The Inflationary Effect of Housing Benefits in France Remains to be Assessed, Nothing Proves that it is Marked

In French

We present here works by IGEDD about the inflationary effect of housing benefits.
Contrary to what has been written or said, it remains to be assessed, and nothing proves it is marked.

• « L’effet inflationniste des aides personnelles au logement demeure à évaluer, rien ne prouve qu’il soit prononcé », report no. 007987-04, IGEDD, August 2025, in French. After preliminary remarks about inflation and inflationary effects, this report reviews the bibliography and concludes that the magnitude, low or high, of the inflationary effect of housing benefits in France remains to be assessed, that nothing proves it is more marked than that of other subsidies, and that some policies have been much more inflationary. (Typos in this report).

• « L’incidence déterminante des effets de structure sur la surcroissance du loyer des locataires à bas revenu du parc privé,1973-2013 - Conséquences quant à l’effet inflationniste des aides personnelles au logement », report no. 007987-03, IGEDD, May 2019, in French. From 1984 to 2013, the overgrowth of low income tenants’ rents in the private sector is caused almost entirely by structure effects (size, quality, location and duration of occupancy). The overinflation of their rents has beeen low and reflects almost entirely the decrease in the duration of occupancy. An inflationary effect of the extension of housing benefits in the early 1990s, if it existed, has been equally distributed across all income levels. It has been as well equally distributed across all age brackets and all dwelling sizes. The payment of benefits directly to landlords does not appear to be inflationary. (Typos in this report).

• « Addendum to exhibit 20 « Analyses by dwelling size » of CGEDD report no. 007987-03 : analyses by geographical area », August 2022, in French. In November 2021, Cour des Comptes (National audit body) observed that the « size [of the inflationary effect of housing benefits in France] remains to be assessed, particularly concerning small dwellings in tense areas ». To supply elements of response, this addendum to exhibit 20 of the report mentioned above replicates its analysis on the Paris region, a "tense" area par excellence. It concludes that, in this region as in the rest of France, if there was an rent overinflation for small dwellings at the time of the extension of housing benefits in the early 1990s, the decrease in the occupancy duration (which reflects the decrease in the age of their occupants) suffices to account for it, without having to invoke an inflationary effet of the overgrowth of housing benefits.

• « Test of the effect on rents of the rent-dependent part of the housing benefit formula », August 2020, CGEDD, contribution to the prefiguration of the universal credit (RUA), in French. Housing benefits increase along the rent as long as it is lower than a certain level ("rent ceiling"). The histogram of rents does not show that this rent dependence have a positive impact on rents.

• « Variation de l’aide personnelle et du loyer après le relèvement du plancher de ressources applicable aux étudiants non boursiers », report no. 007987-02, CGEDD, November 2015, in French. In 1999-2001, the increase in the minimum income applicable to students without grant reduced their housing benefit by around 40 euros. It was not followed by a significant decrease in their rent.

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