Real estate in Rennes: “I saw people cry” … When the search for housing takes your head – 20 Minutes

By dint of saying that Rennes is a great city, it ended up being known. Reputed to be attractive, the Breton capital was able to measure how popular it was when it saw new suitors knocking on its door at the start of the school year. The problem is that the candidates for installation seem to outnumber the available accommodation. Consequences: the few rental and purchase offers are not enough and disappear in a few hours, after being taken by storm. An observation that many students have made this summer, even if the situation seems to be slowly improving. When she started looking for an apartment in July, Noémie did not expect to struggle so much. She, who is slowly approaching her forties, had to leave Saint-Malo for a new position in Rennes. “I started watching in July and I wasn’t there. It was complicated, there were almost no announcements. One day in September, she did the accounts. In its criteria, only seven apartments were offered for rent on Le Bon Coin in a city that has close to 130,000 housing units. “We had to call within the hour, otherwise we had no chance of being able to file a file. I saw stuff at crazy prices, it looked like it was in Paris”. After a few refusals, Noémie ended up finding her happiness thanks to the withdrawal of the one who had had the preferences of the owner. On a permanent contract and with a good salary, Noémie wonders. “I feel like I’m one of the privileged people with my file. I wonder how the others are doing.” “We have almost nothing to offer” His questioning is legitimate. Because in recent years, housing seems to have become a rare commodity in the Breton capital, while buildings are growing everywhere. The phenomenon has undoubtedly increased with the Covid-19 epidemic. “Usually, we have a hundred tenants who leave in June. But this year, it was 50 less, without knowing why. We started renting some properties in May. So, in July, we had nothing left. This manager of a real estate agency in the city center was struck by the number of young people in carafes this summer. “I saw students crying, distraught parents.” She sums up her feelings as follows: “we have almost nothing to offer”. Mechanically, the price of rents which are not regulated has increased. A quick survey to clearly identify the problem. To find your accommodation in #Rennes this year, how long did it take you? — Camille Allain (@CamiAllain) October 7, 2022 Access to this content has been blocked in order to respect your choice of consent By clicking on “I ACCEPT”, you accept the deposit of cookies by external services and will thus have access to the content of our partners I ACCEPT And to better remunerate 20 Minutes, do not hesitate to accept all cookies, even for one day only, via our button “I accept for today” in the banner below. More information on the Cookie Management Policy page.

We pushed the door of other agencies where the discourse proved to be more measured. “The market is tight, we will not deny it. But we can find it if we’re quick. It’s just that it’s longer and more tedious,” warns Benjamin Guerrot. The manager of the La Française Immobilière agency on Boulevard de la Liberté is not surprised by the situation. “Rennes is a charming city, it is attractive. It is both close to Paris, Nantes and the sea with Saint-Malo. It has a very dynamic job market and is attracting more and more students. None of this is surprising.” A positive fact to note: the back-to-school rush having passed, it would seem that the situation is improving. Slowly though. Good news for all those looking for accommodation, but also for all those who would like to buy. Because for two or three years, the market had become very, very complicated. “We have around 2,000 offers when we add the new and the old. This is twice as much as in 2020. Before, when clients came to ask us, we only had one property to offer them. Today, you can have three, four, five apartments to show around. There is no longer any need to run”, assures Martin Giboire, director of the agency of the same name located close to République. Behind this generality, however, hides a more contrasting reality. While the market has eased overall, it remains extremely tight for small areas. “Student housing is never vacant,” admits Martin Giboire. All those who struggled, and still struggle, can confirm this.