immo!nvest – Die Plattform für Standorte und Immobilien

Tag: Einschränkung

  • Association complaints about residential construction projects restricted

    Association complaints about residential construction projects restricted

    In future, associations will no longer be allowed to lodge complaints against smaller residential construction projects if they are located within building zones. This applies to projects with a floor area of less than 400 square metres. The National Council voted in favour of the more restrictive provisions of the Council of States on Monday, meaning that the matter is ready for the final vote.

    Originally, the National Council had proposed that complaints should also be authorised for construction projects within water areas. However, the Council of States cancelled this option and restricted complaints by associations to construction projects in areas of “national importance”. This means that the right of appeal for associations will be significantly restricted in future.

    Limited right of appeal for construction projects in watercourse areas
    A motion by National Councillor Martina Munz (SP/SH) calling for the right of appeal to be cancelled only for construction projects that encroach slightly into the watercourse area failed in the Council. The motion was rejected by 118 votes to 72. This means that the regulation that smaller construction projects in watercourse areas can no longer be contested by associations remains in place.

    The amendment to the Nature and Cultural Heritage Protection Act was triggered by a parliamentary initiative from Valais National Councillor Philipp Matthias Bregy (centre). The aim is to restrict the right of appeal for smaller residential construction projects in order to facilitate construction activity in Switzerland.

    The new regulation, which severely restricts the right of appeal for smaller construction projects in building zones, represents an important step towards speeding up residential construction projects. In future, it will be more difficult for associations to take action against smaller construction projects, particularly in water areas.

  • Future developments in the Swiss property market

    Future developments in the Swiss property market

    Switzerland’s permanent resident population will break the 9 million barrier in the first half of 2024. The “magic” 10 million mark should then be reached by the mid-2030s. This additional million is likely to set new records: Never before has the resident population increased so quickly. Never before has a million-strong increase been driven so strongly by international migration and at the same time accompanied by so little construction activity.

    The creation of more than enough living space and a massive expansion of the transport infrastructure have been responsible for the fact that rents have risen significantly less than wages since Switzerland’s 5 million population in 1955. What has been true over the last 70 years – falling housing costs, greater consumption of space per person and more comfortable living – is now likely to be a thing of the past. This is because the cumulative shortfall of at least 150,000 flats by 2034 due to the slowdown in construction activity is likely to keep the consumption of living space stable.

    Prices and rents outpace wage growth
    Rents are therefore likely to rise faster than incomes in the coming years. Rents on offer could increase by a total of 25 to 30 per cent in real terms by the mid-2030s – comparable to the trend between 2002 and 2012. In contrast to the last 70 years, rents in city centres are also likely to rise more strongly than in the periphery due to the high level of immigration.

    Residential property prices – both for owner-occupied homes and apartment blocks – are also expected to rise faster than incomes, with interest rates remaining moderate overall. On the one hand, prime locations will remain in disproportionately high demand as a result of growth. On the other hand, the “suburbs” of the major centres will increasingly expand into the previously extended agglomerations, which will also increase the willingness to pay there. Residential property therefore has the potential to match or even exceed past increases in value.

    Golden age with reservations
    However, dreams of high increases in value due to rising rents could quickly turn out to be an illusion. If the housing situation of many households deteriorates, politicians could burden the market with additional regulations. In such a scenario, construction activity could fall even further and households would have to move even closer together. The long-term losers would also be the building fabric and sustainability due to a lack of incentives for comprehensive and energy-efficient renovations.