Can you still rent a DPE F or G?

G homes are already banned from new leases (since Jan 2025) and F is banned from Jan 2028. Existing tenants can stay, but you cannot start a new lease on a banned class or raise its rent.

Does a bad DPE lower the price?

Usually yes. F/G homes increasingly sell at a discount because the buyer inherits the renovation and the rental restriction. Always compare to a C/D equivalent minus the works.

Since the 2021 reform it is standardised and opposable (legally binding). Still, verify the estimated energy cost and, for F/G, insist on the audit énergétique.

Buyer risk check

DPE and “passoires thermiques”: what an energy rating costs you

The DPE (Diagnostic de Performance Énergétique) grades a French home from A to G. It is not a formality: classes F and G — the “passoires thermiques” — are being phased out of the rental market, cannot have their rent raised, and often need five figures of works. On any listing, the DPE letter is one of the fastest ways to spot a price trap.

The A–G scale and the rental-ban calendar

The DPE combines energy use and greenhouse-gas emissions into a single letter, A (best) to G (worst). F and G are the “passoires thermiques” (energy sieves). The rating is mandatory on every sale and rental listing and is legally binding on the seller.

Rental bans are already rolling in: class G homes have been barred from new leases since 1 January 2025, class F follows on 1 January 2028, and class E on 1 January 2034. Since August 2022 the rent on any F or G home is frozen — you cannot raise it, even between tenants.

What an F or G rating really costs

Selling an F or G home already requires an audit énergétique (energy audit) that spells out a renovation path and its cost — often €20,000–€70,000 for a house to reach class D or better. That bill is effectively part of the purchase price.

Because buyers know this, passoires thermiques increasingly trade at a discount (a “décote”). A low asking price on an F/G is not automatically a deal: compare it to a class C/D equivalent, then subtract the works needed to make it legally rentable.

Do this on every listing

Read the DPE letter and the estimated annual energy cost the listing must display. For an F or G, ask for the audit énergétique, treat the renovation quote as real money, and re-check the yield against the post-works price — not the sticker.

DwellIQ flags the energy class as a risk on the listings it analyzes, so a cheap-looking F/G does not slip through as a “bargain”.

FAQ

Can you still rent a DPE F or G?: G homes are already banned from new leases (since Jan 2025) and F is banned from Jan 2028. Existing tenants can stay, but you cannot start a new lease on a banned class or raise its rent.
Does a bad DPE lower the price?: Usually yes. F/G homes increasingly sell at a discount because the buyer inherits the renovation and the rental restriction. Always compare to a C/D equivalent minus the works.
Is the DPE reliable?: Since the 2021 reform it is standardised and opposable (legally binding). Still, verify the estimated energy cost and, for F/G, insist on the audit énergétique.

Paste a listing URL — DwellIQ scores price, yield and energy risk (DPE) together.

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