to buy one shelter, nowadays it is often necessary to show a white leg. And to say that just over two years ago, banks did not hesitate to finance 100% of the loans property even took care of the notary fees! †At that time it was “open bar”. Today it’s “move, there’s nothing to see” if you have more than 35% debt“says a specialist in the credit market. Except that the banks can deviate from this rule, but for only 20% of the mortgages issued.
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According to the several brokers we interviewed, the password with banks is “zero risk”. †Some banks are refusing to fund the work due to delivery issues, quotes that change every 15 days, and uncertain deadlines», underlines Sandrine Allonier of Vousfinancer. Two-thirds of the agencies of this broker state that the banks tightened the conditions for granting for a month in terms of required premium and savings. Two years ago it was possible to borrow without a contribution. Today it is very complicated.
Even worse: the French who want to get a mortgage have to take more and more money out of their pockets. †Rising credit rates implies a decrease in borrowing and forces borrowers to pay moreexplains Pierre Chapon, co-founder of Pretto, an online broker. In what proportion? Average premiums increased from 9% to 29% between the first quarters of 2021 and 2022, according to Pretto and Cafpi. According to Finance Conseil, another brokerage player, the premium has almost doubled over the past three months compared to the 2021 average, more than 52,000 euros. That is a contribution of about 24% required by the banks, all profiles together (starters, second buyers, rental investors, etc.). Ditto for Pretto, where 60% of the activities are located in Île-de-France, where the prices, and therefore the contribution, are higher than the national average.
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But what about first-time buyers, the favorite target of banks, who rarely have large deposits or savings, often due to their young age? The conclusion is the same. Banks are making increasingly higher demands. At Cafpi, the premium fell from 16.2% at the beginning of 2021 to 19.9% at the beginning of 2022, while the average income of starters has hardly changed (46,700 euros per year in 2022 against 45,924 euros in 2021). Sophie Ho Thong, Strategy Director of Finance Conseil confirms. †Average intake decreased from 8.6% in 2020 to 11.2% in the first three months of 2022† The average contribution for starters is just over 30,000 euros†
A hellish amount that is by no means within everyone’s reach and that can explain the decline in the share of starters observed by the broker: from 46% (in number of files) in 2021 to 43% at the start of the year. And all the more so as these profiles are particularly affected by the rise in credit rates. But for Pierre Chapon, “the production of credit will certainly slow down, but will be supported by mobility linked to teleworking. The French save a lot. The desire to have a home plays an important role compared to leisure†
