To rent in France you search on leboncoin, SeLoger, PAP or a student platform, then send a dossier that the law limits to ID, proof of address, work and income proofs and your avis d'imposition. The dépôt de garantie is capped at one month unfurnished and two months furnished. Since 1 January 2026, agency fees are capped at €12.10, €10.09 or €8.07 per m² plus €3.03/m² for the état des lieux, and the free Visale guarantee replaces a personal garant for most students and under-30s.
Key takeaways
- leboncoin holds the most rentals (about 65% from private landlords, no agency fee); SeLoger is about 95% agency stock.
- Your dossier is a closed legal list; bank statements, a carte Vitale and a criminal record are banned requests.
- Visale is free; Garantme costs from 4.5% of annual rent, about €405 a year on a €750 flat.
- Agency fees on a 75 m² Paris flat are capped at €1,134.75 for leases signed from January 2026.
- Pay nothing before a physical visit and a signed bail: deposit-before-viewing is the most-reported scam on r/paris.
- Claim APL from the CAF the week you move: aid starts the month after you apply.
Where do you search for a rental in France?
leboncoin is the largest property site in France, with more than 1.5 million property listings and about 65% of its rentals posted by private landlords, so most carry no agency fee. SeLoger is the opposite: about 95% of its stock comes from agencies, which charge capped fees at signing. PAP lists owners only. Students have their own channels: Lokaviz for CROUS rooms at about €200-450 a month, and Studapart with more than 120,000 student listings and bail mobilité contracts.
In Paris and Lyon good listings go within hours. Keep your dossier as one PDF, set alerts on two portals, and visit fast. Booking sites carry their own rules: under Spotahome's standard terms (May 2026), cancelling after the landlord accepts loses the reservation fee, and cancelling 29 days or less before move-in loses the first payment too. Its optional Flex Cancellation refunds 90% if you cancel at least 3 days ahead.
| Portal | Who lists | What you pay | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|
| leboncoin Immobilier | Mostly private landlords (about 65% of rentals); 1.5M+ property listings | Free; no agency fee on private ads | Lowest cost and small towns; highest scam exposure |
| SeLoger | Agencies (about 95% of stock) | ALUR-capped agency fee at signing | Family flats in Paris and big cities |
| PAP | Owners only | No agency fee, by design | Owner-direct studios; some owners refuse Visale |
| Logic-Immo, Bien'ici | Agencies | ALUR-capped agency fee | 3D visits (Bien'ici), suburbs and mid-size cities |
| Lokaviz (CROUS) | CROUS residences (about 175,000 beds) and labelled private rooms | No fees; CROUS rooms about €200-450 a month | Bursary holders; apply from spring |
| Studapart | Student landlords and residences; 120,000+ listings | Service fee at booking; optional paid guarantee pack | Students, bail mobilité, English support |
| La Carte des Colocs | Flatshares | Free | Rooms in Paris under €900 a month |
| Roomlala | Rooms in the owner's home | Paid contact pass | 1 to 9 month stays without a classic dossier |
| Spotahome | Video-checked flats, booked online | Reservation fee plus first payment; strict cancellation | Booking before arrival |
| HousingAnywhere | Rooms and studios in student cities | Tenant service fee (2026 rate unverified) | Erasmus and exchange students |
| Wunderflats | Furnished flats, 1 to 12 months | Service fee (2026 rate unverified) | Relocating professionals |
What people in France report
- − CROUS room condition: Students in Amiens, Lyon and Le Havre describe 9 m² rooms at €254 with heating only from mid-December and pests left untreated. A FAGE survey found 32% of students are put off CROUS by building condition. (L'Étudiant, February 2024)
- ○ Answer the CROUS SMS fast: A Sorbonne student confirmed her Paris CROUS room less than 20 minutes after the offer SMS arrived. Two classmates lost their places because they were not watching their email in June. (residenceetudiante.fr, 2026)
- ○ Priority goes to first-years: A CentraleSupélec student lost his Gif-sur-Yvette CROUS room in third year: works cut the stock and priority went to incoming students. (Studyrama Logement, May 2025)
Paraphrased from public posts, each dated and linked. A small sample, not a representative survey.
Which rental route fits your situation?
The right rental route in France turns on three facts: whether you have a French guarantor, whether you hold a CDI, and how long you stay. A newcomer without a guarantor starts with Visale, which is free and covers rents up to €1,575 a month in large cities outside Île-de-France. A 5-month exchange student needs a bail mobilité, the only lease that legally fits 1 to 10 months, with no deposit.
Families on two salaries usually earn too much for Visale's over-30 route, which stops at about €1,710 a month of income in 2026, so they rent through agencies. The fee ceiling there is computable before the first visit. Renters without a CDI do better with owners on PAP than with agencies, which apply the 3 times the rent rule almost automatically.
| Situation | Start here | Fallback | Why |
|---|---|---|---|
| Master's graduate, no French guarantor, Lyon studio up to €750 | Visale, then Studapart or PAP | Garantme (from 4.5%) if Visale stalls on foreign documents | Free, and Lyon rents fit the €1,575 cap |
| French bursary student, first year in Paris, €600 budget | Lokaviz / CROUS room | La Carte des Colocs room | Cheapest legal option, APL-compatible, no agency fee |
| Erasmus student, 5 months in Paris | Studapart bail mobilité | HousingAnywhere | Only lease that fits 5 months; no deposit |
| Student couple on CDDs, no CDI | PAP owners, Visale and an immediate APL claim | Roomlala room as a bridge | Owners judge income flexibly; agencies reject without a CDI |
| Family, unfurnished 3-bed in Toulouse, two salaries | SeLoger or Bien'ici agency listing | leboncoin private landlord (no fee) | 3-year lease; Toulouse core is zone tendue, fee max €13.12/m² (check the commune) |
| Family, 3-bed in Paris | SeLoger agency, fee max €15.13/m² | PAP or leboncoin owner-direct, saving up to €1,134.75 on 75 m² | Check the rent against the encadrement reference |
| Digital nomad, 3 months in Nice, booking from abroad | Spotahome with Flex Cancellation | Wunderflats | Verified remote booking; leboncoin advance-payment deals are a scam vector |
What can a landlord legally ask for in your dossier?
Décret 2015-1437 of 5 November 2015 sets a closed list of documents a landlord or agency may request. You can refuse anything outside it, and asking for a banned document is punishable by a fine. Since loi ALUR, a landlord with unpaid-rent insurance (GLI) cannot also demand a guarantor, except from students. The ANIL publishes the official list.
Agencies add an unwritten rule: net income of 3 times the rent. The rule is not in the decree, yet it decides most agency files: on a €2,700 net salary it caps rent at €900. Foreign renters also hit a status trap. Landlords and the CAF often refuse the ANEF attestation de dépôt as proof of legal stay; bring the récépissé or the attestation de prolongation, which the Conseil d'État confirmed carries full rights (decision n° 502860, 5 May 2026).
| Status | Documents |
|---|---|
| Can be required (closed list) | ID with photo; proof of current address (3 rent receipts, attestation d'hébergement or a utility bill); proof of work (contract, employer attestation, K-bis if self-employed); proof of income (3 latest payslips, or 2 balance sheets if self-employed); latest avis d'imposition; the same list for a guarantor. RIB only once the rental is agreed. |
| Customary, you may refuse | Cover letter, CV, a separate photo, references from a previous landlord, a fourth payslip, a personal guarantor on top of Visale. |
| Banned | Carte Vitale or social security attestation, bank statements, criminal record, medical documents, marriage contract, any document not on the list. |
What people in France report
- ○ The 3x rent wall: A Chilean master's graduate on a first CDI at €2,700 net worked out that agencies' 3x rule capped him at €900 rent. In 146 comments, others confirmed the rule, while noting that student residences had accepted his Visale. (r/paris, August 2025)
- ○ Savings but no CDI: A Chilean student couple with savings but only fixed-term contracts, capped at 20 hours a week by their visas, faced losing their flat. Commenters pointed them to owner-direct listings on PAP, the Mission Locale and noted RSA needs 2 years' residence. (r/paris, January 2026)
- − ANEF receipt not accepted: Users report that the ANEF attestation de dépôt is regularly refused by landlords, the CAF and France Travail as proof of legal stay. Only the récépissé or an attestation de prolongation is accepted in practice. (demarchesetrangers.fr, February 2026)
Paraphrased from public posts, each dated and linked. A small sample, not a representative survey.
Which guarantor should you use: Visale, Garantme, Cautioneo or Unkle?
Visale is the free state guarantee run by Action Logement. It covers up to 36 months of unpaid rent and charges plus property damage. Students, including international students, and under-30 employees or jobseekers qualify; over-30s qualify in defined cases, such as a new job, with income up to about €1,710 a month. Since 6 January 2026 the rent ceilings are €1,940 in Île-de-France, €1,575 in large cities and €1,365 elsewhere, and cover ends after 3 years.
Paid guarantors fill the gaps Visale leaves: over-30s above the income line, rents above the cap, and files Visale blocks. Garantme charges from 4.5% of annual rent. Cautioneo publishes 3.75% and 4.1%, but a second grid conflicts. Every private guarantee still needs the landlord's acceptance. Forum reports document one Visale failure mode for foreigners: the file loops back when no uploaded paper states your civil status, and support goes silent. The research's fallback is a paid guarantor such as Garantme while the Visale file is unblocked.
| Guarantor | Price basis | On €750/month | On €1,200/month |
|---|---|---|---|
| Visale (Action Logement) | Free for tenant and landlord | €0 | €0 (within all three rent caps) |
| Garantme | From 4.5% of annual rent | €405 a year | €648 a year |
| Cautioneo (cautioneo.com grid) | 3.75% students and civil servants; 4.1% others; minimum €16.90 a month | €337.50 / €369 a year | €540 / €590.40 a year |
| Unkle (unverified) | About 2.8% paid yearly; 3.5% paid monthly; minimum about €14.99 a month | €252 / €315 a year | €403.20 / €504 a year |
What people in France report
- − Visale document loop: An international student said Visale kept asking again for her visa, passport and school certificate because none of them stated her civil status. Phone, email and social media went unanswered. (r/paris, July 2025)
- ○ Visale, then 3x income anyway: A CDI holder with an accepted Visale certificate, covering more than a third of net salary, asked why landlords still demanded proof of 3x income. The thread shows many landlords stack requirements Visale is meant to replace. (r/paris, November 2023)
- ○ Guarantor as the workaround: Reddit reports from international students, gathered by a study-abroad consultancy, say CROUS waiting lists push newcomers into private flatshares that want a French guarantor. Visale or Garantme is the workaround they cite. (augmentronconsultancy.com, 2026)
Paraphrased from public posts, each dated and linked. A small sample, not a representative survey.
How much is the deposit?
The dépôt de garantie is capped by loi n° 89-462 of 6 July 1989. For an unfurnished rental it is one month's rent excluding charges (hors charges). For a furnished rental it can be up to two months' rent. A bail mobilité carries no deposit at all, because the law forbids one. The landlord returns the deposit within one month if the exit état des lieux matches the entry one, or two months if there are deductions.
On a studio let at €750 a month excluding charges, the deposit is therefore at most €750 unfurnished and €1,500 furnished. If you cannot fund it upfront, Action Logement's avance Loca-Pass can advance it. Pay the deposit only after a physical visit and a signed bail, by a traceable method, and keep the receipt. Deductions must be justified against the entry inventory, so a precise état des lieux is your best protection at the end of the lease. The rules are summarised on service-public.fr.
How much can a letting agency charge you in 2026?
Agency fees charged to tenants rose on 1 January 2026 for the first time in 11 years, indexed on the IRL rent index (+0.87%). The caps are €12.10/m² in the zone très tendue (Paris and about 68 neighbouring communes), €10.09/m² in the zone tendue (about 1,150 communes, including the Lyon, Marseille and Toulouse cores) and €8.07/m² elsewhere, plus €3.03/m² for the état des lieux in every zone. Leases signed before 2026 keep the old €12, €10 and €8 caps plus €3 until renewal.
Only 4 servicesmay be billed to you: visits, building the file, drafting the lease and the entry inventory. Advertising and management stay with the landlord, and your share can never exceed the landlord's. The surface used is the surface habitable, and you have 5 years to reclaim an overcharge. There is no agency fee when you rent directly from an owner on PAP or leboncoin. The 2026 rise itself is small: under €10 on a 75 m² flat.
| Flat | Zone très tendue (€15.13/m²) | Zone tendue (€13.12/m²) | Rest of France (€11.10/m²) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 25 m² studio | €378.25 | €328.00 | €277.50 |
| 40 m² one-bed | €605.20 | €524.80 | €444.00 |
| 75 m² three-bed | €1,134.75 | €984.00 | €832.50 |
| 2026 rise on 75 m² | +€9.75 | +€9.00 | +€7.50 |
Which lease types exist and how much notice do you give?
French residential leases come in 4 formats under loi n° 89-462: unfurnished, furnished, the 9-month student lease and the bail mobilité. As a tenant you give 3 months' notice on an unfurnished lease, cut to 1 month in a zone tendue, and 1 month on every other format. In Paris, Lyon, Villeurbanne, Lille, Montpellier and Bordeaux, rent control (encadrement des loyers) caps the rent at the local reference plus 20%.
Assurance habitation is mandatory: the minimum covers fire, water damage and explosion (risques locatifs). The landlord can refuse the keys without the attestation, and after a one-month formal notice can insure you and recharge the cost plus up to 10% (décret 2016-383). At move-in you sign the état des lieux d'entrée, which is compared with the exit inventory to decide deductions. See our home insurance guide.
| Rule | Unfurnished (vide) | Furnished (meublé) | Bail mobilité |
|---|---|---|---|
| Initial term | 3 years (6 if the landlord is a company) | 1 year, renewable; student lease 9 months, no tacit renewal | 1 to 10 months, not renewable |
| Your notice | 3 months; 1 month in a zone tendue | 1 month | 1 month |
| Landlord's notice | 6 months, only to sell, move in or for a legal motive | 3 months, with a motive | None: fixed end date |
| Deposit cap | 1 month's rent excl. charges | 2 months' rent excl. charges | €0, deposit forbidden |
| Home insurance | Mandatory | Mandatory | Mandatory |
Photograph the état des lieux
How do you spot a rental scam in France?
Rental fraud in France follows three repeat patterns documented on r/paris between 2024 and 2025. The first asks for a deposit before any viewing, often with a photo of the "landlord's" ID to build trust. The second, seen on contacts from SeLoger listings, asks for a RIA money transfer to a relative as proof you can pay. The third posts you a lease and asks for a bank transfer before you have seen the flat. leboncoin carries the highest exposure because anyone can post a free ad and the platform does not verify landlord identity.
One rule stops all three: pay nothing before a physical visit and a signed bail. Under décret 2015-1437 a landlord may ask for your RIB only once the rental is agreed, and never for bank statements. Agency listings on SeLoger and Bien'ici are moderated, which lowers the risk without removing it: fake SeLoger-branded emails exist. If a deal looks cheap, compare it with the October 2026 rent barometer on our cost of living page: Paris averages €33.3/m², so a 25 m² Paris studio far below €833 a month is worth questioning.
What people in France report
- − Deposit before any visit: A flat hunter in Paris was asked for a deposit and sent a photo of the landlord's ID before any viewing. The community identified it as the classic advance-fee fraud pattern. (r/paris, July 2025)
- − RIA transfer as proof of funds: A contact from a SeLoger listing, posing as a landlord in Nice, asked for a RIA money transfer to a relative as proof of solvency. RIA transfers are cash-like and untraceable, which is why scammers ask for them. (r/paris, May 2025)
- − Lease by post, pay by transfer: A Paris hunter received a lease by post with a request to transfer the deposit to a bank account before any visit. The thread confirmed it as fraud. (r/paris, May 2024)
Paraphrased from public posts, each dated and linked. A small sample, not a representative survey.
What do you set up after you get the keys?
A new tenant in France makes 8 registrations, starting with home insurance, which must exist before key handover. Next comes electricity: Linky meters switch on remotely in about 1-2 days, and the regulated Base tariff is €0.2001/kWh since 1 August 2026. Add gas if the flat uses it. Water is usually in the building charges; only a house with its own meter needs a contract, at about €4.89/m³ on average. Order internet early: fibre averaged €33.82 a month in September 2026, with entry offers at €21-28.
Claim housing aid on caf.fr the week you move, because APL pays from the month after you apply. Then update your address with La Poste, your bank, CPAM, impots.gouv.fr and your employer; foreign residents also update their titre de séjour through ANEF. Two warnings from tenants: door-to-door "boiler pipe cleaning" at about €80 is a known scam, and a G-rated flat on the energy performance certificate (DPE) cannot be let on a new lease since 2025, although a 2026 bill proposes exceptions. See our phone and utilities guide.
What people in France report
- − Doorstep boiler cleaning: A Paris tenant warned about fake maintenance visits that knock door to door and charge about €80 for boiler pipe cleaning. (r/paris, February 2022)
- ○ G-rated rental ban debate: An r/france thread with 81 upvotes amplified a 2026 government bill to allow some G-rated passoires thermiques back on the rental market under conditions, after the 2025 ban on new leases. (r/france, April 2026)
- − 35 °C flats and recourse: A 346-upvote thread described living at 35-36 °C in uninsulated rentals. Commenters listed tenant recourse: a mise en demeure to the landlord, then a rent reduction for préjudice de jouissance. (r/france, June 2026)
Paraphrased from public posts, each dated and linked. A small sample, not a representative survey.
What housing aid can you get?
The CAF(Caisse d'allocations familiales) pays housing aid: APL (aide personnalisée au logement) for eligible dwellings, or ALS (allocation de logement sociale) for others, including many students. The amount depends on your income, your rent, and your household. You apply on caf.fr once the lease is signed, and the aid is paid monthly, sometimes directly to the landlord. Aid starts the month after your application and is not backdated, so file in the first week.
Since 1 July 2026, non-EU students without a CROUS bursary no longer receive APL. A July 2026 analysis puts the number affected at about 320,000 students and the loss at €100-250 a month. Under-26s can also ask the Mission Locale for help with housing. On the guarantor side, Action Logement pairs Visale with the avance Loca-Pass, which advances your deposit.
Sources: service-public.fr (location, dépôt de garantie, bail), the CAF (APL/ALS), ANIL and ADIL 75 (tenant rights, agency-fee caps), Action Logement (Visale ceilings, 6 January 2026), and the October 2026 research catalogue (portals, guarantor prices, forum reports), as of October 2026. Verify current eligibility and amounts on the official sites.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can a foreigner rent an apartment in France?
Yes. A foreigner can rent in France with a valid ID or passport, proof of income, and usually a guarantor or the free Visale guarantee, which accepts international students. Landlords cannot refuse you on nationality, but they assess your ability to pay. Bring a récépissé or attestation de prolongation rather than an ANEF attestation de dépôt, which landlords often refuse as proof of legal stay.
What documents can a landlord ask for in France?
Décret 2015-1437 sets a closed list: ID with photo, proof of current address, proof of work (contract or employer attestation), proof of income (3 latest payslips), your latest avis d'imposition, and the same for a guarantor. Your RIB is due only once the rental is agreed. Bank statements, a carte Vitale, a criminal record and medical documents are banned requests.
How much deposit do you pay to rent in France?
The dépôt de garantie is capped at one month's rent excluding charges for an unfurnished rental and two months for a furnished rental. A bail mobilité (1 to 10 months) carries no deposit at all. The landlord returns it within one month if the exit état des lieux matches the entry one, or two months if there are deductions.
How much can an agency charge a tenant in 2026?
For leases signed from 1 January 2026, the tenant's share is capped at €12.10/m² in the zone très tendue (Paris area), €10.09/m² in the zone tendue and €8.07/m² elsewhere, plus €3.03/m² for the état des lieux. On a 75 m² flat in Paris that is at most €1,134.75. It was the first rise in 11 years.
What is the Visale guarantee and what changed in 2026?
Visale is a free state-backed guarantee run by Action Logement that covers unpaid rent and charges, so you can rent without a personal garant. Since 6 January 2026 the rent ceilings are €1,940 a month in Île-de-France, €1,575 in large cities and €1,365 elsewhere, and cover is limited to the first 3 years of the lease. You request your visa Visale online before you sign.
Can a landlord ask for my bank statements?
No. Bank statements (relevés bancaires) are not on the décret 2015-1437 list, so a landlord or agency cannot demand them, and asking for a banned document is punishable by a fine. You can also refuse customary extras such as a cover letter, references from a previous landlord, or a fourth payslip.
Can you get housing aid as a tenant in France?
Yes. The CAF pays APL or ALS housing aid based on your income, rent, and household. Apply on caf.fr as soon as you sign, because aid starts the month after your application. Since 1 July 2026, non-EU students without a CROUS bursary no longer receive APL.
Related Guides
Proof of Address
Get a justificatif de domicile in France.
Home Insurance
Mandatory assurance habitation for tenants.
Cost of Living
What rent and daily life cost in France.
Phone and Utilities Setup
Documents and timelines once you have a home.
Schools in France
Public, private, and the secteur scolaire.
Having a Baby in France
Health cover, maternity leave, and CAF support.
Continue your move to France
Related guides from other parts of How to France that newcomers usually need next.