Do you own a rental property and are looking to secure your future income? The solution: take out unpaid rent insurance which will cover you if your tenant stops paying their monthly payments. “By going through a real estate agency, it costs between 2.5 and 3% of rents with charges, and up to 4% for an individual subscription,” confides Pierre Brunet, founder of the wealth management firm Alter-Invest.
A significant budget, while there is another solution, free and little known: the Visale guarantee, granted by Action Logement. It concerns tenants who are not the lessor’s family and only main residences rented empty or furnished, or properties offered with a mobility lease. Favoring young tenants and low-income earners, it nevertheless provides for some constraints.
To request this guarantee, your tenant must be of legal age and their monthly rent, including charges, cannot exceed 1,500 euros per month. If he is under 30 years old and is a student or work-study student, Visale is granted unconditionally for a monthly rent of less than 800 euros. Between 801 and 1,500 euros, its resources must be less than 1,600 euros per month. Tenants under the age of 30 who are no longer studying can also benefit from Visale, but only if their rent does not exceed 1,500 euros per month and half of their resources.
Tenants over 30 years old, if they are employees in the private or agricultural sector, are also eligible, under conditions. Three scenarios are then possible: either they present to Action Logement a promise of employment within three months, or they have an employment contract and request their Visale within six months following their hiring or transfer, or they receive maximum 1,500 euros net per month.
It is therefore up to the tenant to obtain a Visale agreement in advance. Then, as the owner, you will have to activate the bond no later than the day you sign the lease. In the event of unpaid bills, you will need to make a Visale request on your personal space (Visale.fr). A precise procedure must be followed – simple reminder of the tenant, formal notice, etc. – within strict deadlines. If, despite these steps, your tenant still does not pay, Action Logement will take over and pay you the amounts due, or even the following amounts, then turn against the bad payer to get reimbursed. Visale covers up to thirty-six months of unpaid rent with charges as well as any costs of repairing the accommodation in the event of damage, up to a maximum of two months.