The demolition of old buildings in order to rebuild housing causes lease terminations. These evictions mainly affect low -income households, according to a study on the effects of urban densification on the composition of the population, published Tuesday by the Confederation.
To overcome the shortage of housing in Switzerland, one of the options in major cities and their agglomerations is to demolish old buildings to replace them with new ones. The study of the EPFZ, carried out on the mandate of the Federal Housing Office (OFL), focused on Geneva, Lausanne, Berne, Zurich and Basel.
With the reallocation of industrial surfaces, the demolishing and rebuilding option represents up to 63% of new constructions, while it was exceptional in the early 2000s. The possibility of raising existing buildings is also on the table. On the other hand, there are almost no new housing on non -built land, according to the study.
Pernicious social consequences
In parallel, many existing buildings must be renovated to meet new energy standards, noted Martin Tschirren, director of OFL, during an online press briefing. All these construction activities have social consequences, which changes the socio-demography of neighborhoods.
Rather, it is low -income households that occupy old buildings, because rents are generally lower. The average household salary which had to leave their housing was 30.5% lower than 39.6% to that of the population average, details the study.
Conversely, new housing, which replace the old buildings, are occupied by people who have income 14.6% to 38.7% above average. The evictions therefore affect people who will probably know difficulty finding affordable accommodation, underlines the study.
People who ask for asylum are recognized refugees and those who are nationals of Africa are particularly affected by these eviction effects, said David Kaufmann, professor at EPFZ.
Fiona Kauer, doctoral student, added that age also plays a role: people ousted were between 5 and 12 years older, in median value, than those who replaced them. Thus, inhabitants and inhabitants of the new constructions are younger, with less generational mix.
The city of Zurich particularly concerned
The study also shows that fewer people have been moved to Geneva and Lausanne than in German -speaking Switzerland. Between 2015 and 2020, 0.08% of the Geneva population was affected by evictions, against 0.23% in Lausanne and 1.02% in Zurich.
Thus, in the largest city in Switzerland, it was necessary to relocate about twelve times more people than in Geneva, illustrated Fiona Kauer. The percentage in Zurich is relatively high, commented David Kaufmann, recalling that these are people who have been forced to leave their accommodation.
AUTHORS AND AUTHORS OF THE STUDY FACT COMPLETED ON THE COLLECTIVE BUILDINGS OF AT LEVEL OF AT MOVELS THREE THREE A apartments, with long -term tenants, for more than three years. The law of the lease is national, but the applications vary from one canton to another, and from one region to another, noted Martin Tschirren.
He explained that in Geneva and Lausanne, rules have been set to prevent rents from increasing too much after the renovation of buildings. However, “there is more freedom” in fixing rents after the demolition and reconstruction of buildings.
ats/sjaq
