Common questions
General information, not advice. Only the cantonal authority decides whether a purchase is authorised, and only a bank decides on financing. The Arabic guide sets out the same answers with the official sources behind them.
Does buying a property give me residence in Switzerland?
No. Immigration and property are two entirely separate files. A holiday home gives no permit and no right to stay longer than your visa allows.
I live outside Switzerland and I am not Swiss. What may I actually buy?
One holiday home, for your own use, in your own name, in a commune the canton has designated for it — the Riviera and the Vaud and Valais resorts — with a living area of up to 200 m². That is the open route. It may be let for short periods only.
Can I buy to let it out, or as an investment?
No. Swiss law (Lex Koller, art. 12 let. a LFAIE) closes residential letting and investment to a person living abroad. Buying through a company or in somebody else's name is not a way round it: it voids the purchase and is a criminal offence.
Can I let it on Airbnb all year?
Not a holiday home held under an authorisation. Short periods only, and your commune may restrict even that to protect housing for residents.
How many holiday homes may one family own?
One. The law counts you, your spouse and your minor children as a single family.
The listing says "open to foreigners". Does that settle it?
No. Ask for the property's documents and for the notary's check. Each purchase is still decided on its own facts, and the quota for the commune has to have room in it.
I hold a Swiss B permit. What changes?
If you are a third-country national with a B permit, you may buy the home you actually live in, where you live. A holiday home and an investment property stay closed to you while you hold that permit.
What does it cost on top of the price?
In Vaud the transfer tax is usually 3.3% of market value — 2.2% to the canton, 1.1% to the commune — plus notary and land-registry fees, which vary with the price, the complexity and any mortgage. Add the legal review, financing costs and maintenance. Ask for a written simulation of the whole deal rather than a rule of thumb.
Can a non-resident get a Swiss mortgage?
Swiss banks typically finance 50–60% for a non-resident, so plan 35–50% of the price in cash plus about 5% in purchase costs. But no ratio is guaranteed: the bank sets the own funds it wants and judges affordability from your file, and opening the account often takes longer than the search itself. We do not broker mortgages.
How long does the whole thing take?
Plan five to nine months from the start of the search to the keys. Opening the Swiss bank account, the cantonal authorisation (six to twelve weeks) and the notarial process run one after the other, not in parallel.
Do you work in Geneva?
Geneva has no holiday-home route for a non-resident. We propose the Riviera instead — about an hour away by car or direct train, and open.
What tax will I pay each year, and when I sell?
Property taxes and a limited tax liability may arise; what you actually pay depends on the canton, your personal situation and the treaty with your country. On a sale, a tax on the capital gain may apply, at a rate that depends on how long you held the property, the gain and cantonal law.
What exactly do you do, and what does it cost?
CHF 1'999, all in: a private kick-off call of 60 minutes in Arabic or English, a written search brief within two working days, up to 3 properties matching that brief, viewings organised with our partner agency, and follow-up for 90 days. If we do not send you one property matching your brief within 30 days of the call, the fee is refunded in full on request. And if you, a member of your household or someone acting for you buys a property we proposed during the service, the fee is refunded in full within 10 days of the deed, whenever the deed is signed.
When do I pay, and what if it does not work out?
If your answers to the qualification form show a route open by law and a budget that fits, you can book the kick-off call and pay at the end of the form. Otherwise Bassem reads your request first and sends you the booking link once your route is clear. Cancel 2 or more days before the call and the fee is refunded in full, automatically; if we find before the call that we cannot help you, we refund it in full ourselves.
And what do you not do?
We do not negotiate the price, draft or review contracts, run the notarial process, file the Lex Koller application, arrange mortgages, or give legal, tax, immigration or investment advice, and we do not manage property. Renting is a separate service of ours, described below.
Are you an estate agency? And who pays you?
No. We are an independent search consultant in Switzerland, we never act for the seller, and we never receive or hold your money. You pay us CHF 1'999 for the search service. After that we are paid by one side only, never both, and you know which before you commit to a property: either the agency we introduced you to shares its commission with us — in which case we do not negotiate for you — or you ask us to negotiate for you, and we agree that fee with you in writing first. Section 7 of the terms sets out both, with the figures.
Do you also help people rent?
Yes, through a separate service: the rental service, for furnished luxury residences in Geneva, Lausanne and the Riviera (Vevey, Montreux), on leases of 12 months or more, for rents from CHF 10'000 a month. You send a request on the rental page; Bassem reads it himself and, if he takes your search, sends you the payment link. The fee is CHF 999, refunded in full if you rent a residence we proposed, or if we propose nothing within 30 days of your payment. When you rent a residence we proposed, the owner or the agency pays us. Section 15 of the terms sets out the rules.
My question is not here.
Answer the qualification form — five minutes, no documents. It tells you on the spot what Swiss law allows in your particular case, and it reaches Bassem with your answers already in it, which is the fastest way to a real reply.