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Home ownership now more expensive than renting in Switzerland

Buying has become much more expensive than renting in Switzerland, according to a report by the bank Credit Suisse. Photo by Curtis Adams on Pexels.comThe market for owner-occupied homes is currently undergoing a reversal of fortunes, triggered by the spike in mortgage interest rates in 2022, said the bank. Although owners enjoyed unprecedented low mortgage rates for a decade, rates have more than doubled over the past year. After 13 years, buying is more expensive than renting again....

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Swiss rules to force removal of Matterhorn logo from Toblerone

Toblerone, the iconic Swiss chocolate brand, will soon be forced to remove the Matterhorn mountain peak logo from its branding, reported RTS. Photo by Safwan C K on Pexels.comThe Toblerone chocolate brand is owned by the US company Mondelez, which plans to move production of the product from Switzerland to Slovakia this year. Strict Swiss rules introduced in 2017 restrict the use of national symbols to promote milk-based products that are not made exclusively in Switzerland. Slightly...

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Bankers in Zurich charged with helping to launder suspected Putin funds

On 8 March 2023, a case was brought against the boss and three employees of the Zurich office of Gazprombank in a Zurich court. The four face charges of alleged money laundering that may be linked to Russian president Vladimir Putin, reported RTS. © Leigh_1 | Dreamstime.comThe case has garnered international interest as it may provide insights into how Putin hides the huge fortune it is claimed he has. The public prosecutor in Zurich alleges that between 2014 and 2016 four bankers,...

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Gruyère cheese can be made in America, rules US court

In Europe, Gruyère, the name of a cheese and a small picturesque Swiss town (Gruyères), is legally reserved for specific cheeses from parts of Switzerland and France made to strict recipes. However, in the US it is also applied loosely to a type of cheese that differs from the Swiss and French originals. European producers have tried to end the confusion by legally reserving the name for their product. But on 3 March 2023, a US court of appeal upheld a lower court ruling in favour of...

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Why Swiss housing construction is falling despite higher demand and rents

With Swiss rents high and rising it should follow that more would be invested in building new homes. However, that isn’t the case. The newspaper Blick asks experts why. As rents rise landlords should stand to make more from their investments. Many are also quick to assume that higher rents mean landlords are making excessive profits at the expense of renters. However, in practice it isn’t that simple. Firstly, when deciding to invest investors must consider yield. When the value of...

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Switzerland’s rent rate comes close to rising

Four times a year the rate of interest used to set the rents in Switzerland is reviewed. If the aggregate average mortgage rate goes down some renters can request lower rent. If it goes up some landlords can raise rents. This time the rate remained at 1.25%, however it was close to moving to 1.5%. Photo by Ketut Subiyanto on Pexels.comThe interest rate used to set the rent reference rate was the average rate on Swiss mortgage loans outstanding at 31 December 2022. The average rate this...

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Swiss government backtracks on pension increase

In December 2022, parliament sent a recommendation to the Federal Council to increase state pensions by the rate of inflation. However, this week a parliamentary majority voted not to, reported RTS. © Mcxas | Dreamstime.comThe Federal Council had already boosted state pensions by 2.5% from 1 January 2023 before calls were made to bump them up by 2.8% in line with the increase in the consumer price index (CPI) in 2022. On 1 March 2023, 97 versus 92 (1 abstention) members of parliament...

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Swiss inflation accelerated in January 2023

Upward pressure on prices continues in Switzerland. Recently published data show annual inflation rising to 3.3% to the end of January 2023, up from 2.8% at the end of 2022. © Sam Lee | Dreamstime.comPublic sector workers in parts of Switzerland have been demanding salary increases. In Vaud they have been demanding indexation. Looking back across a longer period of time Swiss inflation doesn’t look so bad. Between the end of 2010 and the end of 2022, prices have risen by 2.5%. Focusing...

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Swiss homeownership rates remain static

In 2021, 1.4 million households in Switzerland owned their home, 36.3% percent of all households, according to statistics published on 23 February 2023. © Stbernardstudio | Dreamstime.comThe rate of homeownership in Switzerland has remained fairly stable since 2000. Back then it was 34.6%. After rising to 38.4% in 2016, it has declined gradually to where it is today (36.3%). Cantons with the lowest rates of homeownership tend to be urban and expensive. Basel-City (16.0%), Geneva...

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Risk of cracks rising for houses built on clay

More and more soil is being impacted by drought. Clay soils in particular are affected by drought. These soils expand and contract depending on their water content and often crack when dry. Building on them can be risky and requires a particular structural design. © Zimmytws | Dreamstime.comHome owners in parts of France have already been impacted by recent dry spells. Roughly half of France is at risk of the effects of droughts on clay soil and 10 million homes have already suffered...

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