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Tag: Zürcher Kantonalbank

  • Swiss asking rents are already rising again

    Swiss asking rents are already rising again

    The Homegate rent index for asking rents is collected by the real estate marketplace Homegate in cooperation with the Zürcher Kantonalbank (ZKB). It measures the monthly, quality-adjusted change in rental prices for new and re-let apartments based on current market offers. The index shows a slight increase of 0.3 points compared to the previous month at 118.1 points (plus 0.3 percent compared to the previous month). Compared to the previous high of June 2022, the index has increased by almost 0.2 percent. In a year-on-year comparison, asking rents across Switzerland have risen by 2.3 percent.

    Change in the cantons
    Looking at the cantons, it is again striking that in August compared to the previous month, only a few cantons showed major changes in asking rents, while the majority of cantons only saw changes of 0.5 percent or less. Only in the cantons of Geneva (1 percent), Bern (0.7 percent) and Obwalden (0.7 percent) have advertised rents increased by more than this mark. It is striking that asking rents have risen in all cantons without exception, especially in the mountain regions: Nidwalden (6.5 percent), Obwalden (4.6 percent) and Graubünden (4.1 percent). A total of eleven cantons recorded an increase compared to the previous year, which is higher than the national average of 2.3 percent.

    change in the cities
    In the surveyed Swiss cities, meanwhile, there were clear changes in August. These are more than 0.5 percent in five out of eight cases. In August alone, asking rents in Lucerne (1.1 percent), Bern (1.1 percent) and Geneva (1 percent) increased by a good one percent. In all three cases, however, this increase also accounts for a considerable part of the increase compared to the previous year, which is around 1.5 percent for each of the three cities. The situation is different in Zurich or Basel: While the asking rents in August changed only minimally compared to July, both cities recorded significant growth compared to the previous year of 5.6 percent in Zurich and 2.9 percent in Basel.

    Method of quality adjustment
    The development of asking rents in Switzerland is corrected for the different quality, location and size of the apartments. The advantage of this so-called hedonic method is that the real rental price development for new apartments and apartments to be rented again is shown on Homegate. The Homegate rental index is the oldest quality-adjusted rental price index in Switzerland and is considered a reference source for real estate professionals to determine the price of rental properties.

  • Schindler & Scheibling wants to grow in Saland

    Schindler & Scheibling wants to grow in Saland

    The floor, facade and roof of Schindler & Scheibling’s new production hall in Saland are all made of wood, the Zürcher Kantonalbank informs in a statement . She supported the timber construction company based in Uster in setting up the new location. With the new building, Schindler & Scheibling wants to compensate for the lack of expansion options at the two locations in Uster and Hittnau ZH.

    The 86 meter long, 46 meter wide and 17 meter high timber construction is also designed as a lighthouse project for timber construction. “We want to use this to arouse enthusiasm for timber construction among builders, carpenters, architects and also spontaneous visitors,” Nathanael Weiss, Head of Architecture at Schindler & Scheibling, is quoted as saying in the press release. The high-performance combination of solid wood and modern, curved glued laminated timber and the fact that the hall and roof are supported by “only five tree supports from different forest areas in the canton of Zurich” are described as particularly impressive.

    At the new location, Schindler & Scheibling has set up a production line for solid wood element construction systems. Tailor-made constructions for ceilings, floors and walls are produced here, which can be installed on the construction site in record time using dowel technology. “Thanks to prefabricated timber construction, the individual home can be built within one to two days,” explains Fabian Scheibling, Head of Sales and Project Development at Schindler & Scheibling.

  • Zürcher Unterland schreibt zweiten Innovationspreis aus

    Zürcher Unterland schreibt zweiten Innovationspreis aus

    Die Bewerbungsfrist für den Innovationspreis Zürcher Unterland 2022 von Standort Zürcher Unterland läuft. Noch während der kommenden 30 Tage können Bewerbungen online eingereicht werden. Laut Ausschreibung stehen Innovationen von KMU bei Produkten, Prozessen, Geschäftsmodell und Organisationsform im Fokus, ausdrücklich auch im kleinen Rahmen.

    Bei der Bewertung werden die Kriterien Neuheitsgrad, Auswirkung auf die regionale Wirtschaft, auf das soziale Leben und die Umwelt mit einbezogen. Ausserdem sind Imagewirkung und Strahlkraft für die Region sowie die Übertragbarkeit auf KMU für die Beurteilung entscheidend.

    Die erfolgreichste Bewerbung wird mit einem Preisgeld in Höhe von 9999 Franken ausgezeichnet, die Plätze 2 und 3 mit je 3333 Franken. Die Jury setzt sich aus dem Wirtschaftsrat Zürcher Unterland zusammen. Vergeben werden die Preise am Innovationsanlass des Standortförderers im September.

    Standort Zürcher Unterland verleiht den Innovationspreis 2022 zusammen mit der Zürcher Kantonalbank, dem Glasverpackungshersteller Vetropack sowie den Bezirksgewerbevereinen Bülach und Dielsdorf.

  • Asking rents are developing differently

    Asking rents are developing differently

    The rental index, which is collected monthly by the digital real estate marketplace Homegate in cooperation with the Zürcher Kantonalbank , closed in May at 117.6 points, Homegate informs in a press release . Compared to the previous month, advertised rents increased by an average of 0.2 percent across Switzerland. The analysts of the index have observed different developments within the individual cantons.

    Rents have remained relatively stable in most cantons. In the canton of Geneva, asking rents in May were 1 percent lower than in April. In the cantons of Zug, Graubünden, Appenzell Innerrhoden and Appenzell Ausserrhoden, on the other hand, the analysts identified significant increases of between 1.1 and 4.1 percent. However, they mainly attribute the jump of 4.1 percent in the canton of Zug to a decline in the previous month.

    In the eight cities examined in the index, the analysts identified an increase in asking rents of 0.7 percent in St.Gallen and a decrease of the same amount in Geneva and Lausanne. The two cities in western Switzerland are also the only ones where analysts have observed a drop in asking rents year-on-year.

    When recording rental price changes for the rental index, the rental prices are corrected for different quality, location and size of the apartments, explains Homegate. This makes it possible to record the actual rental price development.

    Homegate is a division of SMG Swiss Marketplace Group AG . This combines the digital marketplaces of TX Group , Ringier and Mobiliar .

  • ZKB offers mortgages for non-profit housing developers

    ZKB offers mortgages for non-profit housing developers

    The Zürcher Kantonalbank is offering a new mortgage for housing cooperatives at favorable financing conditions. According to a press release , non-profit property developers benefit from a reduced interest rate of up to 0.5 percent. This applies both to the extension of existing loans and to a new mortgage.

    The basic requirement for the granting of the ZKB WohnPlus mortgage is that the apartment rents from the housing developer are at least 15 percent below the market rents. “We want to use this to maintain and promote non-profit and affordable housing,” Patrick Bühlmann, corporate customer advisor at Zürcher Kantonalbank, is quoted as saying in the press release. Because in the cities, above all Geneva and Zurich, rising rents are leading to a lack of affordable living space.

    In addition, applicants must meet 29 criteria, seven of which are basic criteria. If the applicant meets a further 14 criteria in stage 1, he will receive a maximum interest rate reduction of 0.3 percent. In order to receive the full 0.5 percent, he must meet a total of 21 requirements based on the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals ( SDG ), the Swiss Sustainable Building Standard ( SNBS ) and the ten guiding principles for non-profit housing in Switzerland.

    If level 1 is initially reached in a construction project, the property developer can prove further criteria later on. In this way, the bank wants to create an incentive “to make further improvements in terms of social performance even during the term”.

  • ZKB facilitates investments in the Zurich airport region

    ZKB facilitates investments in the Zurich airport region

    The Zürcher Kantonalbank now issues the tracker certificate FRZ Flughafenregion Zürich. This means that those willing to invest can simultaneously rely on 22 different companies that have a connection to the Zurich airport region. The financial product is now traded on the SIX Swiss Exchange .

    As the location developer FRZ Flughafenregion Zürich announced in a press release , the composition of the block of shares was determined by ZKB. They selected Swiss companies with a market capitalization of more than CHF 500 million that are based in the canton of Zurich and benefit from the airport. In addition, they must bear the ZKB rating “Market weight” or “Overweight” before admission.

    “The tracker certificate emphasizes the economic importance of the region,” says Peter Arnold, Head of Communications & Business Development at the FRZ Zurich Airport Region. FRZ is probably one of the first organizations in the world to promote locations to take such an initiative. The share package is an important element in ongoing location marketing.

    According to FRZ, the design of the financial product is based on the assumption that airport regions will grow at an above-average rate. Accordingly, the companies operating in this region should have above-average potential.

  • Rental prices rose slightly by 0.26 percent in February

    Rental prices rose slightly by 0.26 percent in February

    The rental index of the online real estate marketplace homegate.ch in cooperation with the Zürcher Kantonalbank rose again in February. According to a press release , rental prices rose slightly by 0.26 percent. The index was thus slightly higher than in the previous month at 117 points.

    Rental prices have risen in almost all cantons and cities, above all in the canton of Graubünden by 2.15 percent. There was a drop in rents there in January, which has now been offset by the increase in February. In addition to Graubünden, Appenzell, Glarus, Schwyz and Valais also recorded an increase of more than 1 percent in February.

    With the exception of Bern and St.Gallen, rents rose in all cities in February, with the strongest increases in Lausanne at 1.7 percent and Lugano at 1.41 percent. In the respective cantons of Vaud and Ticino, on the other hand, prices rose less sharply or even fell.

    Rents in the canton of Zug have fallen by 0.56 percent. Rents rose significantly here in January. “A comparison of the cantons shows that, in addition to the majority of increases in rents, there have also been fluctuations over the last few months,” says the press release.

  • Asking rents remain largely stable

    Asking rents remain largely stable

    The monthly rental index collected by the digital real estate marketplace homegate.ch from the TX Group in cooperation with the Zürcher Kantonalbank increased by 0.3 points to 116.7 points in January compared to December 2021, homegate.ch explains in a corresponding statement . The analysts explain that the asking rents in most cantons have not increased at all or only slightly. On average, however, there is an increase of 0.26 percent.

    The analysts registered above-average increases of 1.45 and 3.85 percent in the cantons of Nidwalden and Zug in the reporting period. In contrast, asking rents in the cantons of Graubünden, Valais, Schaffhausen and Geneva were between 2.01 and 0.08 percent lower than in December 2021.

    In contrast, the analysts observed rising rents almost everywhere in the cities surveyed. The only exceptions were St.Gallen and Lucerne. Here, the asking rents were 0.77 and 0.40 percent lower than in December 2021. The city of Bern showed the highest increase in a monthly comparison with 0.96 percent.

    When recording the rental price changes for the rental index, the rental prices are corrected for different quality, location and size of the apartments, the communication explains. This makes it possible to record the actual rental price development.

  • Zurich homes fetch record prices

    Zurich homes fetch record prices

    "Zurich's home prices are skyrocketing," writes the Zürcher Kantonalbank ( ZKB ) in its real estate barometer for the fourth quarter of 2021 . According to the analysts at ZKB, prices for residential property in the Canton of Zurich rose by an average of 9.3 percent year-on-year to new record levels. The analysts account for the highest increase of 11.3 percent for residential property in the lake communities and the city of Zurich.

    Rents also achieved “the highest overall annual growth since the end of 2014” in the reporting period, the barometer continues. The analysts attribute this to the currently falling figures for vacant apartments “in combination with robust immigration”. In the city of Zurich, on the other hand, “the centers lost their attractiveness during the pandemic”. Here, rents increased by only 0.5 percent year-on-year.

    The analysts also cite the long approval period for the construction of apartment buildings as a background for the developments. The approval period for major projects has almost doubled since 2001 from 183 to 324 days. "High-density construction often generates areas of friction and often leads to lengthy appeals and delays," the analysts explain. As a result, the implementation of many major projects is no longer decided in the Zurich building department, but in court. Ultimately, however, "in most cases a solution" can be found.

  • Asking rents continue to rise

    Asking rents continue to rise

    The monthly rent index compiled by the digital real estate marketplace homegate.ch from TX Group in cooperation with Zürcher Kantonalbank rose by 0.17 points to 116.1 points across Switzerland in November compared to October, explains homegate.ch in a corresponding message . The analysts write that the index has already exceeded its high in October. Over the past twelve months they have observed an increase in asking rents of 0.96 percent.

    In the month under review, rents rose in most of the cantons, the press release explains. The analysts observed the strongest growth of 2.33 percent in the canton of Graubünden. In Zug and Schwyz, too, asking rents rose at an above-average rate of 2.04 and 0.59 percent. In the cantons of Nidwalden and Neuchâtel, on the other hand, asking rents in November were 0.49 and 0.81 percent lower than in October.

    In terms of cities, the analysts point to striking declines in asking rents in Zurich (-0.82 percent) and Geneva (-0.79 percent). The asking rents in Lausanne and Lucerne rose the most in comparison to October, at 0.30 percent each.

    When recording the rental price changes for the rental index, the rental prices are corrected for different quality, location and size of the apartments, is explained in the communication. This makes it possible to record the actual rental price development.

  • French-speaking Swiss live louder

    French-speaking Swiss live louder

    At every third residential address in Geneva, people have to endure a noise level of more than 60 decibels. It is as loud as a lawnmower ten meters away, according to a press release . This noise can still be heard even with the windows closed.

    On the other hand, people in German-speaking Switzerland live the most quietly, namely in the cities of Bern, Winterthur and Aarau, as the real estate research of Zürcher Kantonalbank lists. For its analysis, the financial institute examined every residential building in Switzerland for its exposure to road noise.

    It also came out that the street noise leads to rent discounts of 320 million francs annually. Geneva has the highest rent reduction with CHF 40 million, Zurich follows in second place with a financial loss of CHF 28 million.

    Because even if Zurich is in the middle in terms of noise pollution, thousands of apartments along the main traffic arteries are still affected by a high noise level, according to the press release. “So street noise will remain a burning issue in housing policy in the canton of Zurich.”

    According to real estate research by Zürcher Kantonalbank, prices for private homes will also rise this year. Prospective buyers can expect 6 percent more, and in the canton of Zurich even an increase of 7.5 percent. The demand for one’s own four walls in the corona pandemic is driving.

    Searchers find fewer and fewer advertisements in the relevant property search portals on the Internet. According to a press release, the number of sales advertisements in the canton of Zurich on the Homegate brokerage platform has fallen by more than 30 percent since 2019. Reason: Brokers can find buyers with less effort through their own channels.

    The demand for property is currently so high that “some of the apartments have already been sold before construction begins”. Often all it takes is just setting up a construction board. Prospective buyers should therefore be put on the lists of broker companies, advises Ursina Kubli, Head of Real Estate Research at Zürcher Kantonalbank, according to a media release.

  • Adjusted asking rents rise slightly

    Adjusted asking rents rise slightly

    The monthly rent index compiled by the digital real estate marketplace homegate.ch from TX Group in cooperation with Zürcher Kantonalbank rose by 0.2 percent to 115.7 points across Switzerland in September compared to August, explains homegate.ch in a corresponding message . An increase of 0.8 percent has been observed over the past twelve months. In the individual cantons and cities, the index analysts observed different developments on a monthly basis.

    In some cantons, the changes compared to the previous month were stronger than usual, according to the announcement. The analysts observed the strongest increase in asking rents at 3.69 percent in Graubünden. But asking rents in Nidwalden and Uri also rose by a high 1.69 and 1.38 percent, respectively. In the cantons of Zug and Neuchâtel, on the other hand, asking rents were 1.25 and 1.21 percent lower than in August. With the exception of Lugano (+1.72 percent), the analysts recorded rather minor changes in the cities compared to the previous month.

    “The moving month of September was not only an active time for those moving, the asking rents also reflected this”, Fabian Korn from homegate.ch is quoted in the message. “It will be exciting to see how this will develop with the falling temperatures.”

    When recording the rental price changes for the rental index, the rental prices are corrected for different quality, location and size of the apartments, is explained in the communication. This makes it possible to record the actual rental price development.

  • Construction activity is declining

    Construction activity is declining

    According to the real estate barometer of Zürcher Kantonalbank ( ZKB ) for the second quarter of 2021, the number of projected apartments in planning applications has decreased by 23 percent compared to 2018. According to the ZKB analysts, this is related to high vacancy rates in peripheral regions, to which investors would have reacted accordingly. In urban centers with low vacancy rates, construction activity is picking up again in some cases, according to the barometer.

    Lausanne and Zurich are cited as examples. In the cantons of Geneva and Basel-Stadt, however, the analysts have observed a decline in construction activity. They attribute this to the high regulatory hurdles typical of urban areas and the scarcity of building land. Overall, however, the analysts state that “new apartments are increasingly being planned where the demand for living space is high”.

    In the canton of Zurich, the desire for one's own four walls, which has been intensified by the pandemic, is further explained in the barometer. According to him, house prices have increased by 5.5 percent over the previous year and 2.9 percent over the previous quarter. At the same time, the analysts see a shrinking of the offers advertised on real estate portals. They explain this with the fact that many properties are marketed by regional brokers or are already sold before construction begins. For this year and the following, the analysts are assuming excess demand in the residential property market across Switzerland.

  • Asking rents are falling marginally

    Asking rents are falling marginally

    The monthly rent index compiled by the digital real estate marketplace homegate.ch from TX Group in cooperation with Zürcher Kantonalbank closed at 115.4 points in June. Compared to the previous month, the asking rents have fallen by an average of 0.09 percent, explains homegate.ch in a corresponding message . In contrast, an increase in rental prices of around 0.7 percent has been observed over the past twelve months.

    “As usual,” the asking rents have developed differently in the individual cantons and cities, explains homegate.ch. The analysts of the index observed the greatest declines with 1.29 percent in the city of Lausanne and with 0.99 and 0.49 percent in the cantons of Schwyz and Geneva. The strongest price increases, at 0.68 and 0.65 percent, were registered in the city of Bern and in the canton of Zug.

    In most of the other cantons, the analysts observed a rather inconspicuous development in rental prices. The communication provides an interactive overview of developments in the cantons and metropolises.

    In the quality-adjusted recording of rental price changes for the rental index, the rental prices are corrected for the different quality, location and size of the apartments. This makes it possible to record the actual rental price development, it says in the message.

  • FenX convinces with sustainable insulation material

    FenX convinces with sustainable insulation material

    FenX AG has secured 2.7 million francs in a seed financing round, according to a press release . Investors include the real estate company Swiss Prime Site, Zürcher Kantonalbank and CADFEM International, which specializes in simulation-based planning.

    FenX AG has developed a patented technology with which industrial waste can be converted into insulation boards using a cost-effective foam process at room temperature. According to the communication, the insulation boards produced in this way have good insulation properties and high mechanical strength. They are not flammable and cause almost no CO2 emissions.

    On the one hand, FenX intends to use the fresh funds to continue investing in research and development. On the other hand, the company wants to set up its first production facility and prepare for market entry. FenX's long-term goal is to produce recyclable building materials around the world. Production is to take place decentrally from locally available resources.

    FenX was spun off from the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology Zurich ( ETH) in 2019. Behind the company are researchers from the ETH Laboratory for Complex Materials.

  • April rents rise by almost 1 percent

    April rents rise by almost 1 percent

    The homegate-ch asking rent index was unchanged in April compared to the previous month at 115.6 points. The rent for apartments to be re-let, on the other hand, rose by an average of 0.96 percent. This index is calculated monthly in cooperation with Zürcher Kantonalbank . It shows the quality-adjusted change in rental prices for new and re-let apartments based on current market offers.

    “As usual,” the rents developed differently depending on the canton, according to homegate.ch in a press release. According to this, the asking rents recorded an increase in rents, especially in the cantons of Bern (0.26 percent), Thurgau (0.52 percent) and Vaud (0.24 percent). In the canton of Geneva, asking rents have fallen by 0.93 percent. A similar picture emerges in the cities. The city of Geneva in particular recorded a decline of 1.27 percent.

    According to the company, the homegate.ch asking rent index is the oldest quality-adjusted rental price index in Switzerland. Real estate professionals use it as a reference source for determining the price of rental properties.

  • The innovation award is intended to promote the Unterland location

    The innovation award is intended to promote the Unterland location

    SMEs based in the Zürcher Unterland can apply for an innovation award for the first time. The official announcement takes place in summer. This award is being launched by the new business and trade council of the Zürcher Unterland location association. It is endowed with 5000 francs. It is donated by the Zürcher Kantonalbank .

    According to a press release, the ZKB Innovation Prize Zürcher Unterland will be awarded for the first time on October 1st at the new Zurich North business symposium in Glattfelden ZH. Both the innovation award and the business symposium are viewed by the Zurich Unterland Economic and Commercial Council, which was founded last autumn, as its first two “flagship events”.

    According to Co-Managing Director Darius Daftarian, the Zürcher Unterland is still insufficiently perceived as a business location in a cantonal comparison. What is missing is “a regional and supra-regional awareness of the strength of the location”.

    This is one of the reasons why the new economic and trade council wants to promote knowledge transfer for SMEs. To this end, existing economic and trade networks would have to be merged. "When different people with different backgrounds meet, everyone can benefit," said Michael Ricklin, President of the Dielsdorf ZH district trade association, quoted in the press release.

  • Asking rents rise at the beginning of the year

    Asking rents rise at the beginning of the year

    The monthly rent index compiled by the digital real estate marketplace homegate.ch from TX Group in cooperation with Zürcher Kantonalbank closed at 115.4 points in January. Compared to the previous month, the prices for advertised rents have risen by an average of 0.17 percent, explains homegate.ch in a corresponding message . An increase in rental prices of 0.87 percent has been observed over the past twelve months.

    In a monthly comparison, homegate.ch shows different developments for the individual cantons. The strongest rise in asking rents in January, at 1.59 percent, was observed in the canton of Nidwalden. In the cantons of Appenzell-Innerhoden, Appenzell-Ausserhoden, Uri and Wallis, asking rents rose above average with values between 1.08 and 1.24 percent. Declines were measured in the cantons of Zurich, Neuchâtel and Jura with values between -0.57 percent and -0.10 percent.

    Homegate.ch also makes different developments in the cities. The largest increase was measured here in a monthly comparison of 2.01 percent in Lausanne. The analysts describe the development in Zurich as “noticeable”. Here rental prices fell by 1.00 percent in January compared to the previous month.

    In the quality-adjusted recording of rental price changes for the rental index, the rental prices are corrected for the different quality, location and size of the apartments. This makes it possible to record the actual rental price development, it says in the message.

  • Asking rents continue to rise

    Asking rents continue to rise

    The coronavirus pandemic has hardly left any traces on the market for rental apartments, writes homegate.ch in a message on the annual review of the homegate.ch rental index. It is created monthly by the real estate portal owned by the TX Group in collaboration with Zürcher Kantonalbank . For 2020, the rent index shows an increase in asking rents for apartments of 0.9 percent year-on-year. This means that apartment rents have even risen faster than in the previous year, explains homegate.ch.

    The analysts observed the sharpest increase in rental prices in the year under review with 2.7 percent in Appenzell. In the cantons of Geneva, Thurgau, Zug, Graubünden and Zurich, rents have also risen faster than the Swiss average, with values between 2.6 and 2.3 percent, the press release explains. Rising net immigration is mentioned as the background for the rental price development.

    The gap in rent prices between urban and rural cantons that had prevailed in previous years was weakened in the reporting year, the analysts further explain in the press release. On the one hand, they attribute this to the concentration of the construction industry in urban regions. On the other hand, the work in the home office, which was funded during the pandemic, "led to evasive effects in the countryside". Urban living remains in trend despite the pandemic.