According to new figures released by the city council, in June 2022, there was and remains a significant shortage of apartments available to rent in Zurich. The number of vacant homes within city limits has fallen by half since 2021, with officials blaming a lack of construction and population growth.

Significant shortage of apartments to rent in Zurich

According to Statistics City of Zurich, on June 1 there were exactly 161 apartments available to rent in a city of over 400.000 people. This means that the official “vacancy rate” in the city has fallen from 0,17 percent in June 2021 to 0,07 percent today - its lowest level for 11 years.

The decline has affected all apartment sizes, with the exception of homes which are larger than five rooms. The most acute shortages were found in smaller apartments and those that are considered to be more affordable.

Population growth blamed for apartment shortages in Switzerland

According to 20 minuten, the council (Gemeinde) has blamed the current shortages on population growth. Over the last year, 6.000 people were either born in the city or moved to Zurich to find a job, while only 800 new apartments were built during the same period. Swiss bank and cooperative Raiffeisen recently reported that housing shortages are being felt across the country, as the number of new houses and apartments built struggles to keep up with demand from new families and expats.

However, according to 20 minuten, this shortage could ease slightly in the future. They found that the data from Zurich was recorded at a time when numerous apartments had just been demolished, while buildings to replace them had yet to be finished - although it remains unlikely that the new buildings will alleviate the housing shortage.