Thus, due to the long timespan of the limitation of free moving space, people changed their behaviour and their thinking. The trends of housing and cocooning increased and so it was argued that these changes of behavior led to new developments in renting an apartment, e. g. in terms of a greener surrounding for the kids, a higher life-time quality within the nature and a strengthened focus on healthcare. The demand for multi-family homes in Switzerland is growing due to low interest rates and strong loan-to-value conditions, so that above-average returns can be generated.

Real estate funds, pension funds and institutional investors as well as private investors and renters have increased their demand during the COVID-19 crisis. More time is spent at home and the desire for balcony or outdoor areas, less external noise and larger premises in general has changed the real estate market, so that the housing demand in suburban areas has increased. This thesis is investigating the price trends of asking rents of advertised apartments in Zurich relative to the neighbouring agglomeration because of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The hypothesis is whether the pandemic exerted an impact on rental prices in the city of Zurich and its sub-urban areas or not. Based on the analyses of almost 7,900 observations from 45 municipalities, from the city of Zurich to Bremgarten AG, it is evident that commuting time had a smaller negative impact on rental prices in the observed municipalities since COVID-19. This can be interpreted as meaning that commuting time plays a smaller role in the weighting of rent pricing, ergo people are more willing to live further away from the city of Zurich. Going forward, the client of this thesis will not only be able to take the theory of an appreciation of the agglomeration from the media into account when granting construction loans, but will also be able to assess the agglomeration around Zurich as an exciting investment opportunity on a statistically conducted basis.