Paris Vacation Rentals in 2015
 

Hi folks,
I've started thinking about another trip with the family to Paris (and Burgundy) next spring/summer, and we'll want to stay in a rental apartment like we always have.

I just read a comment from Kerouac on another post strongly implying that vacation rentals in 2015 will be gone... or at the very least a be a difficult option... because Paris is finally cracking down on the legislation. I'd love to see more discussion about this issue.

Will self-catering rentals in Paris really go away? Will they just become more difficult to find, or be left to a handful of corporate rental companies (which would drive a premium on the rentals).

The agent we used last year explained to us (and this may or may not be truth) that the law applies only to unregistered rentals, and that companies that are in the commercial rental business and pay their fees legally will be able to continue renting. We shared that apartment with another couple, and payed a high premium for a luxury 3 bedroom/3 bath apartment by Invalides---so it's unlikely I'd return to that apartment next year with just us and the kids. But she said rentals like that, where the owner has applied for the permit and pays the fees, will continue renting legally.

So please tell me, is that an accurate understanding of the law? Are there rental agencies that are already positioning themselves this way? If so, I imagine this law will effectively drive up the price of vacation rentals for "legit" rentals. Or will people continue to book with VRBO and ignore the law, and run risk of their rental being unavailable when they land?

Obviously, there seems to be no noticeable decrease in available apartments when you google Paris apartments, including many of the usual suspects and well-loved Fodors favorites. But is that starting to change?

Fodors Paris pros... what do you all think? Care to wager a guess what 2015 will be like? Will they be successful stopping all self-catering apartments? Are they mostly cracking down on people using VRBO and Air BNB and less on the agencies that rent them through more formal/established commercial channels?

Thanks for sharing your ideas.
-skatterfly

You should have no problem with the normal legal rental agencies like Paris Perfect. Other agencies you will need to check out to see if they comply with the law

We just rented this 3 BR apartment for next year for 4 nights.

http://www.specialapartments.com/62_chapon.html

Short term rentals in Paris may not be gone by 2015 but the rental environment is indeed changing. Owners have been illegally renting apartments for years and France has made little effort to enforce the statutes prohibiting the practice. The trend towards enforcement has been driven by a shortage of apartments for residence, complaints by neighbors of noisy (and illegal) renters, and by cities wanting the tax revenues that they would otherwise obtain from a commercial activity that they are not receiving from illegal rentals.

There is indeed a provision allowing a resident to rent his home for up to 4 months a year but many, if not most, of the properties found on line are not full time residences. They are full time, short term rentals offer to tourists 12 months of the year. Many of the owners never declare the revenue from these apartments nor are the apartments insured for what is effectively commercial activity.

Here is a recent article on this subject:
http://www.thelocal.fr/20140526/fren...flat-on-airbnb

The crackdown and fines affect the owners directly. The renter´s risk is that he might not have a place to stay when he arrives in Paris. The enforcement is starting with the most egregious offenders, owners who might not live in Paris and own properties, sometimes many properties, only for the purpose of renting them short term. Air BNB, VRBO, single ads in le Bon Coin, and other on line rental sources are all being targeted.

It is not a matter of whether an agency is legal or not, it all has to do with the property and whether the apartment is located in a building zoned for commercial activity (such as are Citadine properties) or if the apartment is actually inhabited by a owner restricting rentals to a maximum of 4 months per year.

Interesting info... Thanks everyone.

Sarastro... Can you clarify... Are you saying if an owner primarily lives in the apartment they can legally rent it out for up to 4 months? Actually.. That sort of rings a bell from our agent. She said the couple that owned it lived there "when they were in Paris" and rented it out when not. And of course that it was registered and paying whatever fee they would be required. Ahh... To be lucky enough to have those kinds of "rich people problems" having to decide what to do with their vacant paris apartment while they are off traveling the world. ;)

Anyway, does "commercial" in France mean that the entire building is a zoned hotel such as Citadines. Or that the business is a commercial business (I.e. paying taxes). Or that the building the apartment is in falls into some sort of commercial overlay map. So many apartment buildings in Paris have retail/commercial on the ground floor and residences above it so I doubt that the latter (having a commercial shop on the ground floor) is enough of an exclusion for this law. Otherwise there wouldn't be so much commotion. Understanding their definition of commercial would be helpful.

I guess this brings me to another question... I'm not asking for specific rental properties (there are thousands), but I'd be curious if there already is (or will emerge this year) some sort of listing of legal apartment rentals agencies? Or some sort of "Paris approved" trade seal to look for when renting.

I remember over the last couple of years, I've seen a handful or rental agencies comment publicly about this, indicating that their professional trade associations were fighting it, or at least trying to help their owners get into compliance. I vaguely recall there being some sort of registry or logo to look for when renting...

Or perhaps the point is that essentially anything other than a Citadines-type hotel is technically illegal. And I have absolutely no desire to stay in a Citadines.

I understand the merits of the law (air bnb is contributing to the lack of affordable rent here in SF) but then again, I can see it from the flat owners standpoint. If they own it and don't occupy it year round, one of the reasons they may have purchased it was to be able to rent it out when they aren't there. I'm so glad I don't have an apartment in Paris and I don't have to worry about this personnally. ;)

Thanks all.
-skatterfly

If you are renting from a homeowner who otherwise lives in the apartment, this would be a legal activity. He may rent out his primary residence for a period not to exceed 4 month per year.

There are apartments which are qualified as commercial enterprises. This usually requires approval from the homeowners association and the city. The owner pays appropriate taxes and obtains any necessary city permits. I am not involved in apartment rentals and unfortunately do not have more detailed information but it appears that there is a large number of available apartments which would not qualify as legal rentals.

Here is a better explanation of the new laws in Paris:
http://www.tripadvisor.com/ShowTopic....html#52883748

Here is a rather lengthy discussion on apartments in Paris:
http://www.tripadvisor.com/ShowTopic...de_France.html

Thanks, Sarastro,.. those links are exactly the kind of the information that I was looking for. It's an interesting discussion that's been going on online for a few years since this law was first passed, and watching it work through the French lawmakers... and now to see that it's getting enforced. And while I can appreciate the issue of the horrendous shortage of reasonable housing in Paris, I think it's an impossible task to completely outlaw every single short term rental. And with the loophole allowing home owners to let their properties up to 4 months, these of apartments will continue to thrive but will probably increase their rates as the cheaper (and illegal) places you can find on Air BNB will be more dubious.

You will have no trouble dealing with companies like Paris Perfect( as mentioned above) or others who are reputable and have registered Paris apartments.

I have decided to rent from someone like them next trip. I rented from a lovely women last trip but know they did not live in the building and it was a cash transaction. I appreciate the info.

While I do live in Paris, I am not in the rental market and have no financial interest in short term rentals. Current events surrounding short term rentals will be interesting to watch. Enforcement of rules pertaining to these properties could fizzle out and everything could continue as is.

On the other hand, momentum is building to crack down on violators. At the present time, no one really knows what the situation will be one or two years from now but just because someone deals with a <i>reputable</i> company does not mean that a renter is immune from the effects of a crack down, and I have no idea what a <i>registered apartment</i> really is. If the city of Paris has a list of apartments approved for short term rental income, it would be interesting to look at as I have never seen nor heard of one.

Many of the apartments listed in places such as Paris Perfect are owned by people who do not use them as primary residences. They may visit their properties once or twice a year but does a few visits qualify one as a resident? Does the agency carefully restrict such rentals to a maximum of 4 months a year?

These are the types of things that are being looked at right now by a special commission from the mayor´s office. I believe that if there is a noticeable change in how short term rentals are handled, any change will not come quickly.

You pay a big fee to be registered and the apartments are inspected and approved. Sounds like a City of Paris rip off!!

So hard for the renter to understand fully. We rent almost exclusively from one agency (and occasionally Paris Perfect off-season)and I asked about their compliance with the law. I was told their apartments are registered and they pay the taxes.

I hope we are not homeless in Paris in the future but have no reason to doubt what the agency is telling me.

Personally, I am not concerned. I think if you rent from the prominent companies that you do not have to be concerned.

It is, of course hurting the good, small ones.

a bientot...

Joan

The shills for Paris Perfect will shill for them no matter what. Their definition of "reputable" is circular.

The point is: The law is changing. And it will continue to change. If you are thinking of renting an apartment in the future, you will need to keep abreast of the changing law and demand that your rental agency supply you with written guarantees that the apartments they are renting are legal, according to the latest law.

You cannot rely on social media to reassure you that "I am not concerned because I trust my friends whom I consider prominent" (or "who owe me so many favors I know I will always have a place to stay on my trips.") You need to follow the law and ask for written guarantees.

More than one person who has rented from Paris Perfect has ended up stuck without the Paris apartment they thought was guaranteed to them. Various reasons were given, but the bottom line is that Paris Perfect, like most all other Paris agencies, does not own the apartments it advertises and "manages" and therefore has no ultimate control over how the owners handle them when it comes to honoring short-term rental contracts.

Shill is not a nice word to use!! I don't think anyone posting on this thread could or should be called such! Anyone posting that they enjoy renting from whatever company does so because they have enjoyed doing so, for a variety of reasons. There are many very reliable companies in Paris and many of us enjoy each of them, for our own reasons. No reason for any of us to think that the one we rent from is the best one, for everyone! No reason for anyone saying not nice things because they do not agree with our choice, either.

Fodor's does have rules for manners! Best to follow them!

a bientot,

Joan

sarastro had the most complete information, as things stand now. It's not what many people want to hear, but it's factual.

Think about this - if you ask someone if they are doing anything illegal, wouldn't you expect the response to be: "Yes, of course, everything is above-board, 100% honest and why would we lie to you?"

When in fact, the real answer should be: "Well, no, we're not in compliance with the law, but we don't really care. We don't know if we'll have any problems, but if we do, we'll just have to deal with that - and so will you."

The fact that enforcing this law will take ages to reach everyone who is not in compliance means nothing. The real enforcement is coming from neighbors, who have simply had enough of their homes being turned into unlicensed hotels.

Add jealousy (because your neighbor is possibly making a fortune in undeclared income), and you've got vigilantes contacting the police and the co-op board, reporting every bit of noise, damage to common areas (especially elevators), improper recycling, and the fact that they just don't want strangers coming in-and-out at all hours.

So, though the law might not officially be enforced, neighbors can - and will - make your visit a living nightmare. Many agencies will pay off the gardiennes and the nearest neighbors, asking them to look the other way - but this doesn't always work. It's not a pleasant thing to think about, but having someone frequently knocking on your door to complain about the least little thing can certainly ruin a vacation.

Finally - this is something to take very seriously - since short-term rental apartments (no matter who rents them out) are not regulated, they are not inspected for fire, safety and sanitary codes. Hotels must comply, and are inspected on a regular basis. If you choose to stay in an apartment, you should think about your safety. Though the plumbing and lighting fixtures in the apartment might be new, they are retro-fitted into the common pipes and wires of old buildings - services that often can't handle the load, and cause plumbing back-ups, power surges, outages and much worse.

As the law stands now, only an extremely small number of vacation rentals are legal. A full-time, documented resident of Paris has the right to rent up to 4 months per year, however, this falls under the rules of the co-op agreement, and is not always "encouraged". Again, the vigilantes trump the government.

An agency or corporation might say they have applied for a license to rent, but this has nothing to do with the laws regarding illegal rentals. It's a marketing tool, pure and simple. If you choose to rent an apartment - from an agency, individual or based on the recommendations from people you have never met and who might be good pals with the owners - go ahead and take the chance.

But I would suggest avoiding any possible problems, and rent a hotel room, instead. Anyone needing a kitchen can rent legally from Citadines and Adagio appart'hotels.

Some people will encounter problems and be willing to roll the dice, but others want and need a sense of security, and are not willing to find that their apartment was "yanked" at the last minute and they must end up in another they didn't choose. By the way, "plumbing problems" often translates to "Those nasty neighbors called the cops again, so we're going to cool it for awhile."

It's simply time to re-think vacations and "living like a local", at least in Paris.

As this change takes effect it will probably keep us from visiting Paris at all. I travel with kids and having the kitchen, washing machine and separate bedrooms is essential to making our trip comfortable. I checked out the Adagio hotels and for a week we would travel next summer a 2 bedroom for the 5 of us way out in the 15th (totally not a desirable area for us) came out to $3376.00 and a Citadines was $3049.00! Our usual 2 bedroom apartment in the 4th is $1929.00. That is a huge difference in a families vacation budget.

I do feel for the people of Paris but I also feel for my pocketbook and if I want to be able to take my kids to experience all that Europe has to offer then I need to stay within a certain lodging budget and the hotel concept does not cut it.

Everyone has to find their own comfort level with the Paris situation. I spend quite a bit of time in Paris and I asked the right questions of the right people, until I was satisfied for my personal comfort.

a bientot....

Joan

trvlgirlmq - People say this kind of thing all the time, but the fact is that Paris will not miss you, if you decide not to come. Threatening to take one's vacation dollars elsewhere is just useless, since there are plenty of other people willing to come and spend their vacation dollars.

Many major cities have successfully enforced similar bans,many more are beginning to do so, and none has suffered a loss in tourist revenue - New York, San Francisco, etc. The only people complaining are those who have apartments to rent, and people who can't meet their travel budget as they used to.

Though you will miss bringing your family to stay in what some consider to be the most desirable areas of town, the other arrondissements are just as interesting - and safe - and prices for Adagio and Citadines are much lower, too. Perhaps it's time to start thinking outside the box, and see what the rest of the city has to offer. After all, you would only be a short ride away via Metro or bus. It's worth considering, if you are determined to keep visiting Paris.

I would be willing to bet that most people who enjoy vacation rental apartments in Paris do not live in condos or areas where short-term rentals are allowed. Furthermore, they wouldn't stand for such activity, in or near their own property - NIMBY, and all that.

I think it's oddly insensitive to assume that it would be fine to rent an illegal apartment in someone else's place of residence, just because it meets a vacation budget. Nobody is guaranteed a vacation, especially at the expense of another person's quality of life.

Manouche - I just gave you prices for Adagio and Citadines in outer areas and those prices are absolutely ridiculous at over $400/night. I would never pay that for a hotel here in the US and if I did I could stay in a Ritz Carlton or Four Seasons.

You are right Paris won't miss me but that is not the point I am trying to make and you don't get it.

Plain language is what is called for in these expensive transactions. I wouldn't trust anybody who is representing a business whose first concern is to try to prevent other people from using straight talk to alert other travelers that they might be supporting illegal activity and have their vacation lodging disappear out from under them.

It is also not an issue of your personal "comfort zone". If you are personal friends with the owners of an agency, obviously your personal "comfort zone" is a lot cozier than if you are dealing as a stranger with a company incorporated in Singapore. (business address of Paris Perfect is 80 Robinson Road #02-00 Singapore 068898.)


The current law in Paris is straightforward, and any rental agency purporting to deal only in legal apartment rentals should be able to provide you with a copy of the authorization from Paris authorities to rent the apartment under commercial rental laws. Absent that authorization, any neighbor or investigator can report the illegality to French authorities and get the rental shut down. If you've booked that apartment, you won't be able to stay there. If the agency only deals in illegal rentals, then you will be running the same risk with any other apartment they offer as a substitute.

It is really very simple: Ask the rental agency to send you a copy of the legalization documents for the specific apartment they are renting. It is your vacation. You don't owe it to other people's friends and "nice talk" on the Internet not to question the business practices of agencies renting hugely expensive apartments who demand payment well in advance to secure them. You have rights.

One thing I forgot to mention, is that several rental agencies and individuals will now require the client to sign a one-year lease, which will be torn up at the end of their stay, however many days or weeks that might have been.

This is a creative dodge around the law, since 1 year leases of furnished apartments are indeed legal. However, phony leases are not.

If someone asks you to sign a year's lease for your vacation, you are not protected, and the practice is not legal.

The 15th is not way out (except maybe around the peripherique) and is a fairly desirable area, IMO (where the Adagio is, which isn't far from the border of the 7th). I like that location myself. But I also think $450 a night is a lot for a 2 BR apt n that building, I'm surprised it's that much as I thought I had seen that type 2 BR place for less than $300 a night there. Although at the current exchange rate, that is only about 325 euro, now that I think of it. There isn't any way in the world you could stay at the Ritz or Four Seasons in Paris for that price, however, for five people, so I think you may not realize the price of luxury hotels in Paris (a double room may be 1000 euro and that is only for 3 people max).

Hr

Christina - I stated the US when I commented on the cost of a luxury hotel. And I know that 5 can't sleep in a single room I was making a point about the cost of a trip to Paris for a family.

We'll just have to see how far this law goes and if anything actually gets done. As with most things to do with government I expect to see slow progress.

My family will just continue to plan our next trip to France without time in Paris.

Just as an update; I checked and the last few of the Paris Perfect apartments are completing their commercial status now, so they all will be completely legal. I stay in them so are the only ones that I am really concerned about or can answer re the legality question for. I am sure that other companies are the same.

Kerouac and Manouche (and anyone else on the ground there in Paris)... Topping to hear how the city is escalating. There were a couple of comments recently here that by summer 2015 essentially all rentals will be gone. Most of them are clearly (and have for years), at least in terms of the laws, illegal--even if they have always been tolerated. The question now really seems to be one of enforcement, which is what seems to be escalating.

I watch this topic closely... As I love staying in apartments when I travel (especially Paris)... But also because I'm curious to see how it plays out.

Paris like much of Europe always had a very long standing tradition (legal or not) of house sharing, gites, pied a terres, etc. I can't help but feel a bit like Air bnb came along and ruined a good thing. They sort of threw it all over a tipping point.

Anyway, I guess I'm wondering if there's a sense that listings will just gradually disappear? NY has cracked down hard on the practice and yet you still see listings on vrbo in Manhattan.

And then again, I've seen quite a few blogs, articles, and comments online (from both US and France including many owners) expressing hope that some sort of compromise can be made to enable some rentals to become compliant. It seems almost incredible to me that rentals in Paris would completely cease... Not the least of which from an enforcement standpoint. But there's clearly a growing sentiment that this is what the city and residents of Paris want.

Unfortunately my next trip in 2015 I won't be staying long enough to rent an apartment (4 days). I might have the option of staying in an apartment owned by a family friend, but i have a backup hotel booked until I know her plans. And even then ... Do I have to fear her neighbors will report her?

Would love to hear your thoughts.

We have our apartment rented with www.specialapartments.com in early July, 2015.

You can listen to comments for so long and then need to make a decision.

Good luck.

I really do not think that all apartment rentals are going to cease. It is perfectly legal for residents to rent their apartments up to 4 months of the year so there will always be a number of apartments available.

None the less, enforcement has begun on entities who rent large numbers of apartments which have not been set up as commercial properties. In some cases, neighbors who have grown wherry of transients their buildings have contacted authorities with complaints. Many of these complaints have been followed up on by the city.

I would make every attempt to deal with owners directly when possible. there will always be apartments available for vacation rentals but perhaps fewer of them will be available in the future.

It is just so baffling and curious when the section of the Official Website of the Convention and Visitors Bureau, ParisInfo,

…parisinfo.com/where-to-sleep-in-paris/appar…

where there are four pages of "A choice of furnished apartments for 1 week or 1 month - Specialist agencies, with a knowledge of the rules and regulations applicable to this activity, offer you a whole list of addresses to assist you in your choice of accommodation: in different neighbourhoods and a variety of sizes or styles - check their offers out now. You can rent a studio or an apartment for a week up to a year… The price covers the basic rental, but also additional services which can come in very handy: baby-sitting, laundry and dry-cleaning, self-catering or room service and private transfers from the airport. It is also possible to proceed to an exchange of apartment."

Go figure.

Unfortunately, the Paris government-related websites are often not up-dated as frequently as they should be. No excuses for this, it's just a fact - as anyone who has had to deal with renewing visas or permits can readily attest to...

I would not say that there is any date written in stone, regarding the End Of Rental Apartments In Paris. But I can say for certain that progress is on-going. If you rely on other people's past experience, you are taking a risk, plain and simple.

I have friends who are selling their pieds-a-terre (in the 8th and the 6th arrondissements) that they have been renting for several years, because their coop boards have made their lives miserable and have threatened to sue them for violating the coop rules, which prohibit short-term rentals and sublets (which most buildings adhere to).

I know two people in the Marais who have been renting several places (via VRBO) for many years - both of them were visited by the Mayor's task force in November, and both of them had to pull their properties off the market, had to appear before the Mayor and pay substantial fines. One plans to appeal - but still cannot rent any of her properties - the other is selling.

Adrian Leeds is selling several properties and concentrating her business in the South of France. She too, enjoyed a visit from the task force - and also had repeated run-ins with her neighbors, who probably reported her.

There are a couple of well-known agencies - with lots of supporters on forums such as this - who claim that "we own all the apartments in the building, so they are legal." Well, unless the building has been converted to commercial tax status,and they have constructed new housing of the same size somewhere in Paris, this is not true. In addition, just because someone claims to own an apartment does not make it legal - and owner must actually live in the apartment full-time. There are a lot of people who are not interested in telling you the truth, especially when their income depends on it.

At lunch yesterday, I sat next to an American couple and their 2 adult sons, who had just arrived in Paris that morning and had rented through Homelidays. They were unhappy that they had to move to another part of town, since their apartment wasn't available when they arrived. They ended up near Gare du Lyon in a small 1-bdrm with a sofabed, rather than a 2-bdrm near Place des Vosges. They were trying to decide if they should move to a hotel, where at least they would have enough heat and hot water - neither of which were working well enough to suit them in the new apartment.

Our coop board just held its annual meeting, and voted to sue the owners of two very active short-term rentals in our building. 4 years ago, the board began asking politely, but this has escalated over the years into a lawsuit. In most instances, with the assistance of the Mayor's task force, things will not take as long as it did in our building.

So, although things are not zooming along at warp speed, and not every agency or individual owner is being affected at the moment, owners and renters are definitely feeling the results. I would recommend not making any long-range plans for a rental in Paris.

It's just time to re-think how and where you will go on vacation. People - even families with kids to feed - always managed before apartments became available in Paris (or anywhere else). It's entirely possible and not that difficult to do. You just have to start looking in a different direction.

HomeAway is credited with the slogan "Live Like A Local" - it's a marketing tool that has made them rich. This company has always flouted the law (especially condo regulations and neighborhood restrictions on short-term rentals) and many of its clients accept payment in cash, which is not reported to the tax authorities. Some people might want to think about that.

Interesting info. I also found it confusing when I knew the Paris Tourist Office website listed apt rental agencies, although there are some legitimate cases, as noted.

As noted, life will go on, back in the day no one rented apts from people when they traveled. My parents took us kids a lot of places (4 of us) and we didn't stay in apts.

Wow, thank you Manouche and others for sharing your point of view. It's an interesting dialog. Manouche is right... probably most of the renters from the US are not living in high-density cooperative apartment buildings and may not understand the impact that a short term rental can have on permanent residents. I live in a free-standing home in the suburbs, yet I can see it from the neighbors' perspective... I would certainly not want the visitors to an apartment in my building turning over every 7 days. Especially if those visitors were also noisy.

We have a tremendous problem in nearby San Francisco... there is a huge backlash going on right now against Air BnB. There's also a huge backlash against anything or anyone that smacks of the 1%.

I also think that AirBnB took a reasonable practice that most people seemed to tolerate, and made it explode, exponentially, over a short window of time. I read one statistic that prior to AirBnB, the largest listing service (like a HomeAway) had perhaps 2000 active Paris listings. AirBnB alone had, at one point, over 25,000 Paris options. I'm definitely *not* a fan of AirBnB and I think they accelerated the demise of vacation rentals in Paris and other popular cities.

As a renter, I'll miss the apartment experience... I have 2 children and a huge love of shopping the markets and relaxing in an apartment with a home cooked meal and wine. It will be a disappointment to me that my favorite venue for accommodations is very likely going to become unavailable, if not in 2015 then at some point in the future.

I did see one blog post from Adrian Leeds from about a year ago inciting fury over the crackdowns, indicating that owners have a right to rent out and renters have a right to affordable vacation homes. That seems like such an obnoxious thing to say. I don't know whether owners in France have such rights, but I certainly don't feel I'm owed any right to affordable vacation homes when I visit one of the most expensive cities in Europe. As I'm always telling my kids, there's a huge difference between *want* and *need*.

It's also really interesting to hear how this new enforcement is affecting the lives of many people who bought their pieds-a-terre with the expectation of using the rentals to support the cost of ownership. Like Manouche's friends, I have a family friend, a French couple with an apartment in the 10th, may have to leave Paris for a new job. They'll now have to decide whether to sell the home they love, or risk running it as a vacation rental illegally so they can manage to keep it until they're able to return to Paris.

And over the years I've become casually friendly with a real estate agent we used years ago for accommodations. She represented high end clients in the property sale, and managed many of the listings for short term holiday rentals. I've seen her rental portfolio dwindle from a few dozen to just a few. Many of her clients began selling their properties in 2010 when this issue of enforcement started to crop up.

The irony in all of this is that many of these vacation rentals are in very upscale neighborhoods and are not remotely what someone might call "affordable housing" .... which is one of the purported goals of the crackdown.

The cynical side of me suspects there's a lot of politics and lobbying from Hotels at play in this enforcement.

And the optimistic side of me secretly hopes for some sort of compromise to be made, some way for the city to save face and allow them to begin collecting a tax or certifying owners willing to jump through some manner of hoops. I am starting to see this sentiment of wishful thinking on several blogs of property owners in US and in France.

I guess only time will tell. But it's good advice that Kerouac offers here on Fodors to really think hard about making reservations in 2015 without knowing the risks.

It will be very interesting to see what happens. I can see there are many sides of this difficult issue.

Perhaps apartment prices will become more reasonable? I may have to play the lottery a bit more often.

Skatterfly: I am <u>totally</u> w/ you re airbnb. Talk about unintended consequences. Get greedy and ruin a long standing practice.

But don't <i>dare</i> saying a word against airbnb. There are 4 or 5 Fodorites who are basically acolytes, who will dump all over you for disagreeing.

I've actually met one of these airbnb "cult members" at a GTG and we had a semi friendly relationship. But once I posted that I'm not a fan - no more

NYC is a lost cause of course . . . But hopefully the Paris authorities can work out a system to allow <i>some</i> form of short term rental. Paying local hotel tax would go a long way.

I've rented from two different owners who bought flats for their children to use while they attended university in the 5th and after they left school the flats were rented out. I don't know for sure but assume both are off the rental market.

I bought my apartment in 2007, and was told by the seller and real estate agent that I could do anything I wanted with it - including any remodelling work and renting short term. Nothing could be further from the truth, as I found out when I read the rules of the co-propriete - given to me after the sale.

I wanted to move my kitchen to another room, but was told that this would impact the plumbing for two other apartments, so it was not allowed. I also planned on renting short-term, until I could live in France full-time, but was told that it was not allowed. There are even restrictions on the type, size and color of planters that are allowed on our little balconies - though at least I have the right to choose what color geraniums I plant. None of this is uncommon.

In fact, the co-propriete has the final say in anything that an owner does with his property - and will take much faster action than the Police or the Mayor's Office. They'll be successful, too. This concept of "my property really belongs to the community living in the building and is part of the patrimony of Paris" is really hard for Americans to accept, and very difficult to live with.

In addition, most agents and sellers will not tell a prospective buyer that he will have to contribute to the "ravalement" of the building - cleaning and repair of the exterior, ordered by the Mayor's office once every 10 to 20 years. This is based on the surface area of the exterior, is divided among all the owners (according to the size of their property), and can amount to a huge chunk of change, as it did in my case...

Because of these and other reasons, many people who purchased apartments with the idea of renting them until they could retire to Paris are changing their minds. Also, the FATCA banking act has put the kabosh on Americans who accept payments outside of France - as a result, many people are selling. Other Europeans, who aren't subject to the FATCA scrutiny, are snapping up fully-furnished apartments, and they continue to rent them. But anyone who has a listing on the internet can be targeted, especially if they list multiple properties. The Mayor's task force spends most of its time trolling the web.

I could go on, but - caveat emptor.

Hi,This information quite helpful for me.I want to know more about vacation rentals in paris.

What do you want to know about them?

I was just sent the contract for a 5 night stay in July 2016 at Chateau Latour, a Paris Perfect apartment. My deposit is due tomorrow if I want to book it. After reading this thread, I'm totally re-thinking my decision. I'm traveling with my husband and 2 kids, so really wanted 2 bedrooms with a view in the 7th, a kitchen and a washer/dryer. Can't get that in a hotel.

Any updates on Paris Perfect? Am I still taking a risk? Should I go with a hotel meaning I'll need to book a suite at way more cost?

Is your hesitation because of the crackdown? If so, I wouldn't worry about it. Paris Perfect has enough apartments to re-house you if anything did go sideways, which I highly doubt it will... I'd keep the rental, but that's just my opinion.