Swiss mortgage market cooled in 2024

Below-average growth in the Swiss mortgage market in 2024 Keystone-SDA

The Swiss mortgage market witnessed subdued growth in 2024 due to rising costs and stricter regulations.

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This is the conclusion of the Mortgage Market Study 2024 published by MoneyPark. According to the study, the mortgage market in Switzerland grew by 2.6% or CHF32 billion last year. This means that growth was once again below the long-term average of 3%.

According to MoneyPark, the cantonal banks once again secured the biggest slice of the cake, accounting for around 75% of overall growth. The mortgage volume at the Raiffeisen banks grew by 4.6% and that of the pension funds by 8%. By contrast, UBS bank lost almost CHF10 billion or 3.4% in volume.

In addition, the financiers earned less with mortgages in 2024 than in the previous year and had to cope with a return to the level of 2022 after the record results of 2023. “However, this development was not driven by falling interest rates for borrowers, but by rising refinancing costs for the banks,” the report states.

On average, the banks’ net interest margin was 1.26% in 2024. This was significantly lower than the previous year’s figure of 1.40%.

Despite interest rates falling again, rising refinancing costs and the stricter regulatory environment have therefore slowed down the granting of mortgages. And further trouble is looming. For example, the abolition of the imputed rental value, which will be voted on in September 2025, could have a “substantial” impact on the market.

According to the study by the Helvetia subsidiary, between CHF50 and 150 billion could be amortised over the next five years and thus drastically slow down growth. In the worst case, stagnation could even be expected.

Translated from German by DeepL/mga

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