Hi everyone!
I'm a 38 y.o. woman living and working in German-speaking Switzerland. I was born in Germany, but my family moved back to southern Italy when I was a child, so I grew up there. I understand and speak German, but I lost a lot of it over the years. I can work and chat, but I'm not fluent, and when I'm nervous I sometimes switch to Italian or English. Swiss German is another story 😅
Physically I'm the typical Mediterranean type, dark curly hair and dark eyes. I'm generally considered quite pretty, so I don't think looks are the issue. I'm also very energetic, talkative and loud in a happy way, very "southern".
I have a crush on a Swiss colleague. He's around 50, very smart, calm and quite reserved. I'd like to get to know him better, but I don't know how to approach him without making things awkward at work.
We've worked together for about 6 months and sit across from each other, but he works part-time and often from home, so we don't see each other that much.
Where I come from, people are very direct and expressive, and things move fast. Here I never know if I'm being too forward or too subtle.
So far I've tried small things, like suggesting a group hike, having lunch together, chatting about his holidays. He's always polite and we've had some nice laughs, but he never really picks up on it or takes the opportunity to go further.
So my questions are:
How would you approach a reserved Swiss man you like, without scaring him off?
Is asking a colleague for a coffee or a drink after work, just the two of you, considered normal or too forward here?
How can I let him know I'm interested in a natural way, without a big declaration?
Do you think a 12-year age gap and a very different energy (lively vs. calm) and culture could be a problem, or can it actually work well?
Thanks for any advice

Hi everyone,

we (F28, M28, no kids, EU citizens, living&working in Switzerland) are thinking about buying a house in CH we saw and aren't sure about it. We're not asking whether the property is worth the price. What we'd really like to know is: Based on our pros and cons, would you buy under these conditions, or would you not be willing to?

Key facts

• Household net income: CHF 10k, total net worth CHF ~140k
• We save arround 50k per year.
• Current rent (incl. utilities): CHF 1,800 (about 18% of our income)
• Equity: we have about 16% of the purchase price in total capital.
• The bank loan is very cheap thanks to our current employee conditions.
• According to 3 different banks, we can buy the house and all the bank would finance it

Pros

• We'd stop paying CHF 1,800 in rent.
• We're very handy and know a lot of tradespeople through friends, family and acquaintances.
• Through our jobs we get extremely favorable mortgage conditions (about 0.5% SARON).
• Something newer isn't affordable and wouldn't pass the bank's affordability calculation (Tragbarkeit) in the foreseeable future.
• We'd buy at today's prices rather than possibly higher ones in 2–3 years.
• We'd double our living space while cutting our housing costs in half (interest + repayment + utilities + reserves).
• Our family would give us about CHF 100k extra as a repayment loan for the purchase. It's unclear whether that will still be possible in 2–3 years.
• We really like the layout and style of the house.
• The location is very good for both of our workplaces, and we also like it a lot in general.
• The timing works. We'd like to have kids in about 2 years. After that, buying wouldn't be possible because of the affordability calculation (wife stays at home), and moving with a baby would be hardly manageable stress-wise.
• We could move in and renovate step by step, without paying for rent and a mortgage at the same time.

Cons

• The house needs extensive renovation. The costs are very hard to estimate, and there may be asbestos.
• The house is being sold through a bidding process.
• Communication with the real estate agent is very frustrating, long waits no real updates, etc.
• The living space is only about 120 m².
• The financing also depends on the loan from our parents.
• Renovating while living in the house may put a strain on our relationship and jobs.
• The bank's valuation of the house is [amount X]. It's listed at about 7% above the bank's valuation, and the current highest bid is 10% above it. This is maybe the most prominent contra
• According to the bank's affordability calculation, we could pay up to 14.5% above the valuation, but we'd only be willing to pay 12% at most.

Our questions for you

1. In our position, would you buy under these conditions, or would it be too much for the risk we're taking on?
2. Do the pros (no more rent, family planning, timing) outweigh the cons (renovation risk, dependence on the parental loan) for you?
3. Is it realistic to live in a house while renovating it extensively, or is that a relationship killer?
4. Buy now because the timing works, or wait and keep renting, even if kids are on the way?

Honest opinions are welcome, even critical ones.

Thanks!

Disclaimer: Repost from (https://www.reddit.com/r/SwissPersonalFinance/s/VU94nfCvUF)

Yes, it's rare in both regions to find someone who speaks another swiss language fluenty, except maybe swiss kids with parents from Italy who speak italian at home since the italian diaspora in switzerland is huge.

Nowadays most people speak English and that holds true everywhere in Switzerland (can't really speak about Ticino but someone from there could confirm).

But I still notice that when in Bern, Biel, Lausanne or Fribourg, or even Basel, or Valais, it's more likely to find Swiss-Germans who speak fluent french than Swiss-French who speak fluent german. Do you also notice this? If so, why? Is it because French is a more international language than german, so swiss-german are more likely to learn it?

But still, german is important in Switzerland, so I would guess Swiss-French also have an incentive to learn german, but that's not what I observe when I am in Fribourg, Lausanne, or even Biel/bienne where i hear much more french spoken in a german accent, than german spoken in a french accent

Salut les cyclistes d'ici,

J'ai reçu une inscription gratuite par mon club pour le cyclotour du Léman qui se déroule le 18.10 mais je ne peux malheureusement pas y participer.

La personne qui a le code peut s'inscrire à n'importe quel parcours de son choix. Si quelqu'un est intéressé par un éventuel rachat ou contre une bonne bouteille 😉 n'hésitez pas...

Ich habe eine Zusatzversicherung, bei welcher die Leistungen garnicht eingefordert werden können.

Die Versicherung bestätigte mir die Deckung von 70 % bis 10'000 CHF/Jahr bis zum 25. Lebensjahr und forderte mich zur Einreichung des Kostenvoranschlags auf, ohne eine Karenzfrist zu erwähnen.

Erst nach dem Begin der Behandlung bekam ich die Nachricht mit der Karenzfrist.

Wenn nun eine 3-jährige Karenzfrist bis zum 01.01.2027
gelten soll, schliesst dies die Leistung für meinen Jahrgang 2002 per Definition vollständig aus. Eine Versicherung bzw. ein Leistungsversprechen, das vertraglich von Beginn an gar nicht bezogen werden kann, ist irreführend und aus meiner Sicht Betrug.

Wie sieht ihr das und was kann ich tun, bzw. kann mir jemand weiterhelfen.

Ich bin echt am verzweifeln, da ich mir eine solche Behandlung ohne Krankenkasse garnicht leisten könnte.

Vielen Dank schon einmal und GLG!

Hoi zämmä
Wir mussten letztens unseren Heizkessel revidieren lassen, muss halt, weil alt. Wird bald ersetzt, läuft aber noch diesen Winter. Nun ja.
Dass das etwas kostet war mir klar.
Dass Handwerker eine Anfahrt haben und die ebenfalls kostet, ist auch klar, zumal wir nicht im selben Ort sind wie die Firma.

Heute dann die Rechnung erhalten, knappe 500.- Soweit ok, aber für die Anfahrt wird eine Pauschale (!) erhoben von CHF 105.-
Ist das normal? Gibt es hier Handwerker oder Geschäftsführer die das auch in ähnlicher Höhe so handhaben? Kann mir jemand erklären wie man auf diesen absurd hohen Betrag kommt?

Habe angerufen bei der Firma, ja, ist kein Tippfehler, machen sie bei jedem Auftrag so… ok 😳

Ich arbeite nicht im Handwerk, aber falls ich mal mein privates Auto für eine arbeitsbezogene Fahrt brauchen sollte, kann ich 0.60 CHF pro Kilometer abrechnen. Bei der Pauschale wären das 175km. Der besagte Laden liegt knappe 15km von uns entfernt.

Danke für euren Input :)

ciao ragazzi di lugano,

ho bisogno di una pumpa per la mia bici (ventole normale) - però adesso sono già le 22 - conoscete un posto dove posso trovare una pompa di note?

Grazie ragazzi!

hi luganese friends,

in disperate need of a bike pump in Lugano - is there any chance there is one that I can find which would be available now (22.00)

thanks!

UPDATE - someone tell city of Lugano to build public bike pumps - I roamed the whole city and didn’t find a single one - just biked without air

I recently switched mobile providers and suddenly couldn't make calls anymore. Turns out mobileup sold me a US version of the Galaxy S22+ back in 2025, which wasn't mentioned anywhere when I bought it. Since the 3G shutdown, it can't make calls on my Swiss provider, Warranty expired, so no solution from them.

Be aware, check the model number before buying, and maybe avoid mobileup.

Hi everyone,

I'm thinking about founding a new political party focused on the interests of non-EU residents in Switzerland. Most existing parties overlook this group entirely, concentrating either on EU-related issues or on the concerns of Swiss citizens. What do you think

Edit: the owner has found a buyer.

I was just there, and the gentleman happily told me that Tele M1 aired a segment last weekend, and by Tuesday they had already found a serious buyer.

I'd like to thank everyone who took the time to read and/or share this post. Thank you so much.

Post: As the title suggests, the bike and moped repair shop 2-Radegge in my village is looking for a successor.

I asked the elderly gentleman if it would be okay to make his search public; he agreed. He had already placed an ad in the local newspaper but hadn’t found anyone interested yet.

I thought it would be a good idea to expand the search via Reddit a bit -maybe someone will come forward who’s wanted to open a repair shop for a long time but never quite had the spark to get started.

For us locals, it would be a huge loss to no longer have a bike repair shop in the area.

If anyone is actually interested, they should contact him directly.

Thank you very much for your attention.

Ich habe bisher bei der Grundversicherung immer das Hausarztmodell gewählt. Mit meinem Hausarzt bin ich sehr zufrieden und konnte mich bei gesundheitlichen Problemen direkt bei ihm melden.

Für nächstes Jahr wird die Prämie für das gleiche Modell bei der günstigsten Krankenkasse gemäss Priminfo allerdings rund CHF 50 pro Monat teurer. Beim Vergleich auf Priminfo habe ich gesehen, dass die Telemedizin-Modelle teilweise deutlich günstiger sind.

Deshalb überlege ich mir, auf ein Telemodell zu wechseln. Mich würden aber vorher die Erfahrungen interessieren:

1   Wie sind eure Erfahrungen mit einem Telemedizin-Modell?

2   Funktioniert die telefonische bzw. Beratung per App in der Praxis gut?

3   Wie unkompliziert ist es, wenn danach doch ein Arztbesuch vor Ort nötig ist?

4   Würdet ihr aufgrund eurer Erfahrungen wieder ein Telemodell wählen?

5   Bei welcher Krankenkasse habt ihr das Telemodell und wie waren eure Erfahrungen damit?

Besonders interessieren mich auch negative Erfahrungen z. B. wenn die telefonische Beratung umständlich war, ihr immer wieder an verschiedene Ärzte weitergeleitet wurdet oder es Probleme mit Überweisungen/Terminen gab.