Municipal 2026: What if the mayors who do not build were beaten?

Free tribune

Unlike the popular adage, it is likely that, for the 2026 municipal elections, it is better to display a positive construction assessment in the commune that the reverse, according to Henry Buzy-Cazaux, president of the Institute of Management of Real Estate Services. Real estate crisis obliges, eight meetings out of ten in the permanence of mayors relate to a need for housing.

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It has become an adage, which enamels the speeches of promoters and manufacturers, and which local local elected officials do not deny: “mayor who builds, beaten mayor”. He means that mayors who take the risk of upsetting the urban and sociological balances of their commune are sanctioned by the inhabitants in place, and that they do not re -elit them. We agree to note in any case that, even the councilors who rather promote construction, in particular housing in their city, raise the pen on building permits permit at least a year before the following electoral expiry, so as not to blame their electorate, and freeze the significant projects in progress.

This time, less than a year from the next municipal elections, the housing community is nevertheless awaiting, by measuring that this brake would add its effects to the others, degraded general economy, heavy political atmosphere, geopolitical concern, still indigestible interest rate for many households. What if she was wrong?

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Proven local finances

Undeniably, mayors are not at the party: local public finances are experienced at their maximum. At least they are not in deficit, since it is prohibited by law to local authorities from presenting undeveloped budgets. On the other hand, the use of debt has never been so strong and the self -financing investment capacity of town halls has only been back in recent years. They also played tax increases cheerfully for many of them: after having lost or almost the benefit of the housing tax, only maintained for secondary residences, they inherited the property tax … that they did not hesitate to increase.

We will never say enough that the removal of the housing tax will have only been a Pyrrhus victory for taxpayers and that we will have dressed Pierre to undress … Peter shortly after. The mayors did not hide that the deprivation poorly compensated by the state of the abundant resources of the housing tax, which constituted 34% of their products, tilted them not to accommodate new inhabitants, applicants of all -round, endless local public services. And yet, the most recent construction figures are unusual and break with the findings of the other end of mandate. They strangely have not been the subject of comments.

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A change of logic among mayors?

Indeed, in March 2025, last known month, the building permits issued in the residential are up 7% compared to February. This average hides an 11% rebound for individual houses and a recovery of 4.7% for accommodation in collective buildings. Do not go too fast in work and not take the swallow for spring. The fact remains that the inflection is there, and that it may announce a change of logic among mayors. Moreover, one could understand that they do not react this time as in previous pre-campaign or soon electoral campaigns: the unwanted demand in housing is so pressing that they would have a hard time explaining to be indifferent and preferring not to abound the supply, whatever the reasons. Eight out of ten meetings in the permanence of mayors relate to a need for housing, social or private. Proximity elected officials are seen by families and individuals as the final appeal when it was tempted. How would the same distraught citizens give an electoral satisfaction to a mayor who blocks building authorizations?

Elected officials feel it. Moreover, the famous social bomb of housing that so much predicted three years ago has strangely exploded. Would we have exaggerated the difficulties of the French? No, certainly not. It is just that local elected officials are social shock absorbers and that in the recipients of tensions and misfortunes, they attenuate them, without even solving them most often. Calm speech. And then the situations are so heterogeneous between the housing seekers that they can be imagined badly scrolling together in the streets … In short, we will check in March 2026, but it is likely that for these municipal elections it is better to display a positive construction assessment in the commune than the reverse. “A mayor who built is not beaten.” Adage change.