immo!nvest – Die Plattform für Standorte und Immobilien

Tag: Pensionskasse

  • Double award recognises quality in property management

    Double award recognises quality in property management

    IAZI, Informations- und Ausbildungszentrum für Immobilien AG, presented this year’s IAZI Awards at the 21st IAZI Real Estate Investment Event in Zurich. According to a press release, the Rivora Collective Foundation, based in Winterthur, received the awards for Best Residential Properties 2026 and, for the first time, Best Pension Fund.

    “We are delighted to receive this double award, which is the result of a clear strategy and strong collaboration,” said Amet Bekiri, Managing Director of Rivora Collective Foundation, in the press release. “It confirms our ongoing commitment to responsible action and sustainable quality – for the benefit of our policyholders.”

    Rivora is a long-standing partner of Auwiesen Immobilien AG. The property company based in Winterthur supports Rivora in the portfolio management of direct investments in real estate. “Being honoured twice with the prestigious IAZI award is an extraordinary confirmation of our many years of joint work,” said Christof Schmid, Managing Director of Auwiesen Immobilien AG. “Together with the Rivora Collective Foundation, we develop an investment strategy tailored to their needs and are responsible for its implementation.”

    As a pension fund without vested interests, Rivora offers companies and their employees customised pension solutions. Auwiesen Immobilien AG manages property portfolios worth over CHF 4.5 billion, primarily in German-speaking Switzerland.

  • First stage Attisholz with UBS investment

    First stage Attisholz with UBS investment

    The Attisholz site in Riedholz is being given a new lease of life thanks to an investment by the UBS pension fund. The “Kocherei”, once a central location for cellulose production, is being extensively remodelled. The winning project by Burckhardt Architektur from Basel envisages around 150 rental flats and 4,000 m² of commercial space, which will breathe new life into the historic building.

    Collaboration between UBS and Halter AG
    The UBS pension fund, which acquired the 73,000 m² core site back in 2022, has now also confirmed its investment in the “Kocherei”. A work contract was signed between the UBS pension fund and Halter AG on 28 June 2024. While the UBS pension fund will act as investor and owner, Halter AG will be responsible for the planning and realisation of the project as overall provider.

    First stage of the site development
    The development of the Attisholz site, which is to be transformed into a sustainable living space over the next 25 years, begins with the first stage. In addition to the “Kocherei”, this also includes the “Lagerhaus” and publicly accessible open spaces. The design plan for this first stage is currently being drawn up in collaboration with the municipality of Riedholz and the canton of Solothurn and will soon be submitted for public consultation and approval.

    Sustainable and vibrant future
    The transformation of the Attisholz site into a vibrant and sustainable neighbourhood is an important project for the region. The revitalisation of the “Kocherei” and the creation of residential and commercial space are central components of this vision. The realisation of the projects is planned for the period 2025 to 2028 and will contribute significantly to the upgrading of the entire area.

    With the UBS pension fund as a strong partner and Halter AG as an experienced developer, the transformation of the Attisholz site will be driven forward swiftly and professionally in order to create a new, sustainable living space for the municipality of Riedholz.

  • Halter starts construction of ZenO in Oberdorf

    Halter starts construction of ZenO in Oberdorf

    The Schlieren-based construction and property company Halter AG is building 49 flats and a branch of the anchor tenant Aldi Suisse for the pension fund of the canton of Nidwalden. The investment volume for the ZenO project is estimated at CHF 30 million. According to a press release, a design by Mirlo Urbano Architekten GmbH from Zurich is being realised for ZenoO. The plan is to build a new centre on the former Landsgemeindeplatz in Oberdorf.

    According to the project description, an area of 1,100 square metres is intended for commercial use, with a further 130 square metres for offices and small businesses. Apart from a small commercial space, the ground floor has already been let.

    With retail and additional service areas on the ground floor, the project offers “optimal supply options for the small flats on the upper floors”. The target group is mainly employees from the surrounding Bürgenstock and Engelberg tourist regions, professionals from nearby companies such as Pilatus and SWISSINT, as well as singles and couples of all ages.

    ZenO will make an important contribution to strengthening the community and will positively promote local development. “It will not only improve the townscape, but also create new living space and jobs,” says Judith Odermatt-Fallegger, Mayor of Oberdorf.

    Planning permission was granted in December 2023, construction is due to start in July 2024 and completion is planned for spring 2026. In order to be able to start construction, the building lease agreement was signed in January 2024 between the municipality of Oberdorf, the Pension Fund of the Canton of Nidwalden as the investor and Halter AG as the overall provider. Halter was also awarded the contract for the initial letting of the project.

  • Pension funds: Out of bounds with real estate

    Pension funds: Out of bounds with real estate

    Everything is relative: for pension fund managers, the quote attributed to Nobel Prize winner Albert Einstein may have a special ring at the moment. Their investments in shares and bonds have lost a lot of value in the past year. Positions in real estate, on the other hand, suffered less. As a result, these have – relatively speaking – often gained significantly in weight in the investment portfolio of the pension funds. This has not only theoretical but also tangible consequences.

    At the end of last year, market observers warned that a quarter of the pension funds in Switzerland would have to sell or devalue real estate investments because their weight exceeded the requirements of the Ordinance on Retirement, Survivors’ and Disability Pension Plans (BVV2). The ordinances prescribe a fixed quota for real estate investments that may not exceed 30 per cent.

    “A few pension funds had bandwidth violations“
    Heinz Rothacher, CEO of the well-known St.Gallen pension fund consulting firm Complementa, now tells finews.ch that the quota violations at the end of 2022 turned out to be even more extensive than feared. “More than a third of the pension funds have reported a real estate quota of over 30 percent,” says the market expert (see chart below). And he notes, “There are a few pension funds that had a bandwidth violation due to the increase in ratios.”

    In fact, the OOB2 ordinance allows certain bandwidths in the portfolio shares according to which the pension funds can design their investment strategy. But even this leeway has limits. When the edge of the bands is touched, there are therefore two tactics: Sit it out or correct it.

    Maintain quota for now
    The pension funds have apparently opted for the former as a first step. “Since it is a passive violation of the bands, they tolerated it and decided to maintain the existing quota,” Rothacher reports. The same applies to violations of the BVV2 limit of 30 percent, he adds.

    Complementa has asked a good 150 decision-makers in occupational pension schemes specifically about the problem; the CEO therefore knows pretty well in which direction the industry is heading. As of the end of 2022, the real estate ratio averaged 24.1 percent, 3 percentage points higher than the previous year.

    The wait-and-see approach has not worked badly for the pension funds so far. The real estate quota has been reduced again this year due to the positive performance of the stock markets, Rothacher reports. As a result, “the breach of the bandwidths has been partially remedied.”

    Current surveys by Credit Suisse show that the Swiss pension funds generated an average investment return of 3.86 percent by the end of last June; the major bank UBS comes to an average performance after deduction of fees of 3.51 percent in its measurements. This means that the funds have already exceeded the statutory minimum distribution of 1 per cent per year.

    The crux with illiquidity
    Nevertheless, the problem has not disappeared, and the pension funds must be concerned about keeping within the defined bandwidths in the medium term due to their investment strategy. Another sticking point arises: Due to the illiquidity of the asset class – for example, directly held properties or investment foundations – it is difficult to adjust the ratio in the short term.

    Accordingly, the funds have to tackle where liquidity is most likely to be available: in listed real estate investments. As Rothacher from Complementa reports, there is now movement to be seen there. “37 percent of the funds that participated in the survey are planning to reduce listed real estate funds,” explains the financial professional. As many as 11 per cent of the respondents are also thinking about reducing non-listed vessels.

    Redemption fees increased
    As it turns out, the prices of Swiss real estate funds have already fallen sharply in 2022. The relevant SIX Real Estate Funds Broad Index (SWIIT) lost more than 15 percent of its value last year. This year, the counter stagnated. Meanwhile, a lower demand for additional investments is noticeable among the non-listed investment groups, explains Rothacher.

    Various real estate funds have also received significantly fewer commitments than planned for capital increases. “Not long ago, oversubscriptions were the norm,” he recalls.

    The Complementa CEO does not expect major sales of such vehicles. On the other hand, he knows of individual investment groups that have already increased redemption fees this year – also with the reference to wanting to protect existing investors. This can have a deterrent effect on sellers. “The redemption fees for the various investment vehicles vary greatly and can sometimes account for a large part of an annual performance,” Rothacher knows.

    When do appraisers resort to red pencils?
    But even those who stubbornly hold on to their real estate positions may have to let down their guard. This is the case if there are valuation corrections because the real estate appraisers would be forced to raise the discount rates due to further interest rate steps.

    At least on the Swiss market, the current low level of construction activity, immigration and rising rents make such measures appear premature. However, further interest rate hikes by the Swiss National Bank could still lead the appraisers to apply the red pencil.

    Local pension funds often have a pronounced “home bias” in their real estate investments and would probably be sensitive to a decline in valuations.

  • Alvoso Forum meets in the new ZSC Lions arena

    Alvoso Forum meets in the new ZSC Lions arena

    The Alvoso pension fund based in Schlieren is holding its annual Forum event on Wednesday, September 28, from 4 p.m. in the newly built ZSC Lions ice hockey arena. At the forum events every year, not only the affiliated beneficiaries, but also the general public are informed about the latest status at Alvoso and the entire Swiss pension fund market. According to the press release, the Alvoso Forum is taking place in a very special setting this year. Alvoso is the first company ever to be able to be a guest in the brand new stadium, which will be the most modern sports and event arena in Switzerland after the official opening.

    "Being the first company ever to be able to hold an event in these modern premises is very special – we will set worthy accents with exciting topics and eloquent guest speakers," says Remo Schällibaum, President of the Board of Trustees of the Alvoso Pension Fund. Thomas Schmidiger, Managing Director of Alvoso, sees "three days after the AHV vote, the topic of pensions more relevant than ever".

    The program features several guest speakers. Mario Fehr, head of the security department and government councilor of the canton of Zurich, will open the event with a greeting. Patrick Fischer, the national ice hockey coach, will give a behind-the-scenes look at the national team with his presentation on “Inside the team”. And Sven Leuenberger, sports director of the ZSC Lions and host in the new stadium, will comment on the upcoming season and the new stadium, according to the program announcement.

  • UBS pension fund joins Halter project

    UBS pension fund joins Halter project

    As the new landowner of the Attisholz core area, the UBS pension fund is participating in the Attisholz development project in Riedholz. According to a media release by Halter AG , this core area covers an area of 73,000 square meters. The remaining area of 420,000 square meters will remain in the possession of Halter. The Schlierem-based real estate company will transform the area step by step over the coming years and will implement various construction projects in the process. “By the time it is completed, this part of the site will offer space for around 740 apartments with 1,250 residents. At the same time, several hundred new jobs will be created,” says the project’s goals.

    A cooperation agreement between the canton of Solothurn, the municipality of Riedholz and Halter AG was originally concluded for the project. This has now been expanded to include the UBS pension fund. “The entry of the UBS pension fund immediately after the usage plan came into force is a strong commitment to the Attisholz area and thus also to the Solothurn region as an attractive place to live, work and live,” says Andreas Campi, Managing Director of Halter Developments.

    The municipality and canton are also pleased about the entry of the UBS pension fund. Sandra Morstein, Mayor of Riedholz, sees the “trustworthy and constant cooperation” of all partners strengthened. “For the Canton of Solothurn, the sustainable and future-oriented development of the Attisholz area is a central concern,” says Government Councilor Birgit Wyss. “The investment by the UBS pension fund is an important signal for the canton of Solothurn as an investment location.”

  • St.Gallen gets a new hotel

    St.Gallen gets a new hotel

    HRS Real Estate AG will start work on the renovation of the Villa Wiesental and a new hotel building on April 26, according to a media release . The building permit was recently received by HRS and the City of St.Gallen Pension Fund. Since the symbolic groundbreaking ceremony will not take place due to the corona situation, the initiators are planning a ceremonial laying of the foundation stone for June.

    The combination of Villa Wiesental renovation and new hotel building is an "excellent urban development solution", according to HRS Real Estate. Both the historical building and the urban development in the Bahnhof Nord district are taken into account. After the renovation, the Pension Fund Stadt St.Gallen would like to offer representative office space in the Villa Wiesental.

    After the planned construction period of two years, the new hotel will be operated by Hotel Wiesental St.Gallen AG. It will have around 100 rooms. Both the hotel's parking area and the publicly accessible ground floor should contribute to the revitalization and upgrading of the quarter.

  • Graubünden pension fund receives investment award

    Graubünden pension fund receives investment award

    The Graubünden Pension Fund ( PKGR ) has received an IAZI Real Estate Investment Award 2021. It received an award in the “Best Pension Fund Portfolio” category. IAZI awards a total of nine awards. The basis for the selection of the winners is an assessment based on eight key figures from the Swiss Property Benchmark of the consulting and service company IAZI for the Swiss real estate sector. According to a press release by the PKGR, this is the most representative benchmark for Swiss direct real estate investments.

    PKGR's real estate portfolio claims to have a market value of CHF 654 million. As stated in the announcement, the pension fund understands this award as “confirmation of its real estate strategy, its successful implementation in the facilities and management as well as the further development of the portfolio”.

  • AXA Switzerland launches real estate funds for pension funds

    AXA Switzerland launches real estate funds for pension funds

    According to a message from AXA Switzerland , the company has launched a new, actively managed real estate fund. The AXA pension fund real estate Switzerland contains a high proportion of residential properties in central locations in Swiss metropolitan areas, explains AXA Switzerland in the press release. The fund should only be open to "certain qualified tax-exempt investors in Switzerland".

    "The capital market interest rates in Switzerland are currently at historic lows, and a significant change in the interest rate environment is not in sight", Daniel Gussmann, Chief Investment Officer of AXA Switzerland, is quoted in the press release. "Real estate investments are therefore becoming increasingly important in the investment of pension funds, not least thanks to positive cash inflows from rental income." The new fund from AXA Switzerland currently has a volume of CHF 1.7 billion.

  • Timber Corporation is the guardian of our forest

    Timber Corporation is the guardian of our forest

    The Schlieren wood corporation and the forest ranger Limmattal Süd have their diverse tasks under control despite the many challenges. They are pleased that this year, with the new cloakroom in the Zelgli, a building will be built by the city of Schlieren with local wood and that other buildings (after-school care center, new retirement center) will be tendered or planned in wood. This role model function of the city of Schlieren was also carried over to private real estate investors. The “Kesslerplath” project of the Migros Pension Fund is also to be realized in wood.

    Around 100 cubic meters of spruce wood from the Schlierem Forest will be used for the new cloakroom building at the Rohr sports field. Financially this is not a big deal for the Schlieren wood corporation, but President Fredy Füllemann is very pleased that the city of Schlieren not only sets an example for building with local wood with this decision, but also appreciates the work of the wood corporation.

    The Schlieren wood corporation was founded as a private corporation in 1851 and manages a total of around 180 hectares of forest. A milestone in the history of the Schlieren wood corporation was the great amalgamation of forests in 1984. This resulted in large and much easier-to-manage parcels. The city of Schlieren also contributed its forest and has since then been a member with partial rights, like all other private forest owners. Almost without exception, these are long-established Schlierem families.

    The prices for domestic wood are poor. These prices have been falling for a long time and the storm Lothar in 1999 intensified this trend. So there is hardly any more money to be made with the forest and the timber corporations are happy when they can cover the costs of care and maintenance with the proceeds. A further complicating factor is that significantly cheaper wood is delivered to Switzerland from abroad.

    The forest belongs to private individuals, but can be used by the public. Very few people know that the forest owners are responsible for a great deal of work in the forest, including the maintenance of the forest paths, which are highly valued by the population, and that they also have to bear the costs.

    In some Swiss cantons, wood corporations are supported in this area, but unfortunately this has hardly been the case in Zurich so far. "As the price of wood continues to fall, it is becoming more and more difficult for forest owners to cope with the financial burdens," emphasizes Roland Helfenberger and Fredy Füllemann adds: "We will probably have to make ourselves heard more in the canton in the future."

    In our time, the forest has to struggle with various influences. In particular, global warming is causing him a lot of trouble, some tree species will probably disappear in our forests in the long term. While spruce, fir and beech trees suffer from the higher temperatures, oaks, Douglas firs and nut trees have significantly fewer problems.

    It is typical of forest management that everything has to be considered over long periods of time, or – as Revierforster Helfenberger aptly puts it: "We benefit from the work of our ancestors and work for future generations." As the district forester Limmattal Süd, Helfenberger from Aesch has also been responsible for the care and management of the Schlierem forest since 2013. He and his team are faced with great challenges in a variety of ways. The heavy snowfalls in the past few months have caused a lot of extra work and the clean-up work is far from over.

    Ecologically and economically
    This is not the first time that the city is building Schlieren with wood. The multi-part factory building in the city on Bernstrasse was made of wood and even made it into the 20 best best practice examples in Switzerland. The double after-school care center at Schulstrasse 12 was also made entirely of wood in 2007. More wooden structures are to follow. The Migros Pension Fund MPK is currently examining the procurement of wood for the new Kesslerplatz building from the Schlieremer Wald, or from the Limmattal-Süd forest district. Spruce and fir trees are available for the harvest season. At best, the MPK plans to source the wood for the ceilings and facades from the region. The latest study by Wüest Partner AG shows that wooden buildings are not only ecologically convincing, but also keep up economically.

  • AST Swiss Life opens two investment groups

    AST Swiss Life opens two investment groups

    Swiss pension funds can invest in high-quality Swiss properties from AST Swiss Life from February 1 to March 31. The investment foundation is planning to open up its two investment groups, Real Estate Switzerland and Commercial Real Estate Switzerland, worth around CHF 500 million. Payment will be made on May 5th.

    According to a press release , the capital is to be used to reduce the debt capital ratio, to purchase further properties, to implement new construction projects and for ongoing investments in the portfolio.

    The focus of the Real Estate Switzerland investment group is on residential properties in Swiss cities and agglomerations. The Swiss Commercial Real Estate investment group invests in commercial properties with stable returns and stable values in central locations. Both also hold shares in the Glatt shopping center in Wallisellen. Since their launch, both have had “an appealing performance” of 5.63 and 5.10 percent per year, respectively. In addition, the occupancy rate of more than 97 percent is above average for both of them.

  • IT companies in St.Gallen join forces

    IT companies in St.Gallen join forces

    The young company emonitor , which is active in the field of real estate technology, has brought its melon rental software into a collaboration with Abacus , as stated in a message from emonitor. On behalf of the City of St.Gallen Pension Fund , melon has been connected to the AbaImmo property management software from Abacus. This now creates software for reporting in the area of apartment rentals.

    On the one hand, software is available for a continuous letting process, from the first contact with a prospective tenant through to ancillary costs settlement. And on the other hand, thanks to the collaboration between emonitor from St.Gallen and Abacus Research from Wittenbach, reports can be created that provide real-time information on vacancies, for example.

    The City of St.Gallen Pension Fund is currently in a digitization process and would like to be a pioneer in turning interested parties into tenants even more easily, as the message says. "We are pleased that together with emonitor and Abacus we can implement our ideas of future-oriented leasing and management," Gerardo Longo from the Pension Fund Stadt St.Gallen is quoted in the announcement. "In addition to creating an overall process, we also benefit from the simple acquisition of demand and analysis data, with the help of which we will, for example, be able to better plan our projects and avoid vacancies."

  • PKG pension fund for SMEs – new head of real estate and member of the executive board

    PKG pension fund for SMEs – new head of real estate and member of the executive board

    Hans-Urs Baumann succeeds Gerold Moser. As of January 1, 2021, Hans-Urs Baumann will be the new Head of Real Estate and a member of the management of the PKG Pension Fund. He succeeds Gerold Moser, who was responsible for real estate matters at the PKG pension fund for 17 years.

    Hans-Urs Baumann (55), who will take up his post on January 4, 2021, is a proven real estate specialist with a sound education: He is a university of applied sciences architecture and has a postgraduate degree in business administration and management as well as a master's in real estate management from the University of Applied Sciences in Zurich .

    For four years, Hans-Urs Baumann worked as a canton master builder for the canton of Lucerne. His area of responsibility included, among other things, the management of the real estate department of the canton. He is currently a member of the management team of Fundamenta Group (Schweiz) AG, an independent Swiss real estate company in Zug. Hans-Urs Baumann, who lives with his family in Lucerne, will also become a member of PKG management when he takes office.

    His predecessor, Gerold Moser (64), who will retire as Head of Real Estate and a member of the Executive Board at the beginning of 2021, has built up the PKG Pension Fund's real estate portfolio in the 17 years of his activity. It now has a volume of CHF 600 million. He attached great importance to sustainability. The “Schweighof” new building project in Kriens (jointly owned by the Lucerne Pension Fund), for example, will be the first development in Central Switzerland to be built and certified in accordance with the guidelines of the 2000 Watt Society. From the end of 2020, the entire Schweighof will also be powered by energy from lake water
    heated.

    «With Hans-Urs Baumann we were able to perfectly arrange the successor to Gerold Moser in all matters. The extensive specialist knowledge of Hans-Urs Baumann enables the continuation and further development of our real estate portfolio. I would like to thank Gerold Moser, who will train Hans-Urs Baumann for his commitment today. "

    Peter Fries, CEO of the PKG Pension Fund

    «The sustainable real estate strategy of the PKG pension fund convinces me because it also enables long-term and future-oriented further development. The PKG pension fund has an excellent reputation and is known for its far-sighted and prudent investment policy
    known. I am happy to provide impetus. "

    Hans-Urs Baumann, new Head of Real Estate at PKG Pension Fund:

    The management of the PKG pension fund is composed as follows: Peter Fries, Chairman; Romy Portmann, Head of Pensions; Peter Duft, Head of Finance and Accounting, and now Hans-Urs Baumann, Head of Real Estate.

    PKG pension fund

    The PKG pension fund, based in Lucerne, is one of the leading autonomous community institutions for occupational pensions in Switzerland. It was established in 1972 as a pension fund for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). Today, the PKG pension fund, with 1,677 affiliated companies, 35,423 insured persons, 5,044 pensioners and current assets of CHF 7.8 billion, is one of the largest private pension institutions in Switzerland. It employs 32 people. The wide-ranging real estate portfolio of the PKG pension fund comprises 30 units. The majority of these are residential properties in the cantons of Lucerne, Zurich, Nidwalden, Aargau, Schwyz and Thurgau. The PKG pension fund only invests in good locations. The apartments are of an attractive standard and are in the middle price segment.
    www.pkg.ch