Having a good salary is no longer enough to get a job real estate loan. Since the tightening of the rules of HCSF (High Financial Stability Council), banks must respect a ceiling of 35% debtinsurance included, with a maximum loan duration set at 25 years oldwith a tolerance of up to 27 years old in certain new programs. Result: many applications that were previously fundable are now refused.
The rate of wear also complicates the equation. This legal ceiling corresponds to the maximum rate at which a bank can lend, all fees included. Since the April 1, 2026he reaches 5.19% for fixed rate property loans of 20 years and overaccording to the Bank of France. “Even good files could be blocked because of the rate of attrition”explain Daniel Cadiou, former banking advisor and founder of Cadexia Épargne.
Banks now look at much more than salary
In fact, banking establishments mainly analyze the overall financial behavior of the future borrower. The first sensitive point remains the famous “load jump”. Concretely, a bank compares the old rent to the future monthly loan payment. “If a household pays 800 euros in rent but aims for a monthly payment of 1,200 euros, the bank will look to see if they are able to regularly save the 400 euros difference”underlines Daniel Cadiou.
Bank statements of 3 to 6 months preceding the request are also scrutinized. Repeated overdrafts, revolving credits, split payments or online gambling can seriously penalize a file. “You have to arrive with clean accounts: zero consumer credit, zero incidents, zero unused payment reserves”insists the former banking advisor.
PEL, PER, life insurance… these investments which reassure the banks
L’savings now plays a central role in obtaining a mortgage loan. Banks particularly appreciate profiles capable of putting money aside regularly, even with average income. Products like PEL or the CEL remain seen as positive financial management signals. Same logic for the PER or thelife insurance. THE PER can in particular be released to finance the purchase of the main residence, and therefore make it possible to increase its envelope, as Service-public.fr reminds us. Life insurance reassures banks of the existence of security savings that can be mobilized in the event of an unforeseen event. “When a client has financial savings, the bank can more easily make an effort on the rate”explain Daniel Cadiou.
Another lever often underestimated:borrower insurance. Its cost is included in the credit calculation and can reduce borrowing capacity. “For a real estate loan 3.40%borrower insurance 0.36% already represents more than 10% of the credit rate »reminds Daniel Cadiou. “On a loan from 200,000 euros over 20 yearsincrease the insurance rate from 0.36% to 0.28% reduces the total cost of insurance by approximately 7,316 euros to 5,675 euros »according to a simulation carried out by Daniel Cadiou. Or more than 1,600 euros savings over the life of the loan. The cost of insurance varies according to age, state of health, smoking status or even the profession exercised.
These profiles who still borrow easily
Banks continue to favor certain profiles deemed more stable: civil servants, employees of large groups or health professionals. Conversely, self-employed people and business managers remain more complex to finance, even with high incomes, because banks analyze more the regularity of income and the profits actually paid.
Finally, brokers point out that it remains essential to prepare your file several months before the purchase. Increase your contribution, pay off your consumer credits or domiciling your income with the lending bank can still make it possible to obtain better conditions… and sometimes significantly increase your borrowing capacity.
