Swiss step model
There is a great need for renovation in Switzerland's building stock. The renovation rate is clearly too low in the context of the energy transition and the energy crisis. Every second apartment built before 1980 is in need of renovation from an energy perspective. Landlords in Switzerland have too few incentives to carry out renovation work on the buildings they rent out in order to achieve more efficient use of fossil fuels. Effective instruments for achieving the Swiss energy targets for 2050 are lacking and incentives for investments in energy efficiency are inadequate or at least in need of improvement. The potential for improvement in the area of building energy efficiency is particularly high in Switzerland.
In Germany, such an incentive system will be introduced from 2023 using a so-called tiered model. The tiered model regulates the distribution of the cost of the CO2 tax between tenants and landlords. The more energy-inefficient the rented residential property is, the higher the share to be borne by the landlords.
The concrete political and legal feasibility of a tiered model in the Swiss context is currently being analyzed.
The German step model
In Germany, an additional CO2 tax has been levied for heating with oil or natural gas since 2021. For the first time, this was borne entirely by tenants. Recently, however, costs have been allocated according to a tiered model that divides the CO2 tax in the residential sector fairly between landlords and tenants. For residential buildings, this means that the share of costs for the landlord increases the worse the energy balance of the respective building is.
If the facade of a building is poorly insulated or the windows or heating system are outdated, more energy is needed for heating. The more energy is used, the higher the CO2 tax. Tenants have no influence on these conditions compared to homeowners. For this reason, the tiered model attempts to share the costs of the CO2 tax fairly between tenants and landlords.
According to the idea of the tiered model, the worse the energy efficiency of the rented building is, the more a landlord contributes to the costs. If a rented residential property is particularly climate-friendly, the landlord incurs fewer costs. This creates incentives for landlords to carry out energy-related renovation work in the sense of a "bonus-malus system".
The basic idea is to create a structure in which the costs of targeted energy-related renovation work are divided fairly between the landlord and tenant so that the landlords make the necessary improvements to their buildings. The necessary incentives are created, for example the lower additional costs incurred by the tenant after renovation could benefit the landlord until the investment is paid off.
Smooth integration of a tiered model in Switzerland
An adapted step model similar to the German CO2 step model could be introduced in Switzerland. For apartments with a poor energy balance, landlords would bear 90% of the energy costs and tenants 10%. For buildings with an efficient Minergie standard, the landlord would not have to bear any costs as long as defined energy standards are achieved. Tenants could also save energy and additional costs through their behavior.
The precise effectiveness of the incentives and the detailed design of such a tiered model are currently being investigated. Further information will follow shortly.