The number of building permits continued to decline in March in France, reaching a historic low since at least 2015, according to provisional data published this Tuesday by the Ministry of Ecological Transition.
Between April 2023 and March 2024, 358,600 housing units were authorized for construction, or 19.8% less than in the previous 12 months.
New crisis
New construction is in a serious crisis. Construction costs have increased significantly due to more expensive materials and stricter environmental standards. At the same time, buyers suffered from the rise in interest rates and the reduction in public support schemes for new real estate.
This is starting to have effects on employment, with several promoters having announced social plans while smaller players are filing for bankruptcy. The French Building Federation fears 90,000 job losses by the end of 2024 then 150,000 by mid-2025.
In detail, individual houses were the subject of 129,200 authorizations (-22.2%), while collective housing obtained 229,300 (-18.4%). Within collective housing, residences (students, seniors, etc.) are doing somewhat better with a drop of “only” 8.8%.
Tensions in Île-de-France and Paca
Hauts-de-France and Brittany are doing a little better than the other regions of France, with drops of 4.8% and 8.7% respectively. The most tense regions, Île-de-France and Provence-Alpes-Côte d’Azur, experienced significant drops in permits issued with -26.1% and -28.8% respectively.
The number of construction sites started, which traditionally follows that of building permits, also continues to plunge, with 283,200 construction starts between April 2023 and March 2024, a drop of 23.3%, a historically low number.