Other than the receipt thing, this sounds the same as anywhere I've rented… I agree it's a shitty system all around, but I don't think any of it is unique to Paris.
Oh, sure, it's not unique, but it's not a sign of a particularly healthy market.
For our current apartment in another EU capital my partner and I were asked informally what we did for a living. I mentioned my income, but I think it was without being asked explicitly. I was prepared to show my work contract as proof, but they never asked. Those were all the required "formalities" before we were given the contract to sign.
Rents around here are rising at a rate of something like 7% per year, so it's not like there's too much housing, but it's not quite as constrained as elsewhere.
For our current apartment in another EU capital my partner and I were asked informally what we did for a living. I mentioned my income, but I think it was without being asked explicitly. I was prepared to show my work contract as proof, but they never asked. Those were all the required "formalities" before we were given the contract to sign.
Rents around here are rising at a rate of something like 7% per year, so it's not like there's too much housing, but it's not quite as constrained as elsewhere.