district. The goal: to fight against the exponential increase in seasonal rental properties. Finally, the municipality of Bayonne, in the Basque Country, succeeded in implementing its anti-AirBNB decree after months of legal battle. While his decree had been suspended in June, it was resumed and clarified to get into the nails. But as in the case of La Rochelle, a hearing on the merits must take place in the coming months. On the side of La Rochelle, the elected Marie Nédellec does not lose hope: "There was a similar case in Bayonne and today, the decree is applied in the city". The final answer will be given within a few months.
The agglomeration is not totally against seasonal rentals
La Rochelle is in no way closed to continuing to welcome tourists in short-term rentals. "We just want it to be framed and avoid abuse," says Marie Nédellec. As the sector is booming, many owners are interested and are investing in the town.
On the side of the owners, there is fear of too strict a repression while much simpler solutions can be found, without falling into too strict measures which affect fundamental rights such as the right to property. Be that as it may, the two parties hope to find common ground to restore a certain balance: by avoiding the shortage of year-round housing, while keeping an interesting and attractive seasonal housing stock.
