Swiss house prices are falling noticeably
House prices got a little cheaper in November.
tsf. Real estate prices continue to come under pressure. Prices for single-family homes continued to fall in November. There are signs of relaxation for tenants – at least for the time being.
Inflation and interest rate hikes have been cooling the overheated real estate market for several months. The trend even intensified in November. This is shown by the Swiss Real Estate Offer Index, which is collected by the Swiss Marketplace Group in cooperation with the real estate consulting company IAZI. The index tracks the prices for the houses and apartments offered on the market.
In the case of offers for single-family homes, the index for November shows the first noticeable decline in a long time. Providers have lowered their price expectations by 0.9 percent. However, this is still at a high level: with an average price per square meter of around CHF 7,370, prices are still generally high. However, November brought practically no change in prices for condominiums. They increased in price by 0.2 percent.
A decisive factor in the market is the Swiss National Bank. A further rate hike in mid-December cannot be ruled out. At 3 percent, inflation is still above the target value, even if inflation in this country is low compared to other countries. If interest rates rise again, this will increase the cost of mortgages. “This could cloud the mood of prospective buyers,” explains Martin Waeber, Managing Director Real Estate, SMG Swiss Marketplace Group, in the media release.
When it comes to rental prices, there are signs of a slight relaxation. Asking rents in November fell slightly by –0.6 percent on average across the country. Depending on the region, however, rental price trends deviate significantly from this average. Asking rents fell more sharply in central Switzerland (–2.1 percent) and in the greater Zurich region (–1.3 percent). Little or no change can be seen in the Central Plateau (–0.3 percent), in the Lake Geneva region (–0.2 percent) and in Eastern Switzerland (0 percent), while in Northwestern Switzerland (+0.4 percent) and in Ticino ( +1.0 percent) an increase in asking rents was recorded.
Weko takes a close look at bank wages
tsf. A large number of banks in German-speaking Switzerland appear to have regularly exchanged information on the wages of various categories of their employees. The Competition Commission has taken note of this. Your secretariat has opened a preliminary investigation. Because such behavior by the banks could be problematic under antitrust law.
As the Weko announced on Monday, the preliminary clarification concerns 34 banking institutions in six regions of German-speaking Switzerland. The aim of the proceedings is to clarify whether the exchange of information about the wages and wage components of different categories of employees constitute indications of unlawful agreements within the meaning of the Cartel Act. If necessary, the investigation could be extended to other regions and other companies.
According to ComCo, the labor market is increasingly becoming the focus of the activities of competition authorities around the world. It is the first time in Switzerland that the ComCo secretariat is investigating possible agreements on the labor market that may fall within the scope of the Cartel Act because they do not represent the results of negotiations between social partners.
Vodafone boss surprisingly resigns at the end of the year
(dpa) The telecommunications company Vodafone surprisingly has to look for a new boss. Nick Read will give up his post at the end of the year and will be available as a consultant until the end of March next year, Deutsche Telekom’s British competitor announced on Monday. CFO Margherita Della Valle will temporarily lead the company. The search for a successor has begun. Read has led the group since 2018 and has worked for the company since 2001. In contrast to the competition, Vodafone recently expected a rather weak profit development for this financial year.