Mortgage debt owed by Swiss homeowners is high in comparison with other countries, and in many cases, they don't fully pay it off.

Current OASI (old age and survivors' insurance) legislation stipulates that bonus points for educational activities can be taken into account when calculating benefits. These bonus points are not given in the form of cash payments, but in the form of "fictitious" revenue that is only taken into account at the time when the benefits are calculated. The result is that persons with dependents under the age of 16 can potentially receive higher benefits.

On August 20, the Economic Committee of the Council of States defined the following key points :

Rental value will be eliminated for primary residences. Secondary residences will not be affected by this policy change out of consideration for the mountain cantons who fear a significant loss in tax receipts.

What will the social impact be of the rise of a new technological era, of which we are only feeling the very first tremors? How do we keep whole sectors of society from falling down economically?

Bern, 21.09.2018 - The old-age and survivors' insurance (OASI) and disability insurance (DI) benefits will be adjusted January 1, 2019, based on the changes in wages and prices. The Federal Council made this decision during its 21 September 2018 session. The minimum OASI/DI benefit will be increased to 1185 francs per month. At the same time, changes will be made to fund contributions, supplementary benefits, and obligatory occupational pension funds.

Whether due to an inheritance or stroke of luck, private individuals sometimes build property to generate investment returns without necessarily being real estate professionals. What are the pitfalls to be avoided?