Corporate Housing in Zurich: Company Leases

Corporate housing in Zurich means apartments let to a company or its relocating executives, usually on a one- to three-year lease that the company signs or guarantees; through Offlist, companies and their staff reach landlords who let such homes without a public listing. With only 0.11% of homes in the City of Zurich empty on 1 June 2026 (Statistik Stadt Zürich), the right lease structure, a good relocation agency and access to private networks decide whether an executive moves into a good apartment on time.

This guide is for HR teams, relocation managers and the executives themselves. It covers how company leases work, who does what between agency and landlord, which districts suit which employers, what to budget and how the unlisted part of the market works. Landlords will find their side of the arrangement at the end.

How a Company Lease Works in Zurich

Swiss tenancy law has no special contract type for corporate housing. What changes is who signs and which clauses you negotiate.

• The company signs as tenant. The employer is the contracting party and places one employee after another in the apartment. Landlords value the stronger covenant, and HR can keep a good apartment across assignments. Write the right to change occupants into the lease; subletting otherwise needs the landlord's consent.
• The employee signs with a company guarantee. Common for longer moves and families. The employee is the tenant; the company guarantees the rent or provides the deposit.
• Deposit. For residential leases, the deposit is capped at three months' rent and held in a blocked account in the tenant's name (Art. 257e of the Swiss Code of Obligations). Many companies use a rent deposit guarantee instead of cash.
• Term and notice. Unlimited leases can be ended with at least three months' notice to the contractual or local termination dates. A fixed term ends automatically, which suits defined assignments.
• Transfer clause. Ask for early termination if the employee is posted abroad. Private landlords are often open to it, large property managers less so. Without it, the tenant can still leave early by proposing a suitable replacement tenant; our lease transfer service explains how.
• Registration. The employee must register at the Kreisbüro within 14 days of arrival, so the lease or a confirmation of accommodation needs to be ready before the start date.

Relocation Agencies, Landlords and Private Networks: Who Does What

A corporate move in Zurich usually involves three parties, and it helps to know where each one adds value.

• The relocation agency is hired by the employer, sometimes by the employee. It defines the search with the employee, books viewings, prepares the dossier, negotiates and handles registration and utilities. For a standard rental, the landlord pays any agent the landlord hires; an agency you hire is paid by you or your employer, typically a fixed package or about one month's rent. Our relocation agent cost analysis shows when the fee pays for itself.
• The landlord or property manager (Verwaltung) decides who gets the apartment. Large managers apply fixed rules: a Swiss debt collection extract, an income ratio, a valid permit. Private landlords have more room, for example for a company lease or a permit assurance letter instead of the permit card.
• Private networks carry a large share of the best apartments. Many are let without a public listing, through agencies' own contacts, outgoing tenants and platforms such as Offlist. On Offlist, the employee creates a free private profile with dates, budget and household, and landlords and partner agents approach them directly.

Where Executives Live: Districts by Employer

In Zurich, the commute usually decides the district. These are the areas we see most often in corporate searches.

Enge (Kreis 2): Google and the insurers

Enge hosts Google's Zurich offices on the former Hürlimann brewery site and the headquarters of Swiss Re and Zurich Insurance along the lake. Many streets are a short walk from both the office and the water, with quick links to the motorway and the main station. Competition for furnished apartments is fierce. Our Enge executive housing guide goes street by street.

The old town (Kreis 1): Paradeplatz

For the banks around Paradeplatz, led by UBS, the old town is a walk away. Period apartments around Lindenhof and the Rennweg, with stucco and parquet, come up rarely and are often passed on privately.

Seefeld (Kreis 8): lake life near the centre

Seefeld, on the eastern shore, combines the lake promenade with short trips to Bellevue and the opera. Penthouses with a lake view are in high demand here and in neighbouring Hottingen. See our Seefeld and Enge comparison.

More space for families

Families who need a house or a garden often look beyond the city centre: the Zürichberg, the Gold Coast municipalities such as Küsnacht and Zollikon, or Kilchberg and Rüschlikon on the left shore of the lake.

What to Budget

Official statistics describe existing leases; apartments let today cost noticeably more. The indicative figures come from what we see in the market, not from official statistics.

Item	Figure	Source
Vacancy rate, City of Zurich, 1 June 2026	0.11% (252 apartments)	Statistik Stadt Zürich
Vacancy rate, Canton of Zurich, 1 June 2026	0.52%	Federal Statistical Office via WBF
Median net rent, existing 3-room lease, City of Zurich (April 2026)	CHF 1,628 a month	Statistik Stadt Zürich rent survey 2026
Prime 4.5-room family apartment, Seefeld or Enge, asking rent	CHF 4,800 to 6,500 a month	indicative
Furnished business apartment	CHF 4,500 to 9,000 a month	indicative

For a full comparison with Geneva, including tax, read our Zurich vs. Geneva guide.

Furnished or Unfurnished?

Most Swiss apartments are let unfurnished, often without ceiling lights. For a corporate move, the length of the assignment usually decides.

• Up to six months: Furnished. The employee arrives with a suitcase and registers immediately.
• Twelve months or more, especially with a family: Unfurnished, often with a furniture allowance. More choice, a lower rent and a home that feels permanent.
• The bridge: A furnished apartment for the first months, then an unfurnished long-term home found on the ground.

Our furnished vs. unfurnished decision guide and the guide to furnished luxury rentals in Zurich go into detail.

Documents the Landlord Will Ask For

For a lease in the employee's name, landlords ask for a passport or ID, the residence permit or permit assurance, a recent debt collection extract (a home-country credit report for new arrivals), the employment contract and the application form. For a company lease, the landlord looks at the company instead and needs a contact in HR who can sign. Our rental application checklist lists every document.

For Landlords: Letting to a Company

A company tenant brings a strong covenant, careful occupants and often long stays. You can let your apartment in Zurich without a public listing: Offlist matches it with vetted tenants such as relocating executives and diplomats, and listing is free for landlords. Start on our page to rent out your property off-market, and read how to screen corporate tenants before you sign.

Conclusion

In a city with 252 empty apartments, corporate housing is less about budget than about structure and access: a company lease or guarantee that landlords trust, an agency that knows the districts, and a profile in the private networks where many of the best apartments change hands. Create a free private profile to be matched with Zurich apartments before they are advertised, or compare with our Basel corporate housing guide if your company also has staff on the Rhine.