Tag: Zentralschweiz

Central Switzerland’s economy remains confident

The economic mood in Central Switzerland remains largely optimistic. According to the latest edition of “Finanzmonitor Zentralschweiz 2025”, an annual study conducted by the Institute of Financial Services Zug at Lucerne University of Applied Sciences and Arts and the Central Switzerland Chamber of Commerce and Industry, almost 65 per cent of the companies surveyed rate their economic situation as good. This shows an overall stable development despite slightly gloomier expectations compared to the previous year.

Focus on expansion and skills shortage
Around 60 per cent of companies are planning to expand, which indicates a continued willingness to grow. At the same time, the shortage of skilled labour remains a key challenge for the economy. Companies are finding it increasingly difficult to recruit qualified employees.

International uncertainties affect export-oriented companies
While small and medium-sized companies are reporting a stable business situation, larger export-oriented companies are more affected by global developments. Uncertainties in the USA, France and Germany in particular are having an impact on planning. In addition, protectionist measures by the new US government are increasingly becoming the focus of economic concerns.

Exchange rate risks are becoming less significant
Compared to the previous year, the strong Swiss franc is perceived as less of a problem. Despite an expected further appreciation against the euro, concerns about exchange rate fluctuations appear to be becoming less important.

Less voluntary reporting, less effort
Another topic covered by the Financial Monitor is sustainability reporting. The number of voluntarily active companies is declining, but it is clear that the actual effort required to prepare a sustainability report is less than many companies initially feared.

Stability with growing challenges
Central Switzerland’s economy remains optimistic, but faces structural and international challenges. There are prospects for growth, but issues such as a shortage of skilled labour, global uncertainties and regulatory requirements will have a significant impact on future development.

March 2025
Facility management company passes into new hands

The Hälg Group, based in the St.GallenBodenseeArea, is taking over Löwen Bau- und Betriebs AG from Lucerne, which specialises in facility management, according to a press release. The Lucerne-based company’s existing customers include five shopping centres, several multi-storey car parks and 100 flats. The portfolio also includes restaurants and fitness centres.

The company will continue to operate under its own name for the first six months. On 1 July 2025, it will be integrated into Hälg Facility Management AG and the previous company name will be discontinued. The current Managing Director of Löwen Bau, Markus Belser, will continue to manage the company. Furthermore, all employees will continue to be employed.

“I am delighted to be placing my company in the hands of a successful family business. With Hälg Facility Management AG as part of the Hälg Group, we share common values and a long-term strategic orientation. This offers our employees a secure future and creates the basis for positive further development,” Markus Belser is quoted as saying in the press release. The Hälg Group is convinced that the takeover will strengthen its market position in Central Switzerland.

January 2025
Final construction phase for sustainable development in Rotkreuz

Zug Estates is tackling the final construction project in the development of the Suurstoffi site in Rotkreuz, which began in 2010. The Zug real estate company announced in a press release that the ground-breaking ceremony for the two new buildings Suurstoffi 43 and 45 was held at the beginning of December together with representatives from the authorities and project partners. Together with a central park, they are due to be completed by mid-2027.

Zug Estates is creating around 14,400 square metres of office and training space in the two new properties. A further 1,100 square metres have been designed as living space for student accommodation. Once completed, the Suurstoffi 45 property will be home to the Central Switzerland Health Education Centre(XUND). The training centre is relocating from Alpnach OW to Rotkreuz in order to meet the growing demand for practical healthcare training and changing training models. XUND and Zug Estates signed a long-term rental agreement for Suurstoffi 45 in September.

The final development project for the site “fits seamlessly into the Suurstoffi site, both architecturally and in terms of sustainability”, writes Zug Estates. “The existing, almost emission-free energy system” will have another geothermal probe field. The proportion of grey energy will be lower than in comparable properties thanks to a reduced basement level and the optimisation of façades, building services and statics.

December 2024
Halter moves into a new office in Kriens

Halter AG and Wir sind Stadtgarten moved into their new office in Kriens on Thursday, August 25th. According to the press release , 30 employees from Halter AG and the housing cooperative work in the new, larger offices at Mattenhof station. Until now, the office was on the Allmend in Lucerne.

The offices have been in use since April. The opening was celebrated on August 25th together with project partners and customers from Central Switzerland, according to a statement from Halter. On this occasion, Halter CEO Markus Mettler talked to handball star Andy Schmid from HC Kriens-Lucerne about the prospects for the region.

As part of Halter's growth strategy in the region, the media release lists a number of projects that have been completed in recent years or are still being implemented. Reference is made to the Swissporarena and the Mall of Switzerland in Ebikon LU as well as to the PilatusTower project in Kriens, the Pilatus Arena, the Einsiedlerhof and the company campus ewl Areal in Lucerne.

We are Stadtgarten, establishing ourselves in the region with cooperative projects such as the current one at Seetalplatz in Emmen. According to Halter AG, which has its headquarters in Schlieren, the expansion of the business location in Central Switzerland represents a consistent continuation of the corporate strategy in this region.

August 2022
No end to the boom in the Swiss real estate market

Tenants who wish to move must be prepared for higher rents when looking for an apartment. After several months with practically unchanged values, landlords raised their price expectations by an average of 0.7 percent in May. The correction is almost as large as the change registered over the last twelve months (0.9 percent). This is shown by the Swiss Real Estate Offer Index, which is collected by the SMG Swiss Marketplace Group in cooperation with the real estate consulting company IAZI.

However, the development of rents differs depending on the region. Apartment seekers in the greater Zurich region (1.8 percent) and in central Switzerland (1.2 percent) are confronted with a significant increase in asking rents. The surcharges are lower in the Lake Geneva region (0.5 percent) and in north-western Switzerland (0.4 percent), while in the central region (0.1 percent) and in eastern Switzerland (0.1 percent) there are practically no changes. In contrast, rents have fallen in Ticino (−0.8 percent).

Home ownership: The boom is not over
The real estate market is currently in focus mainly because of the high prices for residential property. Against the background of rising mortgage interest rates, many observers expect the situation to cool down soon. However, the asking prices are still on the rise, as the analysis of the advertisements in May shows.

“For single-family houses, 1.0 percent higher values were required than in the previous month, for condominiums the price growth is 0.2 percent. The interest-related increase in financing costs does not seem to bother prospective buyers much. At least sellers are still assuming an increasing willingness to pay,” says Martin Waeber, Managing Director Real Estate, SMG Swiss Marketplace Group.

As of May 31, 2022
The Swiss Real Estate Offer Index is published on the websites of ImmoScout24 and IAZI AG.
www.immoscout24.ch/immobilienindex
www.iazi.ch/angeboteindexes

June 2022
A canton creates accessibility

The train and bus connections in southern central Switzerland are bundled in the new cantonal train station in Altdorf. New train stops and additional connections significantly increase the potential for skilled workers. Knowledge-based service providers on the north-south axis benefit from direct access to the labor markets of the Greater Zurich Area and the greater Milan area and encounter technologies in the sectors of precision technology, alpine technology, traffic and safety technology and environmental technologies. With foresight, the canton of Uri has secured development areas on the Werkmatt Uri, which it is handing over exclusively for high-quality jobs at attractive conditions. With the new building of the Urner Kantonalbank directly on the edge of the platform of the new cantonal railway station, a working environment with offices ready for occupancy is offered. The German IT company Essendi IT recently opened its new Swiss headquarters at Bahnhofplatz.

The canton of Uri is also a fantastic living and leisure area with its lake landscape (water sports and sailing), the mountains and rivers (outdoor, climbing, hiking, Resort Andermatt), an authentic, unaffected area of experience with the primeval history and tradition of Switzerland . This creates inspiration for new business ideas.

May 2022
Building is getting more expensive

The construction price index rose by 2.7 percent between April and October of the current year. The price level in the construction industry has increased by 4.1 percent within a year. This is shown by figures from the Federal Statistical Office . As a media release shows, the additional costs in building construction and civil engineering are causing prices in the construction industry to rise compared to the previous half-year.

Property developers have to dig deeper into their pockets for the shell construction, from earthworks to windows and doors, in all major regions. The most noticeable increases in building construction costs are in the Swiss Plateau with 3.4 percent and in Central Switzerland with 3.2 percent price increases.

With the exception of Eastern Switzerland and Ticino, construction prices in civil engineering rose. In this sub-area of the construction industry, too, the regions Mittelland with 2.2 percent and Central Switzerland with 3.4 percent are most affected by the rising cost level. The price increases had the most pronounced effects on "smaller track construction" and somewhat less markedly on "fees".

January 2022
Central Switzerland remains an attractive company location

The cantons of central Switzerland also attracted many new companies during the pandemic, according to an article in the “Luzerner Zeitung”. Uri has helped 16 companies set up in the canton. As Stefan Büeler, Head of the Office for Economics and Public Transport at the canton of Uri, explains in the article, he sees the canton on track to be able to achieve a similar number again in 2021. The canton benefits from major projects such as the Altdorf cantonal railway station, the cantonal hospital, the construction of the second Gotthard tube and the tourist development in Andermatt.

Meanwhile, the canton of Schwyz recorded a record number of start-ups last year. Urs Durrer, head of the office for economy of the canton Schwyz, attributes this in the article to successful settlements. The establishment of the American software company Palantir was a great success. Overall, there are currently more settlement projects to be managed than before the pandemic, said Durrer.

The canton of Lucerne settled 19 companies last year. The canton of Zug sees itself back at pre-crisis level when it comes to settling in. The canton of Nidwalden did not experience any slump during the pandemic.

During the pandemic, numerous settlement projects could be prepared, which are now being implemented, as several business promoters emphasize in the article. For example, many international companies had their settlement projects that they had to postpone due to the pandemic implemented in the first half of 2021, says Reto Sidler, media spokesman for the Greater Zurich Area . The location marketing organization and its member cantons – Schwyz, Zug, Uri and six other cantons – were able to relocate 55 companies from abroad last year.

August 2021
Rental prices drop slightly in March

The prices for rents fell in March compared to the previous month by 0.4 percent. This short-term development is only reflected in the national averages. In the most expensive and densely populated regions, rents rose in March, according to the latest data from the Swiss Real Estate Offer Index. In the long term, too, prices have increased on average.

Tenants in the Lake Geneva region had to pay 0.2 percent more in March, and even 0.9 percent in the greater Zurich region. According to a press release, rents in north-western Switzerland also rose by 0.3 percent, in eastern Switzerland by 0.2 percent and in Ticino by 1.9 percent. In Central Switzerland, on the other hand, rents fell by 1.2 percent. Over the year as a whole, rental prices rose by an average of 0.6 percent for the country.

In the case of home ownership, prices have also developed differently, depending on the type of residence. While those interested in condominiums benefited from an average of 0.4 percent lower prices in March, buyers of single-family homes had to add 1 percent.

In the past twelve months, home prices even rose by a record 7.2 percent. While the square meter cost 6398 francs in March 2020, it was 6857 francs in March of this year.

In the case of condominiums, the plus of 3 percent was somewhat more moderate. Here, the price per square meter rose from 7,366 francs in March 2020 to 7,587 francs in March 2021.

The data of the Swiss Real Estate Offer Index is created in real time on the basis of advertisements on the real estate platform ImmoScout24 and in cooperation with the real estate consultancy IAZI AG .

April 2021
Renovation and extension: Hospiz Zentralschweiz Luzern

Building worthy of protection: medical practice with residential building in Littau
The original building – a residential building with an integrated doctor’s practice – was built by the Lucerne architect Josef Gasser in 1959. He was inspired by the well-known American architect Frank Lloyd Wright: In particular, by the prairie style influenced by Wright, which refers to the broad, flat landscape in the American Midwest. Accordingly, the architecture is characterized by an open room design, a horizontal, two-dimensional orientation and the use of natural materials. In cooperation with the Monument Preservation of the Canton of Lucerne, a prudent way of dealing with the building worthy of protection was found.

Clinker brick building inspired by Frank Lloyd Wright is being gently renovated
Little was changed during the renovation of the external appearance of the existing clinker building. Interventions in the external appearance of the house were only carried out in the direction of the garden, in which the foundation had the extension built. The room layout and use was adapted for the necessary communal, administration, practice and care rooms. Work rooms, guest rooms and a “room of silence” were created on the existing upper floor. The whole house is now accessible with a lift.

Pavilion-like wooden structure for inpatient hospice
A single-storey wooden pavilion with 12 rooms was created in the inner courtyard. Each room has its own wet room and a view of the garden. The two buildings are connected by a corridor that surrounds the new inner courtyard. The pavilion has a basement and is connected to the existing building underground. For a harmonious appearance, the new building was realized with a clinker brick and wooden facade and a roof edge made of pre-patinated copper.

Renggli AG supported the Central Switzerland Hospice Foundation as general planner. As part of the planning team, she helped design the architecture and coordinated the demanding specialist areas and partners involved. Renggli AG also acted as general contractor in the project. ■

August 2020