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Difficulties for Swiss renters looking for a new home

A person looks for an apartment on the Homegate website
The amount of time a rental property is advertised online has decreased to around 25 days before a tenant is found, down from an average of 40-50 days © Keystone / Gaetan Bally

The Swiss rental market remains hot and there is potential for a rental property scarcity, says a Credit Suisse report.

Switzerland is set to see an average increase of 3% in rental prices this year, according to a report published by Credit Suisse on Wednesday.

The report suggests that the gap between supply and demand for rental properties is the main reason for the price increase. Building permits for rental properties have decreased by 1,500 compared to the previous year, while immigration has increased by one-third over the same period. These factors could result in increased difficulties for those searching for rental properties.

+Bank warns of Swiss housing shortage

The report also notes a drop in the number of people moving from rental properties, down to 4.4%, the lowest level since 2016.

Few adverts, shorter advert durations

Meanwhile, the amount of time a rental property is advertised online has decreased to around 25 days before a tenant is found, down from an average of 40-50 days between 2016 and 2020.

+Switzerland faces shortage of 51,000 homes, says study

German-speaking cantons have the highest demand for rental properties, and they record much shorter online advertisement periods compared to French and Italian-speaking cantons. Canton Zug has seen the advertisement period fall 71% from the recorded long-term average, while in many cantons in western Switzerland the advertisement period is close to the long-term average.

Despite the low housing supply, the report states that there is currently no housing shortage in most regions. However, individuals looking to rent will face the fact that there is no anticipated change in sight, as this trend is expected to continue due to the lack of upcoming construction projects in the coming years.


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