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Despite Switzerland's peacefulness (the absence of NATO membership, the avoidance of military conflicts for many centuries, the policy of neutrality) the country is not as defenseless and harmless as it seems. Military service for all men, their own army and the presence of weapons in almost every house…
But the most interesting thing is that according to the law (Articles 45 and 46 of the Federal Law "On Civil Defense"), every resident of the country must have "a protected place to which you can quickly get from your home." That is why spacious public bomb shelters are everywhere, including in apartment buildings.
The massive construction of bunkers in Switzerland took place in the 1960s as a response to the fear of a nuclear strike. The phenomenon reached its peak in the 1970s. But until today there is an obligation to provide shelters to the population, even though their construction increases the cost of housing. The authorities believe that bunkers are needed not only in case of military conflicts or natural disasters, but also in case of terrorist attacks.
Bunkers are located in basements. They usually look the same: massive metal doors, armored walls and an air purification system. According to the regulations, there should be supplies of water, dry rations, medicines, lighters, batteries, flashlights and means of communication.
There are more than 300,000 shelters in various state and medical institutions, as well as apartment and private houses in the country, and more than 5,000 public shelters. In total, they provide protection to more than 8.6 million people, which is 114% of the population! For comparison, in countries where this issue is solved in a similar way (speaking of Sweden and Finland) these figures are 81% and 70%, respectively.
Since the number of bomb shelters exceeds the number of citizens, these rooms are often adapted to other needs. For example, they arrange a pantry there, where they store personal belongings or products. This is not prohibited by law, but the owner should have 24 hours to clean the room if necessary.
Inside a nuclear bunker - every Swiss home has to have one or access to one #continuitymsa pic.twitter.com/cjl1YQt3
— Harry Brown (@harry_cbrown) January 4, 2013
Of course, there are plenty of apartments in which washing machines are installed directly. But only residents of new buildings are lucky enough. In most cases, Swiss residents are forced to use common washing machines.
It is good if a unit of such equipment is installed on each floor of an apartment building. But most often a room on the ground floor is allocated for a laundry. As a rule, there is only one typewriter for all residents in it. In order to avoid queues, the Swiss make a schedule in which they plan the washing time.
In the same room you can usually find a drum dryer and a suspended dryer, which simply drives the air. Clotheslines are stretched in front of the latter, where you can hang your things and wait for them to dry under the pressure of air. The drying method depends on the person and his financial capabilities: for the drum you need to pay separately, the use of the suspended is included in utility bills.
Electricity used during washing is not included in the rent, by the way. Therefore, the system works as follows: before starting the machine, an individual key must be inserted into a special connector in the wall. The latter is coded so that electricity is charged to you, and not to the account of the management company.
By a show of hands: are shared laundry rooms still a thing in #Switzerland? ✋????https://t.co/3lgY8YRwvG #SoSwiss #CommunityAdvice
— ️Newly Swissed️ (@newlyswissed) October 9, 2020
Hausordnung ("The order of residence in an apartment building") is a set of rules for noise regulation. They are usually given to all tenants in every house. But if this is not surprising for locals, for expats such requirements often come as a surprise.
So, there will definitely be an item on the inadmissibility of noise after 22:00. The concept of “noise” includes the volume of the TV, loud music, and even a drain in the toilet and a set of baths!
Similar bans in the evening have been in effect in Switzerland for decades. Therefore, many companies have been producing silent models for a long time, the work of which does not bother anyone.
In response to any violation of the order, attentive neighbors can either knock on the batteries o, call the management or even the police. In reality, this measure is resorted to only in exceptional cases, when it is necessary to calm down young people who have allowed themselves a house party.
Good to know
28% of citizens are most disturbed by the noise from conversations behind the wall, the sounds of footsteps, children's games and screams, music and parties. Another 16% do not like unfriendly neighbors, 14% - cigarette smoke, and 12% - nosy neighbors.
31% decide to talk to their neighbors about disagreements directly. Another 14% complain to the management company.
Every sixth resident of the country had to move at least once because of problems in relations with neighbors.
It is important to understand that the order regulates both prohibitions and opportunities. For example, rules may prescribe a permit to play musical instruments twice a day (the schedule is individual for each specific house and is compiled by the association of owners of premises in it).
Switzerland is one of the world leaders in garbage sorting and processing. It all starts with apartments: in each, in addition to the standard trash can, there are several small ones for different types of waste.
Literally everything is shared here. Plastic, glass and metal need to be taken out in special outdoor containers; cardboard and paper left at the door of the house are collected by special services; broken electrical appliances and household appliances need to be returned to the store.
You have to buy special paid packages for everything else. Otherwise the garbage simply will not be taken out. Besides, you can get a warning or even a fine (it can also be obtained for violating the garbage collection schedule). Moreover, the packages in each Swiss canton have their own.
There are no landfills in the country at all. Garbage that is not recyclable is incinerated; the resulting energy is used to heat hundreds of thousands of homes across the country.
With such a reasonable approach to sorting, it is not surprising that the Swiss prefer to take care of electricity, about 95% of which is obtained from renewable sources!
Some companies have started putting forward green initiatives. For example, they offer users to invest in the construction of solar panels. They plan to return the invested money not in percentages, but in kilowatts.
Own housing in Switzerland is not a cheap pleasure. Even the majority of locals (more than 60%) prefer to rent apartments, not to buy them.
Visitors most often also have to rent real estate. Therefore, the demand for rental housing is very high. The search of a suitable apartment in major cities (Zurich or Geneva, for example) may take up to several months!
Finding an apartment is not enough. The owners must like you! In Switzerland, it is customary to sign up for screenings in advance and compete with other applicants: if you liked the option, leave a kind of resume, of which there may be several dozen, and wait for the host's response.
In this questionnaire, it is worth specifying personal data, profession and marital status, income level, and attach recommendations from previous landlords. According to all these characteristics, the landlord chooses a suitable tenant.
The application does not have to be made according to a template, so do not hesitate to attract the landlord with something unusual. A motivational letter in which you talk about what you liked in the apartment, but also tell about your advantages as a tenant, can become memorable and stand out from a number of similar ones. Do you smoke, have children and pets? Feel free to indicate this in the letter.
Experienced expatriate tenants advise newcomers to initially consider the markets of suburbs or small neighboring towns with which transport links are well established: it's easier to find a suitable option there. However, remember that if you are in Switzerland with a residence permit of type L or B, then you need to live in the same canton where you are going to work.
Housing in Switzerland is traditionally rented unfurnished (as well as in Greece). The tenant moves into an empty, but renovated apartment: the walls are painted, the parquet is cycled and varnished, the plumbing is in working condition. It is important that the former tenant is responsible for this condition of the apartment! It is he who is obliged to return the apartment to the owner in the condition in which they accepted it.
To do this, before arrival, a deposit account is opened in the bank, the funds on which should be enough for approximately two to three months of rent, and these funds are inviolable. Although after eight years, the landlord is obliged to repair the apartment himself. That is, if you move out after this period, the deposit will be refunded in full. And if in four years, most likely, you will receive 50% of the deposit.
So, there is no furniture in the residential part of the apartment, but the kitchen is fully equipped. That is, not only the work surface is installed, but also household appliances – a stove with an oven, an extractor hood, a refrigerator and a dishwasher.
Also, the tenant should not worry about plumbing: high quality is everywhere.
All of the above applies to long-term rental apartments. In the segment of daily rent, the rules are different: the objects are rented furnished, but also cost more. The demand for such apartments is not very high and comes mainly from those who come to the country for a short time as a tourist or on a business trip for several months. As a rule, there are no queues for such accommodation options.
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The size of balconies in Swiss apartments matters. As a rule, this is a large area, necessarily with a grill, which is used on weekends.
The area of housing is also very important for the locals. Over the past few decades, people have been moving into more spacious apartments and houses (such a tendency to increase the area is also observed in Germany). Thus, the objects in new buildings are about 10% more spacious than those that were commissioned in the 1980s. In 2019, there was an average of 47 sq.m per one Swiss resident, while the average living area for a property owner was 53 sq.m, for a tenant – 41 sq.m.
But the ceilings in houses are usually low (as, by the way, in the UK). Depending on the canton, the minimum height of the room should be 2.3-2.4 m. If the ceilings in old buildings are traditionally high - at least 3.3 m (in some cases 4.5 m), then modern architects often focus on the minimum height.
Over time, not only the average area of housing has changed, but also the layout of apartments. If earlier kitchens were cramped, isolated rooms, now they are increasingly combined with dining rooms and living rooms and form a single spacious room.
The same applies to bathrooms. Today it is a large space, rather like a room in a spa salon. Moreover, more and more often new apartments provide not one, but two bathrooms (or at least a master bathroom and a guest shower).
Each apartment building has its own parking, which must be paid for by local residents. However, there are several free seats reserved for guests, which are indicated by the Besucher sign. Also, the owner / tenant is granted the right to use a car wash, which is usually installed in an underground parking lot.
Utility rooms are the common space in apartment (usually two or three rooms). Residents use them to store bulky items, such as baby strollers and bicycles.
There is a tradition in Switzerland to hang signs with the baby's name on houses or balconies (or install them in the garden). As a rule, they are complemented by a figurine of some animal, could be a bunny, a lion cub, a bear cub or someone else.
It seems to be a replacement of an old tradition to plant a tree. This is especially true for residents of apartment buildings who cannot do so.
Such cards can hang on the door or above the window of the nursery for months! This helps the neighbors to remember the name of the new tenant. It is also believed that thanks to this tradition, children are better integrated into society later.
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Photos: geburtstafeln-schweiz.ch; Rajesh Rathod
