Cash handouts to owners for home improvements has a short history in France. It has only been since the start of the century that ANAH, the main housing agency, was granted powers and resources for the owner-occupied sector, and only since 2010 that a general grants system has been in place.

Since then, as is still the case, the main thrust of policy has been to improve the thermal efficiency of homes, with grants and other incentives towards green heating installations, ventilation and insulation.

However, given the generally poor structural condition of much of the housing stock, the lack of a comprehensive approach to housing renewal has yielded disappointing results, with no significant energy transformation having taken place.

As a result, the government has resorted to punitive measures, by restrictions on the letting of energy 'sieves' and on the use of oil-fired boilers.

In recent years, failures arising from the skewed nature of policy have been compounded by reductions in support. Grants have become targeted towards low-income households, who can now claim up to 100% support, but the level of the grants (individual and global) on offer and the eligible works that can be undertaken falls far short of what is required.

Inevitably, as this is France, complexity is let loose, with three separate grant systems in place, as well as other financial incentives for improvements in energy efficiency.

So what is on offer?

The main grants scheme for sub-standard housing is called Ma Prime Renov Décente, a programme that has been through several reincarnations, always emerging with a lower budget and tougher eligibility rules.

The second scheme is Ma Prime Renov, which focuses exclusively on improvements in energy efficiency. Once again, the programme is suffering from death by a thousand cuts, with the targeting of lower-income households who are entitled to smaller grants for a reduced number of eligible works.

Finally, there are Certificats d’économie s d’énergie (CEE), an energy savings certificate scheme run through the main energy suppliers, most of whom participate in it with gritted teeth.

One of the single most positive developments has been to provide more support to applicants, first through advisors at the local offices of the housing agency, and secondly through professional minders, who must be engaged by an applicant who is proposing a package of works. The advice from the former is free and the assistance from the latter is grant aided.

There are also several other financial incentives, perhaps the most interesting of which is a substantial interest-free loan. You can read all of them in our recently updated Guide to Property Renovation in France.