Elite athletes
Turning concentrated income into lasting wealth
An athletic career concentrates high income into a short period, often heavily taxed. The Loueur en Meublé Non Professionnel (LMNP) status, France's non-professional furnished-rental regime, lets you use this period to build a property portfolio whose rental income, thanks to the depreciation mechanism, stays lightly taxed or untaxed. It is one of the rare schemes whose time horizon matches an athlete's exactly: building a supplementary income today for life after the career.
Tax on rental income
Often zero for several years
Recommended regime
Actual expenses (réel)
Useful horizon
From day one of the career
Depreciation
Property and furnishings
§ 01
Three realities define your profession: income concentrated over ten to fifteen years, heavy taxation during the career, and a post-career period to fund very early. LMNP addresses all three. While you are heavily taxed, depreciation offsets the tax on rental income. Once the career ends, that rental income becomes a regular supplementary income, right when income from sport stops.
§ 02
Under the actual-expenses regime (régime réel), you deduct a portion of the property's and furnishings' value from your rental income each year. This accounting charge, which involves no actual cash outflow, offsets all or part of the taxable rent. The concrete result: for many years, rent is collected but little or no tax is owed on it.
§ 03
The micro-BIC regime applies a simple flat-rate allowance but rules out depreciation. For an investor aiming to optimize over the long term, the actual-expenses regime (régime réel) is almost always more favorable. In exchange, it requires bookkeeping every year, generally entrusted to a specialized accountant.
§ 04
With unfurnished rental, rent is added to your income and taxed at your marginal rate, often high during the career. With LMNP under the actual-expenses regime, depreciation brings the taxable base close to zero for years. On the same property, the tax difference can amount to thousands of euros a year.
§ 05
Many athletes spend part of their career abroad. Access to LMNP and its tax treatment then depend on your country of residence and the applicable tax treaty. This should be examined case by case, before any commitment, to avoid unpleasant surprises.
Frequently asked questions
Yes, and it is even the ideal time. The high-income years are when the effect of depreciation and your borrowing capacity are most useful. Starting early also gives the property time to appreciate before the post-career period.
It is possible, but the treatment depends on your country of residence and the tax treaty between that country and France. Each situation must be analyzed individually before deciding.
There is no single figure. The investment is often partly financed with a loan, which preserves cash on hand. The right starting point is your overall situation, not a product decided in advance.
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