What isyour day-to-day work like?
What real estate matters do you deal with most often?
My work is very varied and covers most of the different areas of real estate law: real estate transactions, development projects, advice on contractual matters (e.g. company or lease agreements), land-related negotiations (creation of easements, usage agreements, etc.), civil real estate disputes (e.g. building defects, neighbourhood problems) or administrative disputes (appeals against building permits in particular).
Given the size of MLL Legal, we are well placed to advise our clients on large-scale projects or complex issues involving a multitude of players. I’m very interested in these issues. Personally, I get the most satisfaction from my work when I manage to identify constructive solutions that enable all parties to agree so that they can move forward together on their joint project.
Has the legal situation for the construction and property sector changed in recent years, and if so, how?
The legislative framework, particularly in terms of public law, is rapidly becoming denser and more complex, and we often find that our clients struggle to keep abreast of regulatory developments, especially if they operate throughout Switzerland.
In recent years, it is probably the restrictions adopted by the Federal Law on Spatial Planning (LAT) to prevent urban sprawl that have had the greatest impact on the state of the law, in terms of their effect on local planning. The same is true of the constraints now imposed on the quality of buildings (particularly in terms of energy efficiency) as a result of the 2050 Energy Strategy. Tax legislation and the rules governing access to subsidies are also having a decisive effect on the opportunities available to builders, and consequently on the property sector as a whole.
In Geneva, the last few years have been full of developments, particularly in connection with amendments to the Law on the Demolition, Conversion and Renovation of Dwellings (LDTR) and the General Law on Development Zones (LGZD), as well as the recent amendment to the Implementing Regulations of the Cantonal Energy Law.
What doesGeneva’s real estate sector have that other major Swiss economic regions don’t?
Geneva’s real estate sector can count on a particular dynamic linked to the canton’s geographical location and its history, in particular the many institutions that are based here. The canton’s attractiveness has a major influence on the housing vacancy rate, which remains historically low despite sustained construction activity in recent years. Demand outstrips supply in almost all housing categories. This shortage explains why certain issues (such as housing and tenancy law) are more sensitive in Geneva than in other regions. The fact that the canton has one of the lowest rates of home ownership in Switzerland (18.7% in 2021, compared with a national average of 36.3% and a rate of over 50% in some cantons) also means that certain issues are tackled differently in Geneva.
What makes Geneva unique?
Legally speaking, one of the most surprising regimes for a property investor from across the Sahel is the one set out in Geneva’s LDTR, which severely restricts the room for manoeuvre of residential property owners (particularly with regard to conversions, sales or setting rents after work has been carried out). The same is true of the legislation governing development zones, through which the State exercises strong control over the production of new housing in the canton. As these regulations have been in force for many years in Geneva, many practices have developed around them, and they are still evolving. We can see that similar regulations are beginning to be adopted in other cantons, and sometimes at municipal level. It is therefore highly likely that the ‘Geneva case’ will serve as a reference for the interpretation of similar issues that may arise in connection with these new rules.
