F- and G-Rated Properties Back on the Rental Market: Opportunity or Trap for Buyers?

Since the timetable set out in the Climate and Resilience law (loi Climat et Résilience) came into force, a property rated G can no longer be let, and F-rated properties will follow in 2028. Hundreds of thousands of properties are as a result stuck in limbo: neither lettable nor easy to sell. The bill presented on 24 June 2026 proposes reopening that door — but with a key attached: a commitment to carry out renovation works.

What the bill proposes

A landlord could once again let a property rated F or G, provided they formally commit to renovating it. The announced parameters are:

• Target: reach at least a D rating on the energy performance certificate (DPE).
• Timeframe: three years for a single-family house, five years for a property in a co-ownership (copropriété).
• Condition: the renovated property must no longer have a fossil-fuel boiler (oil, gas).
• Proof required: a formally signed quote from a contractor, with a deposit paid.

Around 700,000 properties would be affected nationwide. The government’s idea is to trigger a wave of renovation rather than abruptly removing these properties from the market.

Why this could be an opportunity

For a buyer, an F- or G-rated property currently has two interesting characteristics: it is often discounted (the market already prices in the letting ban and the cost of the works), and it attracts fewer buyers, so competition is lower.

If the discount on the purchase price exceeds the actual cost of the renovation needed to reach class D, the deal creates value: you buy low, you renovate, and you end up with a lettable, energy-efficient, and more valuable property. This is a classic value-creation strategy — one that the bill now makes safer by allowing the property to be let again during the works.

✅ What makes the deal sound: A costed quote for the works obtained BEFORE the purchase, a discount greater than the renovation cost, a property whose layout technically allows it to reach class D, and — in a co-ownership — a collective capable of voting through its share of the works.

Why this could be a trap

The risk centres on three points.

The real cost of the works

Moving a property from F or G to D can require a hefty budget: insulation, changing the heating system, sometimes window and door replacement. In Paris, in older buildings, the bill can climb quickly. A rough estimate at the time of purchase is the surest way to turn an apparent bargain into a money pit.

Dependence on the co-ownership

Some of the energy-performance works concern the communal areas (façade, roof, communal boiler). You cannot decide on these alone: they depend on a vote at the general meeting (assemblée générale). The bill does provide for a simplified voting process and an 18-month grace period in case of refusal, but the risk of a blockage remains a factor to weigh up.

The binding deadline

Three or five years may sound comfortable — until the quote, the permits and the contractor’s schedule all pile up. Failing to meet the commitment risks losing the right to let the property. The deadline shifts the risk onto you.

⚠️ Warning sign: A seller or a listing that presents an F- or G-rated property as “soon to be lettable again thanks to the new law” without costing the works. Reopening the letting market only has value if the renovation plan is realistic and funded. Otherwise, it’s a sales pitch, not an opportunity.

APPARTE’s analysis

This is exactly the type of property where the support of a property hunter makes a difference. Telling an opportunity-passoire apart from a trap-passoire (an energy-inefficient property, or “passoire thermique”) means costing the works, analysing the DPE and its room for improvement, and examining the health of the co-ownership and its schedule of voted works. We only present an F- or G-rated property to you once the equation is favourable, backed by a quote and a genuine discount. Everything else is a false bargain.

APPARTE tells a genuine opportunity apart from a false bargain

Before any purchase of a property needing renovation, we cost the works, analyse the DPE and the co-ownership, and validate the real profitability. Book an appointment.

General information current as of the publication date, concerning a bill that has not yet been passed into law; this does not constitute legal or tax advice. The timeframes and conditions mentioned may change — professional verification is recommended before any commitment.