Zero-interest loan: conditions for buying your main residence

The zero-interest loan may help finance the purchase of your main residence if you meet its conditions, which relate to your status as a first-time buyer, your income, the type of property and its intended future use. This state-assisted loan carries no interest, interim interest, arrangement fees or valuation fees, but covers only part of the transaction and is added to another mortgage.

For a purchase on the Alabaster Coast, in Veules-les-Roses or elsewhere in Seine-Maritime, the key point is simple: the PTZ is intended for buying a main residence, not a second home. Before committing to a property, you can therefore quickly check four points: your first-time buyer status, your income level, the nature and location of the property purchased, and your ability to occupy it as your main residence.

Key points to remember

• The PTZ supports the purchase or construction of your future main residence by supplementing another property loan.
• In principle, you must not have owned your main residence during the 2 years preceding the PTZ, except for certain exceptions, particularly in cases of disability or where the property became uninhabitable following a disaster.
• The property must in principle become your main residence within 1 year of the purchase or completion of the works, and be occupied for at least 8 months per year.
• For loan offers issued from April 2025, the new-build PTZ is open to all types of housing, including houses, throughout the country, and is no longer limited to collective housing in high-demand areas.
• For the purchase of an older property, excluding social housing bought by its occupant, the PTZ is possible only if the municipality is in zone B2 or C and the works represent at least 25 % of the total cost of the transaction.
• Your resources must remain below a threshold that depends on the property’s area and the number of people intended to occupy it: for example €49,000 in area A or A bis for 1 person, or €42,750 in area C for 2 people.

Who can benefit from the PTZ

The PTZ is intended for first-time buyers. Specifically, according to Service Public and the Ministry of Housing, this means that, except in cases of exemption, you must not have owned your main residence during the last 2 years. This condition is assessed for the people applying for the loan, namely the borrower and co-borrower.

The PTZ is not a standalone loan. It supplements another property loan. There can be only one PTZ for the same property transaction, and it must be taken out with a lender approved by the State.

Another practical point: the PTZ cannot be used to buy a second home, a pied-à-terre or a property intended for occasional use. On the Alabaster Coast, where many projects involve family homes or weekend residences, this distinction is decisive from the outset.

The key condition: buying your main residence

The financed property must become your main residence:

• or within the maximum period of 1 year after the purchase or completion of the work;
• either when you retire, if this occurs within 6 years following the purchase or completion of the work.

To be considered a main residence, the property must be occupied for at least 8 months a year. There are, however, exceptions, the list of which varies according to the type of purchase, particularly in cases of force majeure, health reasons, a professional obligation involving regular travel, an absolute necessity of service, temporary distance from the place of work for a maximum of 3 years, or letting while awaiting retirement.

This occupancy condition is decisive. If you are considering buying a property first to use it occasionally before moving in later, you must check very carefully whether your situation falls within the permitted cases.

Which properties can be financed

The PTZ can partly finance the following transactions:

• the purchase of a new property;
• the construction of a dwelling ;
• the purchase of an older property in zone B2 or C, provided that improvement works represent at least 25% of the total cost of the operation;
• the purchase of the social housing you live in;
• converting premises into a dwelling;
• a purchase under PSLA;
• a purchase with a solidarity real lease;
• social home ownership with VAT at a reduced rate.

For new builds, the rule has changed: according to the Ministry of Housing, since 1 April 2025, the PTZ is available for all types of new housing, including detached houses, throughout the country. Until March 2025, it was reserved for new-build flats in high-pressure areas (zone A, A bis or B1).

Service Public also points out that a new-build property may be a property completed less than 5 years ago and intended for first occupation, or accommodation occupied for the first time after the works essential to its completion or delivery.

For older properties, Service Public sets out 3 cumulative conditions: the municipality must be located in zone B2 or C, improvement or energy-efficiency works must represent at least 25 % of the total cost of the transaction, and the property must become your main residence. These works must in principle begin after the PTZ is obtained and be completed within 3 years at most from the issue of the loan offer, except where an additional period applies in certain cases. To find out a municipality's zone, Service Public provides a simulator: find out whether the PTZ is possible in your municipality.

The PTZ can also cover the simultaneous purchase of outbuildings, such as a garage or parking space, when they form part of the financed transaction.

How your income is assessed

Eligibility also depends on an income ceiling. The amount taken into account is not simply your reference taxable income: you must compare 2 amounts and use the higher one:

• the total reference taxable income for year N-2 of all persons intended to occupy the dwelling ;
• the total cost including VAT of the property transaction divided by 9.

If you have income from abroad, this must also be taken into account and evidenced. The applicable threshold then depends on 2 criteria: the property’s location and the number of people who will occupy it.

The income caps to know

Here are the thresholds set out by the Ministry of Housing to check your eligibility for the PTZ, according to the number of people occupying the property and the property’s area. Your income, calculated as indicated above, must be below the corresponding amount.

These amounts already provide an initial benchmark, even though they are not sufficient on their own to estimate the possible loan. For the purchase of an older home with works, only columns B2 and C apply, since the PTZ is only available in zones B2 or C in such cases. If you are close to the cap, ask your bank or ADIL to confirm the number of occupants and the zone.

Exceptions to the first-time buyer rule

Not having been the owner of your main residence for 2 years is the general rule, but there are several useful exceptions.

You are not the full owner

According to Service-Public, the prohibition does not apply if you hold only the usufruct or bare ownership of your main residence. The ministry also specifies that a usufructuary or bare owner is not considered to be a full owner.

Invalidity or disability

You may be eligible if you, or one of the occupants of the property, holds a mobility and inclusion card marked “disability”, a category 2 or 3 disability card, or receives AAH or AEEH. In this case, you must provide valid supporting evidence on the date of the loan offer.

Property rendered uninhabitable

If a natural or technological disaster has rendered your home permanently uninhabitable, you can apply for a PTZ without the usual 2-year rule applying. The application must then be submitted within 2 years of publication of the order officially recognising the disaster.

Some special cases that are often misunderstood

The ministry also provides useful details:

• if you hold an undivided share in your main residence, you are in principle not considered a first-time buyer;
• if this joint ownership results from an inheritance, an exception exists provided that the PTZ is requested within 4 months after the transfer of ownership;
• if you owned your main residence and have fully transferred your rights, you may once again become a first-time buyer 2 years after the sale;
• in the case of alternate residence, the child is counted in the 2 households if they are fiscally attached.

Check your eligibility before signing

Before making an offer, you can proceed using a simple method:

1. Check that the property will indeed be your main residence and not a second home.
2. Check that you have not owned your main residence during the last 2 years, except in certain cases.
3. List all the people who will occupy the property, as they affect the income ceiling.
4. Identify the property's area: the caps vary according to the municipality and, for an older property with renovation work, only zones B2 and C qualify for the PTZ, with at least 25 % of the work being carried out.
5. Add together the N-2 reference taxable income of all future occupants, compare this total with the total cost including VAT of the transaction divided by 9, use the higher amount and check that it is below the threshold in the table corresponding to your area and number of occupants.

For further information, you can consult the official PTZ page on service-public.gouv.fr and seek an impartial opinion from ANIL and the ADIL network. If you are looking for a property to become your main residence, you can also browse the houses and flats for sale on the Alabaster Coast offered by Cabinet Soudey, based in Veules-les-Roses for more than 70 years.

What the PTZ alone cannot establish

Being eligible for the PTZ does not automatically mean that your financing plan is finalised. The loan amount then depends on several factors, including the type of property, the purchase price, the area, the number of people in the household and your income bracket.

The ministry also points out that the loan term averages 20 to 25 years, with a repayment deferral of up to 15 years subject to conditions. If you subsequently sell in order to buy a new home, you can request the transfer of your PTZ.

Finally, if you sell a property before buying, first check its status: if it is your main residence, in principle you only become a first-time buyer again 2 years after its sale, subject to exceptions. If it is another property, a free, no-obligation valuation may help clarify your budget, alongside the bank’s assessment.

Frequently asked questions