While asking rents continued to increase slightly at a national level in the new year, rising by 0.3 per cent, this is not the case in all cantons and cities. For example, asking rents fell by 2.6 per cent in the canton of Schwyz in January but rose by 3.7 per cent in Nidwalden at the same time. In Zurich, asking rents fell slightly for the first time since August 2023. This is shown by current figures from the Homegate Rent Index.
The Homegate Rent Index for asking rents is compiled by the real estate marketplace Homegate in cooperation with Zürcher Kantonalbank (ZKB). It measures the monthly, quality-adjusted change in rents for new and re-let flats based on current market offers. Compared to the previous month, the index increased by 0.4 points in January and now stands at 125.6 points (plus 0.3 per cent). Compared to the previous year, asking rents rose by 1.9 per cent across Switzerland.
Change in the cantons
Overall, fluctuations in cantonal advertised rents amounted to over 6 percentage points in January. While advertised rents rose in Nidwalden (plus 3.7 per cent), Valais (plus 2.6 per cent) and Appenzell (plus 2.5 per cent; the Appenzell cantons are combined) in particular, they fell in Schwyz (minus 2.6 per cent), Glarus (minus 1.7 per cent) and Basel Stadt (minus 0.4 per cent). Asking rents in the canton of Zurich also fell slightly for the first time since August 2023, dropping by 0.4 per cent. However, the canton of Zurich still recorded a year-on-year increase of 7.1 per cent. Only in the cantons of Graubünden (up 8.5 per cent) and Zug (up 7.3 per cent) have asking rents risen even more significantly compared to January 2023. Nevertheless, asking rents have not fallen anywhere over the last twelve months.
Change in the cities
Of the eight cities surveyed, Lausanne (down 2.1 per cent) and Lugano (down 0.8 per cent), in particular, saw a movement in asking rents in January.. In contrast, they rose by 0.5 per cent in Zurich and Bern. Looking back over the year, the city of Zurich remains the leader, with an increase in advertised rents of 11.5 per cent. While the other cities also recorded increases of more than one per cent, Geneva (up 5.2 per cent), Lucerne and Bern (both up 4.8 per cent) in particular continued to rise.
Method of quality adjustment
The development of asking rents in Switzerland is adjusted for the different quality, location and size of the flats. The advantage of this so-called hedonic method is that the real rental price development for new and re-let flats is reflected on Homegate. The Homegate Rent Index is the oldest quality-adjusted rent index in Switzerland and is considered a reference source for real estate professionals to determine the price of rental properties.
Fabian Korn
Communications Manager
