Here is something most newcomers only learn years after arriving: in Switzerland, your rent is legally tied to a national interest rate. When that rate falls, you can demand a lower rent – but only if you ask. Your landlord is not required to reduce it on their own, and most will not. If you signed your lease more than a year ago, there is a real chance you are paying more than you need to.
The reference rate, in plain terms
The mortgage reference rate (hypothekarischer Referenzzinssatz) is published by the Federal Office for Housing (BWO). Swiss tenancy law links existing rents to it: when the rate goes up, landlords may raise rents; when it goes down, tenants gain a claim to a reduction. The rate currently stands at 1.25 percent, where it has been since 2 September 2025. On 2 June 2026 the BWO confirmed it remains unchanged, and the next announcements are due on 1 September and 1 December 2026.
Do you have a claim?
Look at your lease or your most recent rent-adjustment notice. Somewhere on it, the rent is stated as being based on a specific reference rate. That figure is what counts:
- Based on 1.5 or 1.75 percent: the rate has fallen since your rent was set, and you have a claim in principle. As a rule of thumb from the BWO, each quarter-point drop entitles you to a reduction of about 2.91 percent of your net rent.
- Based on 1.25 percent: your rent already reflects the current rate, and there is nothing to claim for now.
One honest caveat: the landlord may offset certain items against your claim, notably 40 percent of accumulated inflation and documented increases in maintenance and operating costs. Your reduction can therefore come out smaller than the rule of thumb suggests – but for many tenants a meaningful amount remains.
How to claim it
Write to your landlord or management company by registered letter and request a rent reduction based on the current reference rate, effective at the next ordinary termination date of your lease. That last part matters: the reduction does not apply immediately, but from the next date on which the contract could ordinarily be terminated – with a typical three-month notice period, that often means a few months out. The sooner you send the letter, the sooner the clock starts.
If the landlord refuses or offers too little, you can take the matter to the conciliation authority in tenancy matters (Schlichtungsbehörde) at the location of the flat – you must do so within 30 days of receiving the refusal. The conciliation procedure involves no court fees, and many disputes settle there. Which authority is responsible for you depends on where you live; your commune or the cantonal website will point you to it, and ch.ch is a good starting point.
Practical tip: tenant associations and several Swiss consumer platforms provide model letters and rent calculators that do the offsetting maths for you. Ten minutes of paperwork can be worth hundreds of francs a year.
Why now is a good moment
The next official announcement lands on 1 September 2026. If the rate stays at 1.25 percent, nothing changes about your existing claim – it simply keeps waiting for you to exercise it. If it were ever to rise again, landlords would regain the right to increase rents. Either way, checking your lease now, before the autumn announcement, puts you in the stronger position.
Sources: Federal Office for Housing BWO (bwo.admin.ch, reference rate 1.25% since 2 Sept 2025, announcement dates 2026, 2.91% per quarter-point), Beobachter (procedure and 30-day conciliation deadline) · Status: 2026-08-09 · This article was written with AI support.
