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And that is precisely when achieving the best possible sale price becomes so important. In Switzerland, many homeowners only amortize their second mortgage, which often means that properties still carry significant debt when they are sold. You are left with only the difference between the sale price and the mortgage. With a sale price of 1.22 million instead of 1 million—assuming a mortgage of 720,000—that is the difference between 500,000 and 280,000 francs in freely available equity. Small differences in the sale price create huge fluctuations in what you actually take home.

Selling your property yourself can make sense, but only under very specific conditions. Specifically: you are selling a condominium in a development where several identical units have recently been sold, and you know the exact price per square meter achieved. In all other cases—single-family homes, unique properties, or locations with few comparable transactions—you simply lack the market knowledge as a private individual to set the right price. If you set it too high, your property will "burn out." If you set it too low, you will give away six-figure sums without even realizing it. Even after deducting the commission, almost all sellers fare better with a professional real estate agent than they do on their own. Even if you are selling yourself, you can use the Bestag valuation to at least get a well-founded estimate of your property's market value.

Yes. The fundamental problem is that all owners listed in the land register have a right of veto. One person wants a quick sale, another wants to keep the property in the family, and a third thinks the price is too low. This leads to stalemates and disputes—sometimes lasting for years. Bestag provides a neutral foundation for this: our five valuations create clarity regarding the actual market value. No heir can claim the house is worth significantly more or less when five independent sources point in a similar direction. The book also recommends the right of first refusal model: the property is offered on the market, and any family member can acquire it by matching the highest third-party bid. In practice, not a single family member has exercised this right of first refusal in all these years. Without a discount on the market value, it simply isn't worth it for most people.

The valuation is the first step in the Bestag process. You begin with a free online valuation at bestag.ch. The detailed valuation, which uses five different sources, is part of our comprehensive package. During a consultation with Bestag, you can clarify whether you are simply looking for an initial estimate or if you would like to proceed with the full sales process.

Yes, both. If you are unhappy with your current agent, you can terminate a brokerage contract at any time in accordance with Article 404 of the Swiss Code of Obligations. You are never permanently tied to an agent, regardless of what the contract states. If your property is already "burned"—meaning it has been listed on a portal for too long and may have undergone price reductions—the book clearly advises taking the property off the market temporarily, pausing marketing efforts, and then starting fresh with a new, reputable agent and a realistic asking price. This is exactly where Bestag comes in: Bestag finds the right new agent for your property and uses our bonus-malus system to ensure that the starting price is set realistically this time.

Bestag works best for properties that can be valued using a hedonic approach—namely condominiums, single-family homes, and multi-family dwellings. The hedonic valuation model compares your property with the actual sale prices of similar properties, which requires a sufficient amount of comparative data. For specialized properties—such as farms, alpine huts, rustic retreats, or properties with significant land development potential—the hedonic method is limited or entirely inapplicable due to a lack of comparable transactions. In such cases, the expertise of locally established real estate agents becomes all the more important, and this is precisely what Bestag identifies algorithmically.

Both. Bestag guides you through the evaluation and selection process. Once you have chosen an agent, they become your operational partner for marketing and negotiations. However, Bestag remains in the background as a supervisory body—meaning you have two points of contact who keep each other in check.

A discreet sale without a public listing can be important for certain sellers—such as in cases of divorce, high-profile owners, or in small communities where neighbors should not be informed. While the Bestag model is based on public marketing via portals, experienced agents maintain lists of interested buyers and can also place properties discreetly. Whether this makes sense for your property is best discussed directly with Bestag, as a discreet sale reduces the number of potential buyers and can therefore lower the achievable price. This is a conscious trade-off.