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December 4, 2008 6:23:51 PM CST

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French Get Dirty to Pay the Rent

Posted Mar 13, 08 1:41 PM CDT in Arts & Living,  World 

(Newser) – France is in the throes of its worst housing crisis since World War II, which has led to some sordid dealings in some cities. With many young people unable to pay sky-high rents, landlords are offering apartments “for services”—usually sexual ones, the BBC reports. As homelessness and bankruptcy skyrocket throughout Paris, such Faustian leases are often the only option.

“Rent was over 70% of my budget,” said one woman, who wrote a best-selling book about her descent into housing prostitution. Major protest groups have cropped up, keeping the crisis in the public eye by exposing abusive landlords and holding colorful public stunts. One group has taken to squatting in an abandoned bank, which it redubbed the “Ministry of the Housing Crisis.”

Source BBC

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Protesters march to support tje poorly housed families who have been squatting in front of the 'Ministry for the Housing Crisis,' an empty bank building in Paris. (JOEL SAGET/AFP/Getty Images)   (Getty Images)
Protesters are pushed back by police forces in Paris, during an action protest to raise public awareness on the housing problem.   (Getty Images)
A woman shouts at police forces during an action protest to raise public awareness on the housing problem. (LOIC VENANCE/AFP/Getty Images)   (Getty Images)
As the French housing crisis has deepened, more and more real estate ads have appeared seeking renters who pay "with services."   (Shutter Stock)
As the housing market crashes in France, the number of advertisements offering accommodation in return for "services" is on the rise.   (Shutter Stock)
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France • housing crisis • sex • Paris • rent


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