
Bern Cuts Electricity Costs and Tests New Load Management Measures
For households on BKW’s basic service plan, electricity will become even more affordable in 2027. According to the company, for an annual consumption of 4,500 kilowatt-hours, the bill will decrease by about 95 francs per year. At the same time, a voluntary grid tariff will be introduced, offering

Zurich will only begin to specifically assess council flats from 2028 onwards
In Zurich, 18.4 per cent of tenants in self-supporting council flats exceed the income thresholds. This affects around 1,400 out of approximately 7,700 flats. The city does not yet know which households are affected, as the figures are calculated anonymously. Individual checks are not planned until

Geneva Rent Hike Case Ends Before the Federal Supreme Court
In Geneva, a landlord failed in his attempt to have a rent—which had quadrupled following unauthorized renovations—recognized as a permissible luxury rent. The Federal Supreme Court upheld the order to repay 193,609 francs and pay a fine of 32,000

Buildings continue to drive down CO₂ emissions
Switzerland once again reduced its CO₂ emissions in 2025. Emissions from fuels fell particularly sharply, by about 5 percent. This is a clear signal for the real estate sector, as more efficient buildings and an increase in renewable heating systems were, according to the federal government, the

Zurich Struggles with Regulations for City Apartments
In Zurich, 18.4 percent of the evaluable urban rental agreements exceed the income limit. This is above the permitted 15 percent threshold. However, immediate action is not required because the rent regulations are based on a three-year average, and a move is only required if the limit is

Zurich Plans to Phase Out Natural Gas in the City Center
Zurich plans to decommission the gas distribution network between Hauptbahnhof and Bürkliplatz between 2033 and 2035, depending on the situation. This increases the pressure on approximately 500 buildings to switch their heating and cooking systems to the CoolCity lake water network or other

Six Demands to Address the Housing Crisis
The Swiss rental housing market is at a standstill. More and more people are unable to find suitable housing, while others remain in apartments that no longer suit their life circumstances. The “Swiss Alliance for Housing” is therefore calling for a clear change of course—away from subsidies

Geneva authorities are insisting on clear rules
The USPI Geneva has accompanied its 2025 annual report with a clear call to action for policymakers and the administration. The association highlights 320,000 properties under management, 650 million Swiss francs in construction investment, and increasing pressure on refurbishment, new-build

“Freeze the Rent,” a command that has the world sitting up and taking notice
New York is expensive, ruthless, and notoriously unaffordable. Now its new mayor is getting serious. Starting in October 2026, rent increases will be capped at zero percent for nearly one million apartments. It’s a political earthquake and a signal that resonates far beyond the

Six billion francs, and the market goes wild
Zurich wants to create affordable housing, but in doing so is driving up prices. How is that possible? It’s quite simple: when the government uses taxpayer money to bid alongside private developers and squeezes out private cooperatives. The NZZ has uncovered this contradiction. It’s

Zurich restricts short-term accommodation in residential areas
In future, the City of Zurich will be able to impose stricter restrictions on business apartments and professional short-term lettings in residential areas. Following the Federal Supreme Court’s ruling, the revision to the BZO (Zoning Ordinance), which was adopted in 2021, is expected to come


Zurich is intensifying pressure on the rental market
Across Switzerland, the number of rental apartments advertised between April 2025 and March 2026 was about 4 percent lower than in the previous year. At the same time, the average time an apartment remained listed in Zurich fell to 12 days, marking the lowest figure ever recorded for a major Swiss

Rent Control Initiative Increases Pressure on Rental Law
With more than 140,000 signatures submitted, the rent initiative is now on the political agenda. For property owners, managers, and developers, this brings into focus not only the issue of rent levels, but also questions of oversight, return on investment, and additional regulation of existing

Charging Regulations Put Residential Buildings Under Pressure to Renovate
The Federal Council wants to grant tenants and condominium owners in residential buildings the right to have the basic infrastructure for electric vehicle charging stations installed. For owners and property managers, this would make the expansion of parking facilities, load management, and cost

Solothurn Relies on Building Rights for Vacant Properties
The canton of Solothurn plans to increasingly transfer real estate that is not essential to its operations under building lease agreements. In doing so, it shifts renovation risks to third parties, while retaining ownership of the land and securing ongoing income from building lease

New association calls for greater fairness in the rental market
The fairmieten association was founded in Winterthur. Its aim is to introduce clearer standards and greater fairness to the Swiss rental market through a code of conduct. The Raiffeisen Pension Fund Cooperative and the Rivora Collective Foundation are already on

Unloved child: structured commissioning as a success factor
The handover of a building to the user is considered a critical bottleneck in the real estate life cycle. Often underestimated, the quality of commissioning has a significant influence on potential follow-up costs, operational stability and the satisfaction of all

New modernisation solutions extend the service life of existing lifts
Schindler Elevators has launched two modernisation packages for ageing hydraulic lifts in the USA: Schindler ReStore and Schindler ReNew. This enables building owners to proactively modernise their lifts before repair costs are incurred or lifts have to be replaced altogether.

Zurich minimises construction risks in North America with telematics
The North American representative of insurer Zurich has unveiled a new video telematics initiative as part of National Construction Safety Week. The aim is to promote safe driving behaviour on construction projects and thus reduce risks for construction stakeholders. The initiative is part of a

People aged 55 and over moving house could ease pressure on the housing market
The new Helvetia Housing Report has analysed the moving patterns of 55- to 74-year-olds. When moving house, this generation tends to prefer out-of-town locations or moving abroad. This frees up central properties, which are then used more space-efficiently by younger

Hybrid is the new normal
Some media are proclaiming the end of the home office. The figures tell a different story. In Switzerland and Germany, hybrid working has not only persisted, but established itself as a structural constant of the modern working world. A new CBRE analysis shows that what is currently happening is

Who pays, who lives, who benefits?
How social are Swiss real estate portfolios really? Until now, this question has remained a contentious issue without a data basis. The SOSDA Benchmark 2025 fundamentally changes this. For the first time, an empirical framework provides reliable figures on the social performance of residential real

New platform provides early information on building applications
Houzy AG has launched its Building Permits Pro service. This service bundles information from official gazettes and municipal websites to inform users about new building permit applications. The aim is to increase transparency in the respective

Clean waste disposal systems as a success factor in property management
Clean and functioning waste disposal systems are becoming increasingly important for owners and managers. Increasing demands on hygiene, operational safety and sustainability are raising the importance of professional container cleaning. A practical event in Ascona showed how modern solutions prove


Portfolio approach drives electric mobility in residential properties
Helvetia Baloise is installing charging stations for electric cars in its properties with Energie 360°. The energy and e-mobility company has already taken over, expanded or newly installed over 150 charging stations in 13 buildings. Six further properties are in the planning stage, with more to


