According to the Le Matin Dimanche newspaper,many cities are close to reaching the 20% limit on the proportion of genuine estate stock not occupied year-round. The regulation limiting moment homes to 20% came into force in 2016 and was the result of a successful people’s initiative in 2011. The rationale put forth by proponents was to protect the Alps from urbanisation. Among the Swiss cities at risk of breaching the restriction are Fribourg, Bern, and Nyon,Cologny and Sion, with a moment home percentage between 17.5% and 19.6%. Montreux on Lake Geneva’s shores is already above the accepted limit at 22.5%. “This situation imposes constraints on us, and " acknowledged Montreux’s mayor Laurent Wehrli. He placed the blame partly on short-term lets of properties via the online platform Airbnb. The city plans bring down its share of moment homes by raising the tourist tax in order to encourage long-term rentals and will also build more residential apartments. However,some cities dispute ...
Source: swissinfo.ch