Paris has banned key boxes in a new bid to curb the rise of short-term tourist rentals, which activists say are driving up rents and displacing local residents.
The city’s ongoing battle against short-term holiday lets has intensified, with residents and advocacy groups like Paris vs Bnb and Droit au Logement (Right to housing) leading the charge. They argue that platforms such as Airbnb are driving up rents and making it harder for Parisians to find long-term housing.
“In four years, Airbnb has taken the equivalent of a year’s housing construction off the market. As if we hadn’t built for a year!”, said Vincent Aulnay, member of the Paris vs Bnb collective, in an interview with Le peuple breton in 2022.
The key box ban targets landlords who rent out flats illegally by allowing guests to pick up keys from lockboxes, often placed in public spaces or building entrances. Authorities say this practice facilitates large-scale commercial tourist rentals that operate outside legal limits
Paris vs BNB, a citizen-led watchdog, has been vocal about the impact of tourist rentals on housing availability. The group, very active on Facebook, warns that “entire buildings are being converted into illegal hotels,” reducing the number of flats available for residents and driving up property prices. They claim some landlords manage over 130 short-term rental units, prioritizing tourists over locals.
Similarly, Droit au Logement an association advocating for affordable housing, has called for stricter enforcement. They argue that short-term rentals have “transformed entire neighborhoods” into tourist zones, forcing many working-class residents out of the city.
Paris City Hall has already introduced several measures to control tourist rentals. From January 2025, the city has reduced the maximum rental period for primary residences from 120 to 90 days per year. Additionally, illegal short-term rentals now face doubled fines, increasing from €50,000 to €100,000 per infraction.
In a post on X (ex-Twitter), Jacques Baudrier, PCF (French communist party) Deputy Mayor in charge of housing, praised the measures as a “historic victory” in the decade-long fight against mass tourist rentals. “We will be twenty times more effective,” he stated in an interview with AFP in December 2024, emphasizing that enforcement will be significantly strengthened. The city is also deploying more inspectors to track down illegal listings, with around 25,000 currently suspected of violating regulations.
While housing activists have welcomed the crackdown, rental platforms argue that the restrictions unfairly impact Parisians who rely on occasional rentals for extra income. In a statement, Airbnb warned that « excessive and poorly targeted regulations implemented in some European cities have unsurprisingly failed to address local challenges, »
Of an estimated 95,000 furnished tourist accommodations in Paris, approximately 25,000 are believed to be operating illegally, often managed by timeshare owners.
As of January 24, key boxes attached to street furniture are banned, and property owners have 15 days to remove them. After this period, the city will remove the key boxes by municipal decree.
This article was written for the « Newswriting » class of the Bilingual Journalism master’s degree at Sorbonne-Nouvelle University.
