Real Estate Crowdfunding in Switzerland

Real estate crowdfunding is a vehicle which lets you invest in properties and earn money from rental income. Here, moneyland.ch explains the advantages and risks of real estate crowdfunding in Switzerland using the standard co-ownership model.

How does standard real estate crowdfunding work?

In Switzerland, real estate can be divided into co-ownership shares, enabling one property to have multiple co-owners. These co-owned properties can be rented out, and rental income can be distributed among co-owners as per their shares and agreements.

In recent years, a number of specialized service providers have appeared which facilitate the process of buying shares of properties to earn rental income.

Which services do real estate crowdfunding platforms provide?

Real estate crowdfunding platforms combine services normally offered by real estate agencies, property managers, and asset managers.

The exact services offered vary between real estate crowdfunding service providers, but may include:

Which real estate crowdfunding services operate in Switzerland?

There are currently three Swiss service providers which specialize in real estate crowdfunding and offer the standard co-ownership model. These are Crowdhouse, Crowdli, and Foxstone.

What are the costs of real estate crowdfunding?

Crowdfunding service providers charge fees. Some fees apply just once, while others are ongoing. The most important fees to look at before you invest are:

In addition to fees charged by crowdfunding platforms, there are other costs which are deducted from rental income:

How much do I have to invest?

The minimum amount you can invest in a property varies between real estate crowdfunding platforms. You can find the exact amounts in the table below.

In every case, a primary mortgage is used to leverage the investment. You and your fellow co-owners only have to provide the capital required to cover the remainder of the purchase price.

What happens if not enough investors want to buy the property?

Real estate crowdfunding platforms make use of third-party escrow services from banks. If the platform finds enough investors to buy a property, the transaction goes through. If not, the money is returned to you as the investor.

What obligations apply to co-owners?

Real estate crowdfunding is not an entirely passive investment vehicle. As a property’s legal owner, you or an appointed proxy must attend co-owner general meetings (normally once per year). Some crowdfunding service providers offer proxy services for meetings. Your involvement may also be required when larger costs or legal issues arise.

What happens at the end of the investment term?

Platforms generally purchase properties with the goal of selling them at the end of a predetermined investment term. This is typically between 7 and 10 years. If the property gains in value by the end of the investment term, you may make a capital gain when it is sold (in addition to possible rental income during the investment term). However, whether or not you make a return on your investment also depends on the total costs. 

Real estate crowdfunding platforms generally manage the sale of the property for you. However, they cannot force you to sell a property. Co-owners can vote on whether or not to sell, in keeping with laws governing property co-ownership.

What are the risks of real estate crowdfunding?

Important: In 2025, Swiss voters approved the proposal to do away with imputed rental values. This proposal included provisions that affect tax deductions for property maintenance and renovations. The changes, which are meant to be implemented in 2029, may have substantial impacts on real estate investments. It is important to consider this before you invest in real estate.

Which factors should I consider when using real estate crowdfunding platforms?

As a first step, you will want to get independent information about crowdfunding services from reliable sources. Also take time to carefully review each service provider’s terms and conditions before you commit.

The minimum investment amount per property is an important consideration. A low minimum requirement lets you diversify across multiple properties even if you do not have very large amounts of capital.

Target returns should not be a primary factor when choosing a platform, as there is no sure way of knowing that these targets will be met.

Comparing total costs is also important. This can be difficult because fee models vary between platforms. This chart provides an overview of the most important differences between Swiss real estate crowdfunding platforms.

How is standard crowdfunding different from real estate funds?

Real estate funds are a long-established vehicle for investing in Swiss real estate. Unlike real estate crowdfunding, you do not own real estate or hold title deeds. Instead, you buy shares in a fund which invests in real estate. If the fund makes a return on its property investments, it may pay out shareholder dividends. The value of your shares in a fund may also increase, in which case you could make a capital gain by selling your shares.

You can easily buy and sell shares in Swiss real estate exchange-traded funds (ETFs) using affordable Swiss online trading platforms. Index funds and actively-managed mutual funds are also available.

Major advantages of using real estate funds over standard crowdfunding include:

While the shareholder dividends of real estate funds have historically been lower than the target annual returns of crowdfunding platforms, the costs are also generally lower. It is also worth noting that because real estate crowdfunding is a new investment type, there is not yet enough historical data to conclusively show whether or not target returns are actually met. 

The average total expense ratio (TER) of Swiss real estate funds is around 0.76 percent, but actual TERs vary between funds.

A possible disadvantage of real estate investment funds is that you do not own actual property or hold title deeds. This means you do not directly own tangible assets. The performance of your investment is also heavily dependent on how the fund is managed.

Alternative crowdfunding models explained

A number of other real estate crowdfunding models exist in addition to the standard co-ownership model. The same crowdfunding company may offer more than one different model.

Some real estate crowdfunding services (like Immozins) offer one or more of these, but do not use the standard co-ownership model.

Each of these alternative models has its own set of risks and peculiarities which are not covered in this guide.

More on this topic:
Compare Swiss mortgage offers now
What to consider when buying property in Switzerland
How to invest in Swiss real estate
How to invest in real estate ETFs
Compare Swiss online trading platforms now