Sustainable living: Trends and differ­ences

Given the growing impor­tance of environ­men­tally friendly lifestyles, ecological awareness is becoming an increas­ingly decisive factor when choosing a place to live. But how important is sustain­ability when selecting a new home? How does this differ between rental tenants and owners? And what factors determine whether homeowners decide to renovate? The results of our “Immo-Barometer” survey answer these questions and are presented below (see info box for more about the survey).

Sustain­ability plays a key role when choosing a home

For around a quarter of respon­dents, sustain­ability is a key factor when choosing a home. And for just over half of those surveyed, it would be important if they were to move from their current home. The impor­tance of sustain­ability is partic­u­larly high for homeowners. While not as influ­ential as other charac­ter­istics, such as value for money, it is, on average, at the upper end of the scale for all survey partic­i­pants.

It should be noted that the impor­tance of sustain­ability has increased signif­i­cantly in recent years compared with other factors. On the one hand, this is probably due to society’s increasing awareness of the issue. On the other, the high energy prices in the past year have also likely influ­enced the impor­tance of energy consumption when choosing a home. But although the trend among tenants and owners is moving in a similar direction, there are also consid­erable differ­ences.

How important is/would sustain­ability be to you when selecting a property?

A clear focus on energy-related topics

Four out of five homeowners surveyed stated that a building’s energy efficiency was important or even decisive when choosing a property. The proportion of owners who described energy efficiency as a decisive building feature has remained constant since last year. However, the number of respon­dents who answered “fairly important” has increased by 10 percentage points since the previous year.

This is likely due to the rise in energy costs, as there was no similarly signif­icant change among tenants. Although energy-related issues are also a priority for the latter, this is generally to a lesser degree than for owners. However, tenants attach more impor­tance to issues that receive less approval overall – such as green facades and roofs, and building certi­fi­cation. Car-free living is marginally gaining in impor­tance, but remains rather incidental (around 37%), if not completely irrel­evant (41%), for most Swiss people when looking for a property.

Which of the following sustain­ability issues are/would be important to you when choosing a residential property?

Tenants: Are sustain­ability and energy efficiency under­es­ti­mated?

Although the impor­tance of sustain­ability has also increased among tenants looking for a home in recent years, this factor is still noticeably less important than it is among owners. One of the main reasons for this is probably that tenants simply have fewer oppor­tu­nities to make changes to the property, and therefore feel more at the mercy of the market.

It is also conceivable that tenants do not think they would benefit from an energy-efficient refur­bishment. One example of this would be that while investors may reap the positive financial effects of replacing a heating system, tenants would see an increase in rent due to the passing on of investment costs. However, this assumption would be short-sighted, as replacing the heating system would actually signif­i­cantly reduce tenants’ ancillary costs. Ultimately, targeted refur­bishment should also have a positive result for tenants, as the Wüest Partner study Energetische Sanierungen: 3 Gewinner (“Energy-efficient refur­bish­ments: 3 winners”) shows.

What factors motivate an energy-efficient refur­bishment?

As energy-efficient refur­bish­ments in existing properties are very important for achieving net-zero targets, we asked what motivates people to renovate. According to the results of our Immo-Barometer survey, the reduction in energy costs and available equity were decisive factors for owners in around a third of cases and important for planned refur­bish­ments in a further third. This means that the financial component is more of a priority than improving sustain­ability. Subsidies, tax deduc­tions, and favorable financing condi­tions were also important in more than half of all cases, both for apartment and single-family homeowners.

How important are/were the following factors for the planned mainte­nance projects?

Why aren’t more renova­tions being carried out?

Those who were not planning any (or only minor) renova­tions were asked why. Unsur­pris­ingly, the majority of respon­dents stated that refur­bishing their property was not currently necessary. However, these results should be treated with caution. This is because the question was posed in such a way as to focus more on the subjective perception of the need for action and the renovation cycle than the ecological and economic effects.

While refur­bishment may not seem necessary in all cases, it can never­theless bring both financial and ecological benefits. For example, Wüest Partner’s analysis from 2023, Immo-Monitoring 2023 | 2 (in German), showed that single-family homes with renewable heating systems and solar panels achieve higher sales prices. The price of a house with a heat pump and solar system in Switzerland can be 4.6 percent higher on average (CHF 55,000 for an average price of CHF 1.2 million) than that of compa­rable properties with fossil fuel heating systems and without photo­voltaic systems. In the case of modern wood heating combined with a photo­voltaic system, the price even rises by 5.4 percent. For apart­ments, the price increase due to renewable energies is somewhat lower. However, the advan­tages and disad­van­tages of an energy-efficient refur­bishment must be examined on a case-by-case basis. Wüest Refurb assists in this regard (see info box for more).

Why aren’t more homes being renovated, if at all?

Conclusion

Sustain­ability is, therefore, becoming increas­ingly influ­ential and has become an indis­pensable factor in the search for a home. The impor­tance of the topic is signif­i­cantly higher among owners than tenants. This is partly because the former have more room for maneuver and partly because they are more directly affected by the associated costs.

The challenges to achieving the net-zero target remain, but the survey is encour­aging in that the trend of increasing impor­tance of sustain­ability and energy consumption in the real estate market continues. However, the survey also shows that the cost component plays a key role in energy-efficient renova­tions, especially in the current environment of rising financing costs.

This article is the second part of the blog trilogy on the Immo-Barometer survey. The first part, Swiss housing satis­faction: in-depth analysis of trends and influ­encing factors, highlighted general housing satis­faction and important factors in property selection. In the third and final part (Housing satis­faction in the context of urban consol­i­dation), the topic of housing satis­faction in connection with building density will be discussed in greater depth.