Whether renting or buying: Housing costs rise in November

Tenants looking for accommodation can expect higher asking prices towards the end of the year. Asking rents were raised by an average of 1.2 per cent in November. This is shown by an analysis of advertisements in the Swiss Real Estate Offer Index, which is compiled and published by ImmoScout24 in collaboration with the property consultancy IAZI.

Asking rents rose in all regions in November, although there are noticeable differences. The strongest growth was recorded in the greater Zurich region (+2.4 per cent). Rents also rose at an above-average rate in Central Switzerland (+1.3 per cent). Slightly lower increases were recorded in the Lake Geneva region (+0.9 per cent), Eastern Switzerland (+0.8 per cent), Ticino (+0.7 per cent), Northwestern Switzerland (+0.4 per cent) and the Central Plateau (+0.3 per cent).

Rental property market remains challenging
The fact that landlords can count on growing demand for their flats is also clear from a year-round perspective: Over the past twelve months, asking rents have risen by an average of 4.5 per cent across the country.
“The market environment, therefore, remains challenging for new tenants, and this is unlikely to change for the time being due to the ongoing shortage of supply. However, even those who are not planning to move will have to factor in higher expenses. On 2 December, the reference interest rate relevant to rental law was raised from 1.5 per cent to 1.75 per cent for the second time this year. Depending on the initial situation, this will allow rent increases of up to 3 per cent in existing properties as of April 2024,” explains Martin Waeber, Managing Director Real Estate at SMG Swiss Marketplace Group.

Slight price increases for residential property
Anyone looking to purchase a detached house or a condominium also had to increase their budget slightly at the end of November. However, at +0.3 per cent in both property categories, sellers have only increased their asking prices slightly by comparison. Within the space of a year, there have also been increases in both single-family homes (+1.1 per cent) and condominiums (+2.1 per cent). In the owner-occupier market, too, a generally very high price level and low availability are leading to a challenging search for a suitable property.