HOUSING / Annick Pétrus: "We must act with pragmatism, efficiency, and taking into account local realities"

Last Wednesday, the Senate unanimously adopted a bill aimed at experimenting with rent control and improving housing in overseas territories.

Housing overseas is a crucial issue, particularly in Saint-Martin, where the real estate market is marked by high tension, high rents and a lack of affordable housing. During her speech, Senator Annick Pétrus stressed the importance of this measure for our territory: "If Saint-Martin is not classified among the so-called tense municipalities (…), its estate market yet knows tensions comparable”.

She highlighted several advances concrete measures, including the adoption of the Local Housing Program (PLH) 2025-2030, the tripartite agreement between the Community, Housing Action and the State, and the addition of St. James as a priority district of the City Policy.

Annick Pétrus also defended an essential amendment on the adaptation of construction standards. Thanks to a European legislative breakthrough, Saint-Martin will now be able to deviate from the CE marking materials, thus promoting the integration of materials from the Caribbean basin and a cost reduction construction. Annick Pétrus welcomed this progress, recalling that “this text has the merit of proposing pragmatic solutions adapted to our local specificities”. _Vx