Sensitive to social issues that are their stock-in-trade, communists have always made the right to housing one of their favorite battlegrounds.
Moreover, having a decent home is among the priorities of every person or household.
Nice and its region, due to the lack of space on the coast, the price of land, the demand for second homes, and a very buoyant tourist real estate market, has historically been a high-pressure area, to the point that “the attractiveness of the area is called into question, at least partially, because thousands of families are unable to find housing there” — says Robert Injey (PCF Nice).
To clearly grasp what this represents, between 2001 and 2015, Nice increased from 19,088 social housing units to 23,822, a positive balance of 4,800 in 15 years, claims the political leader.
To meet the demand of a population of which 70% is eligible for social housing, this trend will not provide a suitable solution to the problem in a non-infinite time.
In this context, a new alert is emerging: the widespread increase of tourist rentals, facilitated by platforms like Airbnb.
The reason for this evolution is simple: while the law was intended to encourage households to rent out (partially or fully) their apartments for short periods, the market has turned lucrative and led owners (and particularly multi-property owners) to convert rentals into tourist accommodations.
The result? Thousands of apartments are being removed from the traditional rental market.
“The latest figures highlight the scale of the phenomenon, with the Airbnb platform showing more than 10,000 rentals, nearly 85% of which are entire homes,” denounces Robert Injey, comparing it to the previously mentioned number of social housing units.
In short, it’s urgent to bring this completely deregulated situation, which is escalating, under control as much as possible.
The current law has created barriers to an unregulated market, but it is insufficient and remains largely bypassed, as does the taxation based on this activity.
“We must oppose this scourge” is Robert Injey’s call, emphasizing that regulating these practices is an urgent matter.
Then comes the surprise: “We solemnly call upon the senators of the Alpes-Maritimes, and particularly Mrs. Estrosi-Sassone, who is responsible for these issues within the metropolis (editor’s note: and the City of Nice) to vote for the bill presented at the Senate by the communist group” — this is the wish expressed by the former municipal councilor.
Who will tell Mrs. Estrosi-Sassone?
