Switzerland’s push to meet its climate targets is colliding with a severe housing shortage. In French-speaking regions, large-scale evictions linked to energy renovations are becoming more common, leaving hundreds of tenants scrambling for new homes, reports RTS.
In Geneva, 107 tenants on Boulevard Carl-Vogt received termination notices in January, reported the broadcaster. In Lausanne, 16 families on Chemin de Monribeau were forced out last year. Landlords cite extensive energy-efficiency upgrades, which they say cannot be carried out with residents in place.
The pressure will rise. To reach carbon neutrality by 2050, Switzerland must refurbish much of its building stock. In Geneva alone, some 12,000 buildings are affected. Roughly half of Swiss homes are still heated with fossil fuels; in French-speaking regions the share is higher. In Geneva, it is around 70%.
Property groups say the pace of change is exacting—and must be financed. Higher rents are one way to do so.
Tenant advocates are sceptical. They argue that renovations are sometimes used to reset rents. “Owners could keep tenants in place,” says Fabrice Berney of ASLOCA Vaud. “But terminating leases allows them to issue new contracts when the flats are re-let.” That matters because rent increases are otherwise capped for five years if tenants remain. Over the past two decades, Swiss rents have risen by about 32%—.
The dispute points to a deeper tension. Strict tenancy laws can leave long-standing rents well below market levels, dulling incentives to invest. For landlords, renovation offers a way to bring flagging returns back into line—when market values are used overall net rental yields in Geneva are between 1.5-2%.
For tenants, the consequences are immediate. Long-time residents face leaving homes they have occupied for decades. Finding alternatives is difficult: vacancy rates are just 0.34% in Geneva and below 1% in Vaud. Landlords are under no legal obligation to help them relocate.
There are rare exceptions. In a high-rise complex in Lausanne, mass evictions announced in 2018 by UBS were ultimately reversed after tenants organised and negotiated. Most were able to stay, moving out only briefly during renovations. For those now facing eviction, such outcomes remain the exception rather than the rule.
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