Buying the house I rent

Accomodation, House and Garden
1
Hey all,

I'm looking for some advice. I would like to make an offer on the house I'm currently renting. I am relatively new to Switzerland and would appreciate some advice on how to get started.

Who should I seek professional advice from to get started? I don't want to contact our current landlord real estate company until I'm ready to make an offer.

If I could start a discussion here about people's experiences I figure that would be a good way to start.

All the best,

Hugh

2
For a start do you even have the right to buy? What permit and nationality?

Are there any indications owners are looking to sell? I guess you could send an offer - asking wouldn't hurt, but expect a rejection in most cases as people are holding onto properties for a long time here and selling may not have crossed their mind at all. So don't waste too much time and emotions on it. Unless you're loaded with money and can make an offer way above market.

3
As previously explained, people in Switzerland generally want to hold onto property, as real estate is quite hard to find and rental properties are considered a pretty good investment these days (especially compared to other investments).

Because of that, I'd perhaps try to contact your landlord and ask them if they'd be open to an offer from you for the house, before you do any work.

The small risk you'd face is that you might awake interest in selling the property, but your landlord might decide then to put it on the market.

Good luck - the bright side is that at least you've found a house that you like so much you'd consider buying it. In the dificult world of Swiss real estate, that's a pretty good situation to be in.

4
Thanks for the reply. Think I’ll have a go at an offer and see how we go.

Cheers,

Hugh

5
Before you put in an offer, make sure that your permit allows you to buy, and that you either have your own cash or that the mortgage would be approved, in principle, by one (or check with a second) bank. This way, you will be able to tell the owners that, right from the start.

However, I agree with this:

and not only from the perspective of your work, but because it might be considered brash to just offer to buy without first having gently approached the topic with the owner.

6
We're doing the same thing, and our first step was to talk to the landlord and make sure that they are interested in selling. Turns out they were so we're moving to the next step which is determining a sales price. If we can agree on a price that is within our budget, then we go from there.

A few things to think about :

* If you're an American the banks won't touch you with a 10-foot (3.048 meter) pole for a mortgage. I had to get a Swiss Wife to get a Swiss Mortgage.

* I recommend you talk to a mortgage broker. You pay an upfront fee but your mortgage will likely be cheaper. We're using MoneyPark ( https://moneypark.ch/ ). So far they've been excellent.

* Your downpayment will likely be 20% of the purchase price or higher. Property in almost any other country cannot be used a collateral.

Best of luck to you.

7
We asked as well, got the house, the one next door and four garages. But first we ASKED... Good luck.