Housing: Quiet times, rent and defects in Switzerland

Rented accomodation: what are the rules about noise?

Tenants should be respectful of the other people in the building and in the neighbourhood. This is a principle of tenancy law. In most rental properties, the house rules, also stipulate when and for how long you are allowed to play music, for example.

Designated quiet times in Switzerland

In many places, there is a designated quiet time between 10pm and 6am. Noisy activities, such as playing the drums or drilling and hammering, are prohibited. In most places, this also applies during the lunchtime break (12 noon to 1pm) and on Sundays and public holidays.

What can you do if there is a disturbance?

There is no clear rule as to when noise becomes a nuisance.

If you feel your neighbours are being too noisy, try to speak to them. If this does not help, inform the landlord in writing. If your neighbours are causing a disturbance repeatedly, you can call the police or the emergency number 117.

When noise reaches a certain level, such as noise that continues for weeks on end from building work, the law recognises this as a defect in the rented property. In such cases, you can ask the landlord to solve the problem within a reasonable period of time, for example 14 days, and demand a rent reduction. If the landlord does not respond, you can contact the conciliation board (link in german).

When am I entitled to a rent reduction?

Reasons for a rent reduction

If the reference interest rate is lowered. It is currently at 1.5%;
If your rent is based on a higher interest rate than the current reference rate;
Under certain circumstances, you can request a review of your rent within 30 days of moving into your home. For example, if you find that you are paying at least 10% more than the previous tenant.
If a defect in the apartment is causing you inconvenience. Examples could be an oven that does not work properly, problems with the heating system, construction work going on in the building, and noise issues.

How to request a rent reduction

Send your landlord a registered letter explaining the issue. If you have not received a response within 30 days, or if the answer you have received is unsatisfactory, you can contact the conciliation authority.

When is a rent increase permitted?

The landlord may increase the rent if:

prices are generally rising (inflation, link to Tenants' Association Glossary in German)
the reference interest rate has gone up,
maintenance and operating costs have increased (for example, administrative costs or property taxes);
major alterations or renovations that have brought improvements have been made.

The landlord must provide you with information

The landlord must notify you of the increase using an official form, explaining why the increase is being made
The landlord has to wait until the next lease termination date before raising the rent.
You must be notified of the rent increase at least 10 days before the start of the standard period of notice for terminating the lease.

How to calculate the rent increase

With the rent calculator you can check whether the increase is correct. If you have any doubts, you can contact the local conciliation authority.

What constitutes a defect in a rented property?

Tenancy law distinguishes between:

Major defects where the accommodation is practically uninhabitable, e.g. due to a burst water pipe. In such serious cases, the tenant may be able to terminate the tenancy agreement without notice.
Moderate defects: Although the accommodation is habitable, the tenant can only live there by tolerating serious inconvenience, e.g. if the fridge does not work.
Minor defects: blown fuses and light bulbs, or leaky seals in the bathroom. As a rule, tenants must rectify minor defects themselves and pay the costs.

What should you do if there is a defect?

If defects occur during the rental period, report them immediately to the landlord.

Defect on moving in

Insist that a list of defects is drawn up if there are obvious defects when you move into the rented property. This list of defects should be part of the flat handover report. If defects come to light shortly after moving in, you should report these to the landlord in writing within the first 10 to 30 days, depending on the terms of the lease.

Defect during the rental period

In the case of moderate and serious defects, you can demand that the landlord rectify them as soon as possible. Report the defect without delay. If the landlord does not respond, give the landlord official notice of the defect, i.e. send a registered letter with a precise description and photograph of the defect, and specify a reasonable deadline, e.g. 14 days, within which the landlord should rectify the defect.

If the landlord does not rectify the defect within a reasonable period of time, you can:

make your own arrangements for moderate defect to be rectified. For example, you can call in a heating engineer to repair the boiler and send the bill to the landlord.
withhold payment of the rent (by depositing your payment at an office specified by the canton) and/or request a rent reduction. If you do this, you will need to observe certain conditions and formalities. The conciliation authority can assist you. If you deposit your rent with the cantonal office, it is deemed to be paid.

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Housing: Quiet times, rent and defects