Rent Reduction 2025 – How to Secure Your Rights
9/1/2025
As of 2 September 2025, the Swiss Federal Office for Housing has lowered the official mortgage reference rate from 1.50% to 1.25%.
For many tenants in Switzerland, this means one thing: their current rent may be too high.
However, a reduction does not happen automatically. Only those who take action can benefit.
What does this mean for you?
A decrease of the reference rate by 0.25 percentage points corresponds, under current practice, to a rent reduction of around 2.91%.
The adjustment applies both to apartment rents as well as separately rented parking spaces.
Precondition: Your rent is still based on a higher reference rate (e.g. 1.50% or 1.75%).
How to proceed
Check your rental contract – the applicable reference rate is usually indicated in the contract or in rent adjustment notices.
Submit a written request – send a reduction request by registered mail to your landlord or property management.
Respect the deadlines – the request must be received before the beginning of the termination period to take effect at the next contractual date.
Await confirmation – the landlord must provide written confirmation of the new rent or give a reasoned explanation if they do not (fully) grant the reduction (e.g. due to inflation, rising costs, or investments).
Template letter for you
To make the process simple, we have prepared a legally sound template letter that you can complete with your personal details.
Conclusion: The reduction of the reference rate is a valuable opportunity to optimise your housing costs. With a simple letter, you can enforce your right – and save several hundred Swiss francs per year.
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