Paris Vacation Apartment Rental Services. Seeking Recommendations

I have used to companies I would recommend

1. Guest apartment Services. Very nice apartments mostly on the islands very well furnished and excellent condition but you are paying for that.

2. Vacation in Paris. They have a bigger variety of apartments and locations, but not all of them are incredibly nice. You can pretty much get what they tell you are going to get in. Some of them are nicer than others pricing reflects that however, this is much more affordable than my first option.

I’ve used both the ones mentioned by the previous poster as well as Parisvacationapartments.com with excellent results.

We rented a lovely two bedroom in the 1st arr. from VRBO.

To be clear, nothing in Paris can be like Nice Pebbles because Nice Pebbles is more of a listing service than apartment management. In Paris, many fewer apartments are offered per visitor due to tighter occupancy regulations that don't exist in Nice.
The VRBO is a listing service.

Over the last several years, the short term apartment landscape in France has changed dramatically, particularly in Paris where there is an acute housing shortage for residents. The law ALUR, enacted by the French government several years ago, gives cities some latitude in how they implement the rules. For example, any owner/occupant may rent his primary residence for up to 90 days a year in Nice, but 120 days a year in Paris. Vacation or secondary home apartments are illegal to rent short term in Paris, but an owner in Nice may rent up to 3 for a period not to exceed 5 years (if I remember correctly).

Paris has approximately 200 to 300 commercial apartments which may be rented short term. Converting an apartment to legal short-term rental status is very expensive, which is why there are very few and why those which are available rent at rates equal to that of quality hotel rooms.

The legal Parisian short term rental market consists of commercial apartments, mobility leases (not available to tourists) or those offered by a resident owner when he is away. Resident owners typically offer their apartments through booking.com or other online platforms, commercial apartments or mobility leases are generally offered through real estate agencies which also rent long term, (more than 12 months) or represent sellers/buyers. There is no risk to an agency offering illegal rentals, that risk is assumed by the apartment owner with fines up to 50,000€. The risk to the visitor is that his Paris accommodations can be forceable removed from the rental marketplace with little warning.

To protect yourself as a visitor, make sure any short term rental you consider displays the required, 13 digit registration number (stating with 75 for Paris rentals), in any advertising materials. The number itself does not guarantee you are renting a legal apartment, but the lack of one is strong evidence that you are not.

I’m not sure how the 12 digit number “protects you”.

All it really proves is the lister knew to make up 12 digits. Airbnb, VRBO etc don’t seem to verify the validity of the numbers and neither can the renter. So you have a 12 digit number that only proves someone can count to 12. If they want this to actually work they nerf to provide a way to validate the number. Until then I just ignore this “protection”

13 digits, starting 75- in Paris.

If the number is false that would be another charge to prosecute under when they are caught.

Carol, 100% agree. A 13 digit # means nothing.
Your best protection is renting through an agency, not from a listing platform like VRBO.

Your best protection is renting through an agency,

As stated, it is a 13 digit number you should check but I am not clear on how an agency will protect you if the city closes down one of their rentals as being illegal; it happens. The agency is not at risk unless they own the rental unit. Agencies are primarily concerned with fees.

Ok Tocard, then there is no protection.
I would think a reputable agency, like Vacation in Paris, would verify that the apts they offer are legit. That they would not want the bad review, the bad publicity, if they rented an illegal apt and a client arrived in Paris to find that illegal apt was not available after all. A reputable agency has a lot to lose vs an internet bulletin board like VRBO. But based on what you say, there is no protection and no guarantee no matter who you rent from.

I know someone who rented from an agency and was told to do things while in the building to suggest that they were not short-term renters so I don't think that agencies make sure that their apartments are "legal" rentals. The financial model of agencies, from the owners' agreements that I have reviewed, calls for the apartment to be available for a minimum of 9 months in each year. It would be quite difficult for such an apartment to obtain a registration number. That is one of the reasons why I think seeing the 13-digit number in agency rentals is not a big thing, nice to see it to make you feel better but not really proof of anything. The only "protection" is to get an apartment from the few that are registered with the City of Paris or go with an aparthotel. The benefit I see for agencies is that they have multiple apartments so if your rental is canceled, they might have some alternatives to offer.