homegate.ch survey: Swiss people are loyal to their mortgage lender
Zurich, June 27, 2018 – 40% of people living in Switzerland own a house or apartment. In Ticino, with 58%, there are more than the average number of homeowners. This is shown by a recent survey conducted by homegate.ch on the subject of home financing in Switzerland. What is surprising about this is that usually only one to two quotes are obtained for accepting a mortage, and in the majority of cases, this is based on the existing business relationship in choosing the provider.
Fixed-rate mortgage as the first choice
For 82% of the respondents, the fixed-rate mortgage is by far the most popular model for financing home ownership. Significantly less common are the Libor mortgage (11%) and the variable mortgage (just 2%). Half of the respondents conclude their real estate loan in installments.
The main reasons for choosing the fixed-rate mortgage are the fixed term and the associated planning certainty (58%) as well as the fixed interest rate, which offers protection against rising interest rates (46%). The majority of respondents with a fixed-rate mortgage (67%) finalized a mortgage with a term of six to ten years.
Financing and investiture
Mortgages between CHF 500’001 and CHF 750’000 are most frequently accepted in Switzerland (25%). In western Switzerland and Ticino the sums are lower. Loans between CHF 400’001 and CHF 500’000 are the most frequently requested. One in four uses their pension fund credit for financing. In western Switzerland, the proportion is highest at 32%, followed by Ticino (30%) and German-speaking Switzerland (23%).
The home is borrowed by 32% of respondents up to a maximum of 40%, by 21% the percentage is even higher with 41-60% and 22% claim to borrow on their own home up to 61-80%.
Well informed and loyal
Generally, respondents consulted advice from a bank or insurance company before accepting their mortgage (64%). Also, comparison portals (21%) or contacts to acquaintances, who also own real estate (20%), are often used to gain insights.
Above all, respondents were informed about current interest rates (75%), advantages and disadvantages of different mortgage models (54%) and/or the maturities (49%). Interested people seem to know precisely what they want. The majority (80%) tended to opt for a model even before collecting information. Once they committed themselves to a provider, they remain loyal to it in case of renewal or extension in 77% of the cases. The most loyal are the Swiss Germans (79%), while only 56% of the people of Ticino remain with the same mortgage lender. The decision takes into account, essentially, the existing business relationship (55%), followed by good advice (36%) and nearby branches (27%).
Offers
It is also amazing that often only one offer is obtained before the closing (42%). Of the Italian-speaking respondents, even more than half (53%) stated they had only requested one offer. In western Switzerland, people seem to get more information, because 68% of respondents rely on more than one offer. Almost three-quarters (74%) have sought this personally from a consultant.
Study design
The representative study comprises a systematic analysis of financing home ownership by persons resident in Switzerland. To this end, 997 persons between the ages of 18 and 74 years were interviewed in German, French and Italian speaking Switzerland during the period from April 5 to 19, 2018.
About Homegate AG
Homegate AG was founded in 2001 and has since developed into the leading digital company in the Swiss real estate market. With more than 8.7 million visitors and over 90,000 current real estate offers, homegate.ch is the number one Swiss real estate portal (Net-Metrix Audit 5/2018; Visits). At its headquarters in Zurich and Lausanne, Homegate AG employs more than 80 people. Homegate AG belongs to the Swiss media group Tamedia AG; another shareholder is Zürcher Kantonalbank.
Media contact
Homegate AG
Melaney Zaubek
Junior Social Media Manager
+41 44 711 86 41
melaney.zaubek@homegate.ch
