Second-home housing surtax soars on French Riviera
While council tax on main residences was abolished in 2023, it still applies to second homes © Pixabay
TV Monaco investigated the tax surge hitting owners of pieds-à-terre in PACA municipalities, pushing some to look towards neighbouring Italy.
A private individual bought his second home near the Gulf of Saint-Tropez six years ago. The business owner has seen his council tax increase by €1,280 this year. “We met some retired people who told us: we saved all our lives to have a home for our retirement. And now we’re faced with an additional tax that has a major impact on us,” he told TV Monaco. The surcharge, which can reach 60% of the initial cost of the council tax, applies in areas under housing pressure, where property prices remain high, second homes are numerous and year-round housing is scarce. Provence-Alpes-Côte d’Azur ranks second among the regions most affected in France. Marseille, Saint-Tropez, Nice, Menton and Cap-d’Ail are among the 327 municipalities in the region to have introduced the measure. In total, 1,628 French municipalities now apply this surcharge.
Italy, an attractive alternative
Over the past two years, more and more French buyers have been looking for properties across the border. The Italian tax system offers considerable advantages. Owners of second homes must pay a property tax known as IMU, but it remains twice as cheap as its French equivalent and, crucially, fixed, with no additional surcharge on the Ligurian coast.
The increase is intended to offset the abolition of council tax on main residences in 2023 and to ease pressure on the local housing market.