Importance of the property sector for the Swiss economy
The Federal Office for Housing highlights the high economic significance of the real estate sector in Switzerland. With a share of 11 percent of the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) and 16 percent including rental income and imputed rents, the sector is an important economic factor. Approximately 592,000 employees work in the real estate industry, accounting for 14 percent of all employees. Between 2011 and 2021, the gross value added related to real estate increased by 23 percent.
The Federal Office for Housing emphasises the great importance of the real estate sector as an economic force for Switzerland, as detailed in a press release. It puts the real estate industry’s share of gross domestic product (GDP) at 11 per cent. Including rental income and owner-occupied rents from private households, the figure is 16 per cent. A total of 592,000 people, or 14 per cent of all employees, work in the real estate sector.
In addition, real estate-related gross value added grew by 23 per cent between 2011 and 2021, with overall economic growth of 17 per cent.
The property stock increased from 2.66 to 2.82 million buildings. Of these, 1 million are single-family homes, which would have increased the share by 6.1 per cent. Multi-family houses increased by 15.5 per cent. The cantons of Bern, Zurich and Aargau saw the largest increase in property. There were also regional differences in terms of value creation. The share of property-related gross value added in cantonal GDP varied between 8 per cent in the canton of Basel-Stadt and 22 per cent in the canton of Glarus.
The report also provides information on the property sector’s share of total tax revenue. According to the report, around CHF 17.4 billion in tax revenue is generated in the property sector. This corresponds to 11 per cent of the national fiscal revenue.
The report is based on figures from a survey conducted by pom+ on behalf of the Federal Office for Housing (BWO) and the Swiss Homeowners’ Association(HEV).