Dorothea Vollenweider (text) and Philippe Rossier (photos)
The bus route from St. Gallen to Rehetobel AR takes 30 minutes. The road is steep and winding. The trail leads out of town and into the hilly area of Appenzellerland. The view that opens after the first curves is a blessing for every resident of the city: green as far as the eye can see. Previous pastures and cow paddock. The Appenzell farmhouses stand on some of the green hills. But most of the landscape is unexploited.
Not only is the view better here than in the city. Property prices are also unbeatable in comparison. According to Wüest Partner, a family home with five rooms costs about 100,000 francs less than in the area around St. Petersburg. Gallen. Compared to the city, home buyers even save over 200,000 francs.
Young people no longer have their own homes
This makes Rehetobel an attractive real estate market – especially for first-time buyers like Thiemo (28) and Eveline Brunner (28). Blick visits her here at her condominium. It is not self-evident for the young couple to have their own house. “We’ve been looking for a suitable property for a long time,” says electrician Thiemo Brunner. “But our limited share capital was a problem.”
The Brunners are not alone in this. Especially at a young age, very few have enough savings to be able to afford a house or a condominium. This is also due to the fact that real estate prices in Switzerland have risen much faster than incomes for more than ten years.
According to a study by the insurance company Swiss Life, the average first-time home buyer in Switzerland is 48 years old. For comparison: in the UK the age is 27, in France the average first-time buyer is 31 and in Germany 34.
And in Switzerland the desire for a home of his own is not born only at the age of 48. It usually coincides with starting a family. But at the moment, with current property prices, almost no Swiss can afford a house.
The start-up is disrupting the housing market
Thanks to start-up Hellohome, Brunner’s eyes are still drawn to their Rehetobel co-ownership. Hellohome’s business idea can be compared to renting a car – just for the house instead of the car.
“Hellohome comes into play when a buyer does not have enough equity for the property,” says Marius Federle, 37. He is a co-founder of the Swiss start-up. He manages Hellohome with Sven Bruss (30) and Nima Safai Rad (37).
Hellohome helps shoppers
“When our buyers are approaching, the first step is to check the ownership of their dreams and their financial situation,” says Federle. If all goes well, the start-up allows the purchase of the property with additional capital. In specific terms, this means: Hellohome buys the apartment or house for prospective owners. They have to pay ten percent of the purchase price for it. Hellohome takes care of the rest. The start-up has the money for this from private investors.
This is how the lease-purchase process works
With its business model, the Swiss start-up Hellohome addresses home buyers who do not have the necessary equity to acquire a home. They help new home buyers financially.
Prior to entering into a contract, Hellohome checks the buyer’s equity and income as well as the desired property. “It must also be reasonably demonstrated how the mortgage can be made affordable after the end of the rental period,” says Marius Federle, 37, co-founder of the start-up.
If all the qualifications are met, Hellohome enables its customers to make a so-called rental purchase. Buyers acquire the right to purchase at the rate of ten percent of the purchase price. With this, and with additional capital from the investors, the start-up buys the property.
“Prospective buyers can move into their home or condominium right away, but they will have to pay rent right now,” says Federle. Depending on the duration of the contract, the lease lasts from five to ten years. Then the residents have the right to buy their own house.
If they want it, they must have the necessary capital by then to take over the property at the initial purchase price. The ten percent initially invested will be credited to them. But not the rent paid.
With its business model, the Swiss start-up Hellohome addresses home buyers who do not have the necessary equity to acquire a home. They help new home buyers financially.
Prior to entering into a contract, Hellohome checks the buyer’s equity and income as well as the desired property. “It must also be reasonably demonstrated how the mortgage can be made affordable after the end of the rental period,” says Marius Federle, 37, co-founder of the start-up.
If all the qualifications are met, Hellohome enables its customers to make a so-called rental purchase. Buyers acquire the right to purchase at the rate of ten percent of the purchase price. With this, and with additional capital from the investors, the start-up buys the property.
“Prospective buyers can move into their home or condominium right away, but they will have to pay rent right now,” says Federle. Depending on the duration of the contract, the lease lasts from five to ten years. Then the residents have the right to buy their own house.
If they want it, they must have the necessary capital by then to take over the property at the initial purchase price. The ten percent initially invested will be credited to them. But not the rent paid.
At Brunners, the start-up gave the green light. Its condominium in Rehetobel cost 526,000 francs. The Brunners had to pay CHF 52,600 for this as a so-called purchase option.
For comparison: In the bank, a home buyer must contribute 20 percent of the purchase price in the form of equity. In the Brunners, that would be 105,200 francs. An amount that exceeded their financial capabilities.
Equity as the biggest obstacle
There are various studies on how many Swiss can still afford to own their own home today. According to Zürcher Kantonalbank, this only applies to ten percent of tenants.
Despite all the adversity, the dream came true for the Brunners. In January 2022, the newlyweds were allowed to move into the 5-room apartment. Eveline Brunner is happy with the decision to buy the condominium with Hellohome. “Here we can plan our future – there is also space for a children’s room,” says the hairdresser. The couple does not have children yet. But he wants a family.
First rent and then buy
For now, the couple is still paying rent: 1,300 francs net plus 475 francs at an additional cost per month. The owner is Hellohome. The Brunners had contractually confirmed that they could buy the co-ownership at the original price after the eight-year contract period. Initially invested equity is then credited to you.
However, the rent that arises during the five to ten year contract is not deducted from the purchase price. In the case of the Brunners, the rental cost a total of CHF 124,800 during the eight-year contract – excluding ancillary costs.
If you give up, you lose the money you invested
And: If buyers are excluded from the lease-purchase agreement or decide not to buy it, they will not get back the invested capital – that is, ten percent of the purchase price. As a result, the Brunners would lose more than 50,000 francs.
The start-up is taking advantage of the emergency situation of many Swiss who would like to own their own home but cannot overcome the funding hurdles. Of course, young entrepreneurs want to make money with this. They do not reveal how big the margin they earn by renting. They just had to adapt the calculation model for the first time. Interest rates have risen sharply since the beginning of the year.
It remains to be seen if the Hellohome idea will work. The start-up has been on the market for a year now. “Since then, we have been able to show more than 80 individuals and families a specific perspective on their home,” says Federle. Some of them have already realized their dream home, others are still in the middle of the process.