Fees when buying a house in Switzerland: what to expect

1. What are the extra costs when buying a house?

When you buy a house, there are fees to pay in addition to the purchase price. These are sometimes referred to as “ancillary purchase costs”. In Switzerland, these include:

• Property transfer tax

• Notary fees

• Land registry fees

• Mortgage note charges

These costs are usually borne half by the buyer and half by the seller. One exception is the mortgage note. The property transfer tax is normally paid by the buyer.

Important: the sale contract states who pays which costs.

2. Cantonal taxes and fees for change of ownership

In some cantons, property transfer tax is due when a property changes hands. This is not prescribed by the federal government and is handled differently by the individual cantons.

Some cantons also decide on the tax liability of the parties. This means the canton determines whether the parties divide the taxes or not.

3. Notary fees when buying a house in Switzerland

You have to pay notary fees for or the public certification of the purchase agreement. These fees vary from canton to canton. They can also vary from notary to notary. 

In most cases, the costs are less than 1% of the selling price.

Notary costs when buying a home: it depends on type of notary

For cantons with official notaries, the costs are fixed. In cantons with independent notaries, the notaries decide what fees to charge themselves. Get quotes in advance. In most cases, both parties share the notary costs.

4. Land registry fees

Making an entry in the land register incurs costs. This usually amounts to less than 1% of the sales price. Depending on the canton, these costs are calculated according to:

• Time required 

• A fee rate dependent on the purchase price

Normally, each party pays half of the land registry costs.

5. Mortgage note charges

There may also be a charge for creating a mortgage note. This is issued for the amount borrowed as debt financing. For example, a mortgage is considered to be debt financing.

The cost range for a mortgage note is usually between 0.1-0.3% of the mortgage debt. These fees are waived if the purchasing party takes over an existing mortgage note.

6. Costs when making an early withdrawal from your occupational pension

Are you planning to finance part of the property with a early withdrawal from your occupational pension? If so, you have to pay a lump-sum tax on the amount you withdraw.

Additional fees may be charged for an official notice in the land register that the purchase has been financed in part through the advance withdrawal of pension fund assets. This is the case in the canton of Zurich, for example. The note is often referred to as a “sale restriction”.

7. When do I need to pay these extra costs?

The costs related to the purchase process are invoiced directly to the involved parties. They will be sent a bill by the notary or the land registry office after the appointment with the notary to sign the contract.

The property transfer tax is due when registering for the land register entry. You must pay for it before the transfer of ownership.

8. Which ancillary purchase costs are tax deductible?

You can’t claim the ancillary costs of purchasing a property for tax purposes.

As a property owner, however, you can deduct various other costs from your taxes. Depending on the canton, this includes value-preserving measures or certain maintenance costs.

9. Extra costs when buying a house: checklist

• Check the ancillary purchase costs in your canton well in advance. This way, high fees and charges will not come as an unpleasant surprise. Use the information about the notarial system in your canton.

• Consciously budget for a financial reserve to cover ancillary purchase costs. This is about 5% of the purchase price.

• After you have purchased the property, you may incur additional costs – for renovations, for example. You should also budget enough money for this work if it is not covered by the mortgage.