What are the annual running costs of owning a Swiss property?

The annual running costs are not expensive in Switzerland.

The service charges for an apartment building are divided up proportionately between the owners, according to the size of their apartment. These expenses include, the caretaker, maintenance of the building and grounds (snow clearing and gardening), electricity and heating for the common parts. In addition are structural insurance (very cheap in Switzerland) and an allocation to the building’s renovation fund.

The service charge is usually payable annually. Apartments with swimming pools and facilities tend to be more expensive and also the charges vary from canton to canton. Typically they are around 0.5% of the value of the property per year in Valais up to around 0.75% in Vaud. As an example, you would expect to pay around 5,000 sfrs a year service charge for a 3 bedroom apartment.

Additional costs are your own consumption of electricity and water which are cheap in Switzerland as they have hydro-power. Contents insurance is also cheap in Switzerland (there is hardly any crime)!

Chalets are cheap to maintain (particularly if new) as very little maintenance is required.


Information correct as of 1st January 2024. This may change as rules and regulations change often, so please contact us directly if you have any specific enquiries.