immo!nvest – Die Plattform für Standorte und Immobilien

Tag: Geld

  • Taxes above the national average

    Taxes above the national average

    The Tax Burden Monitor 2024 confirms once again that the canton of Zurich is a high-tax canton when it comes to corporate taxes. Only the canton of Bern taxes corporate profits more heavily. This makes Zurich less attractive for companies, especially in comparison to neighbouring cantons with lower taxes, such as Schwyz and Zug, which also benefit from their geographical proximity to Zurich.

    Attractive tax policy
    In contrast to corporate taxes, the canton of Zurich performs significantly better in terms of income and wealth taxes for private individuals. Medium incomes of between CHF 60,000 and CHF 200,000 are taxed moderately in a cantonal and municipal comparison. Zurich’s municipalities occupy top places in this category. Middle-income couples and families in particular benefit from the tax structure.

    Around a third of Zurich’s municipalities recently lowered their tax rates. Nevertheless, the canton lost one place in the national comparison and is now in 13th place. Property taxes remain stable and rank 10th in the national comparison – below the Swiss average.

    Zurich has lost tax attractiveness for companies since 2006
    Since 2006, the canton of Zurich has dropped twelve places in the ranking of corporate tax burdens. While other cantons have lowered taxes for legal entities, in some cases significantly, Zurich has remained relatively rigid. As a result, competitor locations Basel-Stadt and Geneva, which are traditionally attractive for international companies, now have significantly lower tax burdens. A direct comparison with the cantons of Schwyz and Zug is also particularly critical for Zurich, which, unlike Zurich, benefit greatly from their proximity to the business centre without having to bear its tax burden.

    Zurich remains internationally attractive
    The situation is different in an international comparison. Despite the high national tax burden, Zurich remains competitive in the global competition to attract companies. Countries such as the USA and many Western European states (with the exception of Ireland) impose a much higher tax burden on their companies. Switzerland has been able to maintain this competitiveness even in times of economic crisis, although many OECD countries have increased their tax pressure in recent years.

  • Reaction of the Swiss interest rate markets to global and local inflation trends

    Reaction of the Swiss interest rate markets to global and local inflation trends

    In April of this year, the inflation rate in Switzerland surprisingly rose from 1.04% to 1.37%. This increase, which is reflected in almost all sub-indices, nevertheless remains below the critical level of 2.00%. This development indicates that inflation remains manageable and does not require any drastic measures. The Swiss National Bank had already expected a moderate rise in inflation and now appears to have been confirmed that this rise will not be permanent.

    Influence of global interest rate policy on Switzerland
    The latest US inflation data has brought calm not only to international markets, but also to the Swiss interest rate markets. The positive reaction to the US data has lowered interest rate swap rates in Switzerland and indicates that a rate cut in June is almost certain. The SNB’s monetary policy decisions depend heavily on how the European Central Bank (ECB) and the Federal Reserve (Fed) adjust their interest rates. Current developments show a synchronisation of interest rate policy at a global level, which influences the Swiss franc and inflation forecasts.

    Future expectations and monetary policy forecasts
    The SNB remains committed to the possibility of lowering the key interest rate by 25 basis points, with a potential further reduction by the end of the year, depending on the actions of the ECB and the Fed. These adjustments are essential to stabilise the Swiss franc in the context of global currency dynamics and prevent excessive appreciation, which could weigh on the export economy. Despite the current inflation expectations and the weaker position of the franc, the SNB remains proactive and adaptable in its monetary policy strategy.

  • Raiffeisen has bad news

    Raiffeisen has bad news

    The increase in rents in Switzerland is likely to continue to gain momentum. The increases following the hike in the reference interest rate at the beginning of June will take effect at the beginning of October. But that was just the beginning, according to a study by Raiffeisen on Thursday.

    There is “fire in the roof” for rents, the real estate experts write. The next increases in the reference interest rate are already in sight. “The reference interest rate is expected to rise to 1.75 per cent in December. This would mean that the majority of Swiss tenants would be threatened with another rent increase on 1 April 2024. According to the interest rate scenario, a further increase would then only be possible at the end of 2024 or beginning of 2025.

    Two-thirds affected in second round
    While in the current round of increases, it is estimated that just under half of all tenants are potentially affected, after the second reference interest rate increase, there should be potential for increases in around two-thirds of all tenancies, it continues.

    And the increases will be clearly above the planned 3 per cent. The landlords also pass on part of the accumulated inflation to the tenants and claim the general cost increases. An exact forecast is fraught with great uncertainty in the absence of experience with such a situation. But the experts expect that in the course of the next year, with the second increase in the reference interest rate, the rent increase throughout Switzerland is likely to climb to 8 per cent at times.

    But it is not only the increases that are driving rents. The prerequisite for landlords being able to push them through at all is above all the continued high demand and the scarce supply. “The demand for rental flats continues to increase strongly in rapid steps due to dynamically growing immigration,” the study states.

    Recordnetimmigration
    The experts believe it is possible that net immigration this year will even break the previous recordbalance of2008. “By May 2023, the net migration of the foreign resident population in Switzerland was a quarter higher than in the comparable period of the previous year.” And this does not include the Ukrainian refugees in the country, who are often supported by the municipalities in their search for housing on the open market.

    In addition, there are other effects, such as a high number of new households or the influence of the trend towards home offices. This increases the demands on the housing situation.

    No improvement in supply in sight
    The rental housing market is increasingly drying up. Vacancy rates are low, especially in urban centres, and asking rents are rising.

    There are hardly any signs of supply-side relief of the housing shortage. Although the number of building applications submitted for flats has at least stabilised in recent quarters, the urgently needed construction offensive is still a long time coming. “The thin project pipeline is far from sufficient to satisfy the current strong additional demand for housing.

    Subsidies for housing construction or individual subsidies
    In this context, the Raiffeisen experts also take a critical look at the demands for stronger subsidies for non-profit housing construction. This also costs a lot of money, they say, and needy tenants do not always live in municipal or cooperative housing. According to the authors of the study, about half of the residents of cooperative flats have such a high income that they do not need the subsidies.

    The strong reduction in the price of these flats leads to certain false incentives. Households that benefit from these low rents have little interest in leaving this flat later, even if their living conditions change. Raiffeisen writes that the question is whether subject-specific support – i.e. direct support for households in need – would not ultimately achieve more desirable results.

  • Burkhalter completes capital increase

    Burkhalter completes capital increase

    Burkhalter Holding AG has successfully completed a capital increase, the Zurich-based building technology specialist announced in a press release. Specifically, 62,732 new registered shares with a nominal value of CHF 0.04 each were issued. Burkhalter’s share capital thus increased to 10,425,674 registered shares with a total nominal value of CHF 417,026.96.

    The capital increase from authorised capital was carried out as part of the acquisition of LKE Haustechnik AG from Landquart GR and Strässle Installationen AG from Amriswil TG. Burkhalter acquired both companies in January of this year. Part of the purchase price will be paid in listed registered shares. Burkhalter is listed on the SIX Swiss Exchange. The new registered shares will be traded on the stock exchange from 6 March. hs

  • That cost of Switzerland

    That cost of Switzerland

    A significant part of the spending by Swiss people is in the areas of housing, mobility, insurance, leisure and sport. In its annual data analysis ” It costs Switzerland”, the SMG Swiss Marketplace Group provides comprehensive insights into the actual cost of living in Switzerland.

    For this purpose, the figures for 2021 were collected on the online platforms ImmoScout24, Homegate, FinanceScout24, AutoScout24 , Car For You, MotoScout24, anibis.ch, tutti.ch and Ricardo . “As a digital pioneer, we want to simplify the lives of people in Switzerland with groundbreaking products,” says Gilles Despas, CEO of SMG Swiss Marketplace Group. “With our platforms, we give them the opportunity to offer and buy products and compare prices quickly and easily. Especially in an expensive country like Switzerland, price transparency is important to keep an eye on the cost of living.»

    Real estate market: Condominiums in Zug are three times more expensive than in the Jura
    Looking at real estate prices in Switzerland, there are large cantonal differences. While a 4.5-room apartment in the canton of Jura cost an average of CHF 516,000 in 2021, it was more than three times as much in the cantons of Geneva or Zug at over CHF 1,700,000. If you take the most sought-after type of apartment, the 3.5-room rental apartment, as a reference property, there will be differences in rental costs between the cantons of over 110 percent in 2021. While tenants in the canton of Jura paid an average of just 1,135 francs, this figure is more than twice as high in the canton of Zug at 2,428 francs. Overall, the rental prices for 3.5-room apartments remained the same or even fell compared to 2020 in most cantons last year.

    The detailed results of the study on the individual areas can be found under “ The costs for Switzerland ”.

  • An algorithm controls thermostats

    An algorithm controls thermostats

    Two researchers from the Urban Energy Systems Lab at the Swiss Federal Laboratories for Materials Testing and Research ( Empa ) have created a self-learning algorithm for heating thermostats. According to an Empa report , it can be integrated into conventional intelligent or smart thermostats via a cloud connection and regulate the room temperature in a predictive manner.

    "The potential is enormous," says Felix Bünning, co-founder of the Empa spin-off viboo, which markets this algorithm. "Our experiments at NEST have shown that energy savings of between 26 and 49 percent can be achieved with this approach."

    To create a model of the building, building data such as valve positions and room temperature measurements from just two weeks are sufficient. In combination with forecasts for the local outside temperature and global solar radiation, the algorithm then independently calculates the ideal amount of energy required to heat or cool the building up to twelve hours in advance.

    According to the information, a first partner is the Danish company Danfoss . The internationally active thermostat manufacturer is currently testing in a pilot project together with viboo how high the savings potential is in conventional existing buildings. In addition, the start-up is already in talks with other industrial partners. For example, it will integrate the algorithm directly into the central building automation system in a Zurich office building.

  • Houzy expands into western Switzerland

    Houzy expands into western Switzerland

    The Zurich-based start-up company Houzy operates a platform that intelligently links data and uses it to derive recommendations for homeowners. For example, it can be calculated there when the heating is to be renovated and how much money should be put aside for it. A property valuation is also part of the Houzy offer.

    In the first two years since it was founded, the company focused primarily on product development, Houzy said in a press release. The company has already successfully established itself in German-speaking Switzerland and has increased the number of its users to more than 18,000. In addition, UBS only joined Houzy in July. The Zurich big bank operates its own digital real estate platform with key4 , on which mortgages for real estate buyers are brokered.

    The next step for Houzy was the expansion into French-speaking Switzerland, the message continues. To this end, the company is now making all the services and functions of the platform available in French. The integration of Italian-speaking Switzerland is planned for the first quarter of next year.