Property tax in Menton in 2026: a municipal rate around 39 %, a housing stock 43 % dominated by second homes and a residence tax surcharge that weighs on pied-a-terre bills. Calculation, amounts by profile, simulator and impact on value.
Illustration : Property tax in Menton in 2026: the holding cost of a second-home town.
In Menton, the property tax (local property tax on built property) is not quite a tax like anywhere else. In this town on the Italian border, where nearly one home in two is a second home, it has become the central tax of ownership. Since the removal of the residence tax on main homes, it is the tax that weighs on every owner ; and for the many holders of a Menton pied-a-terre, it is added to a residence tax surcharge that pushes the bill up further. With a municipal rate of around 39 % and an average flat price around 5 198 €/m², Menton is a town where the holding cost deserves a close look. Here is what you pay, why, and how it compares.
The municipal rate of the property tax on built properties in Menton stands at around 39 % in 2026. This apparently high level is partly explained by the 2021 reform : the departmental share of the property tax was transferred to towns to offset the removal of the residence tax. On top of this municipal share, your notice adds the inter-municipal share, the household waste collection tax (taxe d'enlèvement des ordures ménagères) and management fees.
The property tax shown on your notice adds up several lines. In Menton, the bulk lies in the municipal share, of around 39 %. It is the one the town votes, and it determines most of your bill. Added to it is an inter-municipal share paid to the Riviera française urban community, more modest and stable from one year to the next.
This 39 % rate has not always been the one displayed. Before 2021, the town voted a lower municipal rate, around 18 %, to which the department's share was added. The reform of local taxation merged these two shares : the departmental rate was added to the municipal rate, without the taxpayer's bill being mechanically changed. It is a change of presentation more than a tax rise, but it explains why the municipal rate suddenly looks high.
The rate alone is not enough to compare two towns : the bill also depends on the cadastral rental value, which varies with the local building stock. In Menton, a sought-after coastal town, the rental values of a property with a sea view or located in Garavan are high, which inflates the base to which the rate applies.
The property tax is the product of a rate voted by the local authorities and a base, the cadastral rental value (a theoretical annual rent set by the tax office), set by the state then revalued each year. In Menton, the municipal rate (~39 %) changes little : it is mainly the revaluation of the base that makes your notice vary from one year to the next.
The calculation rests on a mechanism that is simple in appearance. You start from the cadastral rental value of your property, meant to represent a theoretical annual rent. A flat 50 % allowance is applied to it to obtain the tax base, then this base is multiplied by the sum of the voted rates (town, urban community).
Two levers therefore move your bill : the rate, decided locally, and the base, revalued nationally. In Menton, the first barely moves ; so it is the revaluation of the bases that explains most of the rise in your notice from one year to the next.
In Menton, the municipal property tax share most often sits between 550 € for a studio and 2 100 € for a villa, depending on the property's cadastral rental value. Upmarket properties with a sea view, common in Garavan and on the heights, bear the highest bills.
The exact amount depends on the rental value of your home, so on its size, address and condition. Here are indicative orders of magnitude on the municipal share alone, for profiles representative of the Menton districts.
| Property profile | District | Municipal property tax share 2026 (order of magnitude) |
|---|---|---|
| Studio 25 m² | Town centre | ~ 560 € |
| Three-room 65 m² | Careï / Borrigo | ~ 980 € |
| Flat 80 m² with a sea view | Garavan | ~ 1 500 € |
| Villa 120 m² | Plateau Saint-Michel / Garavan | ~ 2 100 € |
These estimates apply to the municipal share, excluding the household waste collection tax and excluding the second-home surcharge (see section 6). They should be set against a Menton market among the most expensive on the French Riviera after Nice, with an average flat price around 5 198 €/m² in 2026 according to DVF data and the Immover single source. High purchase prices and strong rental values combine : the holding cost of a Menton property is among the heaviest on the coast.
Enter the amount of the municipal share of your 2026 property tax (first line of your notice). The simulator estimates what you paid on 2020 bases and quantifies the part of your bill that comes from the revaluation of the cadastral bases alone, at an unchanged municipal rate.
Even at a nearly stable municipal rate, the amount of your property tax rises each year. The revaluation of cadastral rental values, decided at national level, applies everywhere : +0,8 % for 2026, after +1,7 % in 2025, +3,9 % in 2024 and +7,1 % in 2023. It is what pushes the Menton notice up, independently of the town's decisions.
This is the most frequent misunderstanding. A stable rate does not mean a stable bill. The property tax is the product of a rate (voted locally) and a base (the cadastral rental value, revalued each year by the state).
This revaluation follows the harmonised index of consumer prices. In recent years, it has been particularly strong : +7,1 % in 2023, +3,9 % in 2024, +1,7 % in 2025. For 2026, it comes back down to +0,8 % according to INSEE data. Applied to your base, this rise adds up year after year.
In plain terms. In Menton, between 2020 and 2026, your bases were revalued by about 18 % cumulatively. On the high rental values of coastal properties, this mechanical effect translates into very real euros on the notice.
In Menton, about 43 % of homes are second homes (INSEE), one of the highest proportions in France for a town of this size. For these owners, the property tax is doubled by a second-home residence tax surcharge, which the town, in a high-demand area (zone tendue), can raise to 60 %. The annual holding cost of a pied-a-terre there is therefore particularly high.
This is the Menton specificity. A town on the Italian border, backed by a renowned microclimate and a long tradition of wintering, Menton has for more than a century attracted a clientele of second homes, French, Italian and international. According to INSEE, second homes account for nearly 43 % of the housing stock, against about 48 % of main residences : a rare balance, which shapes the market and local taxation.
Since the removal of the residence tax on main homes, two taxes still weigh on non-resident owners. First the property tax, owed by every owner. Then the residence tax on second homes, kept for these dwellings, which towns located in a high-demand area (zone tendue) can surcharge by 5 to 60 % by resolution. Coastal tourist towns most often vote a surcharge close to the cap : the exact rate applied in Menton is set by city council resolution and can be consulted at the town hall.
For a non-resident owner who occupies their property only a few weeks a year, the trade-off deserves to be costed coldly : annual holding cost (property tax, second-home surcharge, service charges, maintenance) against the market value and the latent capital gain. On a Menton market that has risen strongly, this capital gain can be significant for a property held for a long time. The first step remains a reliable estimate, calibrated on the real transactions in your area.
A high holding cost weighs marginally on value, especially for second-home buyers attentive to annual charges. In Menton, it stays largely offset by the appeal of the location : microclimate, seafront, proximity to Italy and land scarcity support lasting demand. Location, view and the condition of the property remain the first factors of value.
Three effects should be kept in mind.
1. A point of attention for the second-home buyer. A buyer comparing Menton with a neighbouring town factors in the annual holding cost : a high property tax and the second-home surcharge weigh in the equation, without being decisive against a favourite find.
2. A secondary factor for the main residence. For a household coming to live in Menton year-round, the property tax stays marginal against the purchase price and the cost of credit. An 80 m² flat in Garavan, around 415 000 € at the Menton average price, bears a municipal share of about 1 500 € a year : real, but rarely decisive.
3. A value driven by scarcity. The microclimate, the gardens, the Italian border and constrained land keep demand strong, including out of season. To situate the value of your property from the real transactions in your district, see our page property prices per m² in Menton, or estimate it for free below.
The municipal rate of the property tax on built properties in Menton stands at around 39 % in 2026. Since 2021 this level has included the former departmental share, transferred to towns to offset the removal of the residence tax on main homes. On top of this municipal share, your notice adds the inter-municipal share paid to the Riviera française urban community, the household waste collection tax (taxe d'enlèvement des ordures ménagères) and management fees. The exact rate voted each year can be consulted in the city council resolutions and on your tax notice.
Two effects combine. First, the municipal rate of about 39 % looks high because since 2021 it has included the former departmental share: this is a change of presentation more than a tax rise. Second, Menton is a sought-after coastal town where cadastral rental values, especially for properties with a sea view or located in Garavan, are strong. A high rate and a high base combine, which pushes the bill up compared with less sought-after towns.
Yes. A second-home owner in Menton pays the property tax, like any owner, but also remains liable for the residence tax on second homes (the second-home residence tax surcharge), removed only for main homes. As Menton is located in a high-demand area (zone tendue), the town can surcharge this residence tax by 5 to 60 % by city council resolution. Coastal tourist towns most often vote a surcharge close to the cap. The annual holding cost of a Menton pied-a-terre is therefore particularly high.
The property tax is the product of your property's cadastral rental value, reduced by a flat 50 % allowance, multiplied by the sum of the rates voted by the town and the urban community. The rental value, set by the tax administration, mostly dates from the 1970s and is revalued each year at national level. In Menton the municipal rate changes little: it is mainly this revaluation of the base that makes your notice vary from one year to the next.
Because cadastral rental values are revalued each year at national level, independently of the town's decisions. This revaluation follows the harmonised index of consumer prices: +7,1 % in 2023, +3,9 % in 2024, +1,7 % in 2025 and +0,8 % in 2026 according to INSEE, that is about +18 % cumulatively since 2020. Even if the municipal rate stays stable, this rise in the base is mechanically added to your bill every year.
It all depends on the property's cadastral rental value. As an order of magnitude, on the municipal share alone, expect about 560 euros for a studio in the town centre, around 980 euros for a three-room flat in Careï or Borrigo, and about 1 500 euros for an 80-square-metre flat with a sea view in Garavan. These amounts do not include the household waste collection tax or, for a second home, the residence tax surcharge.
Only marginally. A high holding cost can weigh in the decision of a second-home buyer attentive to annual charges, but it stays largely offset by the appeal of the location: microclimate, seafront, proximity to Italy and land scarcity support lasting demand. Location, view and the condition of the property remain the first determinants of the value of a Menton home.
Property tax notices are put online in the personal area of impots.gouv.fr and sent by post from late August, for a payment due in mid-October (mid-October for non-digital payment, a little later for online payment). Owners paying monthly see their instalments adjusted at the end of the year. The precise 2026 schedule is published each summer by the DGFiP (French public finances directorate).
Estimation gratuite et précise en quelques minutes, quartier par quartier.
Estimer mon bien