Zero-rate loan 2026: PTZ rules, loan rate impact and simulation

Why talk about the PTZ 2026 now – and what it does to your loan rate

The French prêt à taux zéro (PTZ) is a state-backed zero-rate loan designed to help first-time buyers finance their main home. The current reform extends it to 2027 with new rules starting 2024, and it will still be available in 2026.

If you are wondering whether to buy or rent in the next few years, the PTZ 2026 matters for one key reason: it reduces your effective loan rate. While standard mortgage rates hover around 3.6% (excluding insurance) in 2024–2025, the PTZ brings part of your financing down to 0%. The real question is: how much does that change the buy or rent equation for you?

On buy-or-rent.net (acheter-ou-louer.com in French), one of the main inputs is the taux_pret (loan rate). Understanding how the PTZ 2026 interacts with this parameter is essential if you want a realistic simulation rather than a rough guess.

Quick reminder: how the PTZ 2026 works

The PTZ is not a full mortgage; it is a complementary zero-rate loan that covers part of your purchase, subject to eligibility criteria.

Main features of the PTZ 2026

• Purpose: purchase of your main residence (you must live in it at least 8 months per year).
• Income limits: ceilings depend on the area (zones A, Abis, B1, B2, C) and household size.
• Property type: in the current reform, focus on new builds in tight markets and older properties with renovation work in some areas.
• Amount: the PTZ can cover up to around 50% of the total operation cost for some profiles, within absolute caps (for example, a PTZ of 100,000 € on a 200,000 € project).
• Rate: 0% interest (you still pay insurance, though).
• Term: often 20–25 years, with a grace period (you start repaying the PTZ several years after the main loan).

For the buy or rent decision, the key takeaway is simple: part of your financing is at 0%, the rest is at a standard market rate. The weighted average of both is your effective loan rate, which is what the simulator’s taux_pret parameter needs to reflect.

How a zero-rate loan changes your effective loan rate

In the simulator, taux_pret represents your nominal mortgage rate (for example 3.6%) for the standard bank loan. To get the full cost, you also need to factor in:

• borrower insurance (usually 0.25–0.45% of the borrowed capital per year),
• any additional loans (employer loan, PEL loan, etc.).

The PTZ itself is at 0%. The more PTZ you have in your financing mix, the lower your overall cost of debt. Let’s look at numbers rather than theory.

Numerical example: mortgage without PTZ vs with PTZ 2026

Project: buy an older flat for 220,000 € (excluding fees). Simplified assumptions:

• Property price: 220,000 €
• Notary fees (old property, ~7.5%): 16,500 €
• Agency fees: included in the price
• Down payment: 20,000 €
• Total to finance: 216,500 €

Scenario 1 – No PTZ

• Single mortgage: 216,500 € at 3.6% over 25 years
• Monthly payment (excl. insurance) ≈ 1,103 €
• Total interest paid ≈ 114,400 €

Scenario 2 – With PTZ 2026 (illustrative figures)

• PTZ: 80,000 € at 0% over 25 years
• Main mortgage: 136,500 € at 3.6% over 25 years

Monthly payments excluding insurance:

• Main mortgage: ≈ 695 €/month
• PTZ (linear over 25 years): 80,000 / (25 × 12) ≈ 267 €/month
• Total: ≈ 962 €/month

Difference vs no PTZ:

• Monthly payment reduced by ≈ 1,103 – 962 = 141 €/month
• Interest savings: with 136,500 € at 3.6% over 25 years, total interest ≈ 72,100 € instead of 114,400 €, i.e. ≈ 42,000 € less interest.

In other words, your effective loan rate on the whole 216,500 € drops from about 3.6% to the equivalent of roughly 2.2–2.4% (rough estimate). This is the rate you should conceptually compare to the alternative scenario: staying a tenant, paying rent, and investing your savings.

Buy or rent with PTZ 2026: why the loan rate still drives the result

Even with a generous zero-rate loan, there is no universal answer. Whether you should buy or rent is a numerical question, not an ideological one. It depends on:

• your effective loan rate (standard mortgage + PTZ + insurance),
• your planned holding period (5, 10, 15+ years),
• expected rent increases (linked to the IRL index in France),
• property price dynamics in your city,
• and the investment rate you can realistically achieve if you rent and invest (for example 4–6% per year on a diversified ETF portfolio).

The buy-or-rent.net simulator allows you to input:

• your taux_pret for the bank loan (e.g., 3.6%),
• the share of your financing at 0% (PTZ),
• upfront costs (notary fees, agency fees),
• your investment rate assumption if you remain a tenant,
• and inflation and rent growth assumptions.

The output is a clear comparison: net wealth if you buy vs net wealth if you rent and invest the difference.

Worked example: buy with PTZ 2026 or rent and invest?

Consider a household in 2026 hesitating between buying with PTZ or staying in the rental market.

Basic assumptions

• City: large metropolitan area (tight market)
• Target property: new 2-bedroom flat, 260,000 €
• Equivalent rent: 1,050 €/month
• Time horizon: 15 years
• Standard mortgage rate (taux_pret): 3.6%
• Borrower insurance: 0.30%
• Investment rate if renting: 4.5%/year
• Average inflation: 2.0%/year
• Annual rent indexation (IRL): 2%/year

Scenario 1 – Buying with PTZ 2026

Financing structure:

• Purchase price (new build): 260,000 €
• Notary fees (new, ~2.5%): 6,500 €
• Down payment: 20,000 €
• Total to finance: 246,500 €
• PTZ 2026: 100,000 € at 0% over 25 years
• Main mortgage: 146,500 € at 3.6% over 25 years

Monthly payments excluding insurance:

• Main mortgage: ≈ 746 €/month
• PTZ: ≈ 333 €/month
• Total credit payment: ≈ 1,079 €/month

Borrower insurance (0.30% on 246,500 €) is roughly 62 €/month at the start. So initial total housing cost from financing alone is about 1,140 €/month.

Other ownership costs:

• Property tax: assume 1,200 €/year, revalued at 2%/year,
• Service charges and maintenance: say 150 €/month on average,
• Potential future works (even for a new build, over 15 years some costs will appear).

In year 1, if we spread the property tax monthly (100 €/month), total monthly cost is about:

• 1,140 + 100 + 150 ≈ 1,390 €/month

Scenario 2 – Renting and investing the difference

Initial situation:

• Rent: 1,050 €/month, indexed annually at about 2%
• No property tax
• No structural works to finance (landlord’s responsibility)

If you rent instead of buying, you can:

• keep your initial 20,000 € down payment invested,
• invest monthly the difference between the cost of owning and the cost of renting.

Year 1 comparison:

• Owner’s monthly cost ≈ 1,390 €
• Tenant’s monthly cost ≈ 1,050 €
• Potential monthly investment: ≈ 340 €/month

If you invest 340 €/month at 4.5% per year, compounded monthly over 15 years, the future value is approximately:

• 340 × ((1 + 0.045/12)^(15×12) – 1) / (0.045/12) ≈ 340 × 263 ≈ 89,000 € (ballpark figure).

On top of that, your initial 20,000 € down payment, if also invested at 4.5% over 15 years, grows to:

• 20,000 × (1.045^15) ≈ 20,000 × 1.93 ≈ 38,600 €

Total financial capital in the rent scenario could be in the region of 125,000 € after 15 years (before tax), depending on fees and actual returns.

On the ownership side, after 15 years you have:

• a property that may have appreciated (or not),
• a remaining mortgage balance that has been significantly paid down,
• but also transaction costs if you sell (agency fees, possible capital gains tax, etc.).

The simulator will compute all of this for you and show which option leaves you with the highest net wealth after 15 years, based on your own taux_pret, PTZ amount, rent level, and investment assumptions.

Why your standard loan rate still matters a lot

The PTZ is helpful, but it does not eliminate the risk of high borrowing costs on the remaining debt. A difference of 1 percentage point on the taux_pret (say 3.2% vs 4.2%) can mean 30,000–50,000 € more interest over 20–25 years, even with a PTZ.

Two typical profiles:

• High-rate environment (e.g., 4.2% + insurance): PTZ softens the blow, but total cost is still substantial. In some markets and for short holding periods, renting and investing at 4.5–6% may remain competitive or superior.
• Moderate-rate environment (e.g., 3.0–3.2% + insurance): combined with a large PTZ (40–50% of the project), buying often becomes more attractive in the long run, assuming stable income and a reasonably healthy property market.

This is why it’s essential to play with the taux_pret parameter in the simulator: test +0.5%, –0.5%, different durations, or a bigger down payment. You will see how sensitive the buy or rent outcome is to your loan rate.

PTZ 2026, refinancing and early repayment penalties

You cannot “refinance” a zero-rate loan to get a better rate – it is already at 0%. But you might refinance the standard mortgage part if rates fall after you buy.

Things to check:

• Early repayment penalties in your contract: in France, they are capped at 3% of the remaining principal or 6 months of interest (whichever is lower).
• New fees and guarantees if you switch banks.
• Impact on remaining term and total interest cost.

In the buy-or-rent.net tool, you can simulate a scenario where your taux_pret decreases after a few years (for example from 3.6% to 2.5%) and see whether the refinancing effort changes the balance between buying and renting.

What the PTZ does not pay for

Even with a large zero-rate loan, several costs remain fully on you:

• part of the purchase price, financed at the market loan rate,
• notary fees (around 7–8% for old properties, 2–3% for new builds),
• agency fees (often 3–5%),
• renovation and energy-efficiency upgrades (critical for older homes and DPE ratings),
• property tax, which can range from 450 € to 5,000+ € per year depending on the city and is regularly revalued,
• insurance (borrower insurance and home insurance),
• routine maintenance and co-ownership charges.

In a proper buy or rent comparison, all these ownership costs must be set against the tenant’s costs (rent, tenant charges, rent increases). A PTZ 2026 lowers your financing cost, but if your taux_pret on the remaining debt is high and your property tax is heavy, buying might still be less attractive over a short horizon.

How to use the simulator to measure the PTZ 2026 impact

To correctly integrate PTZ 2026 into your buy or rent analysis on buy-or-rent.net, you can follow a simple process focused on taux_pret and cash flows.

Step 1 – Enter your purchase scenario

• Property price (new vs old)
• Notary fees and agency fees
• Down payment amount
• Estimated PTZ amount based on your income and area
• Standard mortgage amount (total cost – down payment – PTZ)

Step 2 – Set your loan rate and insurance

• taux_pret: for example 3.6% nominal
• Borrower insurance rate: for example 0.30%
• Loan term: 20 or 25 years

The simulator will compute:

• monthly payments,
• total interest cost,
• annual cash outflows, including property tax and maintenance.

Step 3 – Define the rental and investment scenario

• Current or market rent for an equivalent property
• Expected rent increase (linked to the IRL index, e.g. 2%/year)
• Investment rate for your savings (e.g. 4.5%/year)

The tool will then compare over your chosen horizon (10, 15, 20 years):

• your net housing wealth if you buy (property value – remaining debt – selling costs),
• vs your financial capital if you rent and invest the monthly and initial differences.

By adjusting the taux_pret (and the PTZ share), you will see how much the zero-rate loan shifts the balance toward buying, and in which conditions renting still wins.

Conclusion: PTZ 2026 is a strong boost, not an automatic “buy” signal

The PTZ 2026 is a powerful way to lower your effective loan rate and reduce the long-term cost of owning a home in France. In a world where standard mortgage rates are around 3.6%, a large zero-rate loan can save you tens of thousands of euros in interest and improve the buy side of the buy or rent equation.

However, it does not remove:

• transaction costs (notary, agency),
• ongoing expenses (property tax, insurance, maintenance),
• market risk (property prices can stagnate or fall),
• or the opportunity cost of not investing your capital elsewhere.

Whether buying with PTZ 2026 or continuing to rent is better depends on your situation: your income, your taux_pret, the size of your PTZ, your city, your investment options, and your time horizon. This article is for educational purposes only and is not personalized financial advice.

To move from theory to numbers, the most efficient step is to model your own case, with your data and your assumptions on rates, rents and prices.

Simulate your situation on buy-or-rent.net to see, with your loan rate and potential PTZ 2026, whether it is financially smarter for you to buy or to rent over the next 10, 15 or 20 years.