Investing via a Real Estate SAS: Advantages and Taxation 2026

Updated March 2026 - Traditionally, the SCI (Société Civile Immobilière) is the queen of asset management. However, more and more informed investors are turning to SAS (Simplified Joint Stock Company) to carry out their real estate projects. Why this paradigm shift in 2026? Between legal flexibility and tax optimization of resale, the SAS has serious arguments.

The SAS is not a “civil” company but a “commercial” company. This difference in nature changes everything.

1. Limited liability

In an SCI, the partners are indefinitely liable for debts (on their personal assets). In an SAS, liability is limited to the amount of contributions. This is major security in the event of work going wrong or a prolonged rental vacancy putting the bank loan at risk.

2. Total statutory freedom

The SAS allows you to draft tailor-made statutes. You can create shares with different political or financial rights, facilitate the entry of third-party investors or organize complex governance that the rigid framework of the SCI does not allow.

3. The absence of debt solidarity

In SAS, the company's creditors cannot take action against the partners personally. In SCI, this protection does not exist.

This is where the real profitability of your investment comes into play.

Corporate Tax (IS): The default regime

Unlike the SCI which can be subject to IR or IS, the SAS is mandatory subject to IS (except temporary option for IR for 5 years, rarely used in real estate because this prohibits depreciation).

• ▸Reduced rate: 15% up to €42,500 annual profit.
• ▸Normal rate: 25% beyond.

The key asset: Accounting depreciation

As with any IS company, the SAS can depreciate the real estate (excluding the value of the land). This allows you to deduct between 2% and 4% of the value of the walls from your taxable income each year. Result: You collect rent but pay little or no tax for 15 to 20 years.

The exit of income: Beware of the Flat Tax

To get the money back personally, you have to pay dividends. In 2026, the Flat Tax (PFU) of 30% remains the norm. Your income is therefore subject to double pressure: the IS at the company level, then the PFU at the personal level.

This is the weak point of the IS regime. When selling the property:

• ▸The professional added value is calculated on the difference between the sale price and the NCV (Net Book Value).
• ▸As you have depreciated the property, the VNC is low, and the taxable capital gain is therefore very high.
• ▸There is no reduction for length of detention at the IS.

Hayot Expertise Advice: The real estate SAS is ideal for a capitalization strategy (reinvesting rents in new projects) or for furnished rental (LMNP/LMP) which is by nature commercial. If your goal is to resell to make a quick capital gain and consume it, the SCI over IR remains preferable.

In 2026, the winning strategy often consists of creating a Holding SAS which owns real estate SAS subsidiaries.

• ▸Thanks to the "Mother-Daughter" regime, you can transfer the profits of a subsidiary to the holding company with a derisory tax (1.25%).
• ▸This money can be used as a contribution for a new real estate purchase via another subsidiary, without going through the “personal income tax” box.

If you invest alone, the SASU (SAS Unipersonal) offers you the same legal protection as an SAS, with simplified management. It is the perfect tool to rigorously separate your real estate assets from your personal assets.

👉 Discover our management packages for real estate SAS

The real estate SAS is the tool for investors who see their assets as a business. More complex to manage than an SCI, it offers unrivaled protection and reinvestment power in 2026.

📞 Are you hesitating between SCI and SAS for your next purchase? We carry out a personalized comparative simulation over 20 years to validate the most profitable option. Contact our Real Estate department

(Official sources: Commercial Code on joint stock companies, General Tax Code - Art. 219 (IS) and 239 bis AB (IR option), Case law on the commerciality of furnished rentals)