Buying a Property with Others in Geneva: Form, Shares and Exit

Buying a property with others in Geneva involves two choices made before the notarial deed is signed: the form under which the property is recorded in the land register, and the contract that binds the buyers to each other. Swiss law recognizes two forms of collective ownership, co-ownership in shares (art. 646 CC) and joint ownership (art. 652 CC), and acquiring ownership requires registration in the land register (art. 656 para. 1 CC).

This article covers the comparison between the two forms, how shares are split when contributions differ, the commitment to the bank, the use of the 2nd pillar, the content of the agreement between buyers, the ways to exit and what happens to the share when someone dies. It then covers the situations of the unmarried couple, the married couple, buying with your parents or your children, and buying with friends.

Co-ownership or joint ownership: what is the difference in Geneva?

In Geneva, the difference between co-ownership and joint ownership, when buying with others, comes down to one point: in co-ownership, each person owns their share of the property; in joint ownership, no one has a share of their own (art. 646 and 652 CC).

In co-ownership, this share, called a quote-part, is recorded in the land register as a distinct piece of property (art. 655 para. 2 no. 4 CC): its holder can sell or mortgage it alone, and their creditors can seize it (art. 646 para. 3 CC). In joint ownership, each person's right relates to the whole thing (art. 652 CC), and disposing of a share is impossible for as long as the community lasts (art. 653 para. 3 CC).

For unmarried buyers, this community results from a simple partnership, a contract that pools the assets acquired between partners (art. 530 and 544 CO). Swiss law has neither the French "indivision" nor the French SCI (société civile immobilière).

The table compares the two forms across six criteria.

Criterion	Co-ownership	Joint ownership
Land register	Share per buyer, distinct property	Buyers together, no share
Sell your share alone	Yes	No
Pledge your share alone	Yes	No
Decision rule	Majority, agreement of all to sell the property (art. 647b and 648 CC)	Unanimity, unless a majority clause applies (art. 534 CO)
Death of a buyer	The share passes to the heirs (art. 560 CC)	The simple partnership ends, unless a continuation clause applies (art. 545 CO)
Profile	Unequal contributions, individual exit	Indivisible project, joint decisions

How do you split the shares when contributions are unequal?

Splitting the shares between unequal contributions requires stating them as figures in the deed: failing that, the shares are presumed equal (art. 646 para. 2 CC). It is not the contribution paid but the share recorded that governs how the resale price is split (art. 646 para. 3 and 651 para. 1 CC).

Three arrangements address the gap between the actual contribution and the recorded share.

• Proportional share: calculate the shares based on the equity plus the debt taken on. Contributions of 150,000 and 50,000 francs, with an 800,000-franc mortgage split equally on a property worth 1,000,000 francs, give 55% and 45%, that is 110,000 and 90,000 francs of a 200,000-franc gain. Correcting a recorded share later requires a notarial deed (art. 216 CO).
• Equal shares and a loan: have 50% each recorded and treat the 50,000-franc excess as a loan between buyers. The lender recovers the principal, and the gain is split equally.
• Equal shares and an indexed claim: set a claim as a percentage of the resale price. It tracks the gain, but is not enforceable against third parties without registration.

This chart compares, for a property worth one million francs, the contributions actually paid, the shares recorded in the land register, and the split of a 200,000-franc gain.

In Geneva, for registration duty purposes, the share recorded in excess of the contribution is presumed to be a gift: a written loan or an indexed claim provides proof to the contrary (art. 11 para. 3 LDE).

Who repays the mortgage if one of the buyers stops paying?

Each buyer is liable for the entire mortgage if one of the buyers stops paying, since they committed to the bank as joint and several debtors: each joint and several co-debtor is liable for the whole debt, and the bank can demand full payment from whichever one it chooses (art. 143 and 144 CO).

Whoever pays beyond their share has a right of recourse against the others for the excess (art. 148 para. 2 CO). This recourse depends on the solvency of the defaulting co-debtor.

The joint and several commitment applies to the total debt, not to the share recorded in the land register. It reduces each buyer's financial capacity for any other credit, since banks cap theoretical costs (interest calculated at 5%) at one third of gross income (FINMA, June 2025).

Selling your share does not release you from the debt: discharging the former debtor requires a contract between the new debtor and the bank (art. 176 para. 1 CO), which then recalculates capacity on a single income.

Can you use your 2nd pillar for a joint purchase?

Yes, each buyer can use their 2nd pillar, their occupational retirement savings, for a joint purchase, provided they live in the property and, outside marriage or a registered partnership, buy in co-ownership (art. 30c LPP).

The 2nd pillar is the retirement savings that each person builds up with their employer through a pension fund. The law (art. 30b and 30c LPP) allows it to be used to buy your own home, either by withdrawing the money (early withdrawal) or by pledging it as security to the bank (pledge).

Whoever does not live there cannot use any pension assets. The form of ownership is an eligibility condition: the ordinance on promoting home ownership (OEPL) allows co-ownership, and joint ownership only between spouses or registered partners (art. 2 para. 2). Unmarried buyers who draw on their 2nd pillar therefore opt for co-ownership.

The pension fund has the restriction on the right to dispose of the property recorded in the land register (art. 30e LPP). The withdrawal reduces the pension benefits, and therefore the survivors' and disability benefits; pledging avoids this reduction (art. 30b and 30c para. 4 LPP).

What should you put in writing in the agreement between buyers?

Seven points should be set out in the agreement between buyers, which falls under freedom of contract and is valid as a simple written agreement (art. 11 and 19 CO).

• The shares: each person's fraction, presumed equal by default (art. 646 para. 2 CC).
• The contributions: the amount paid by each person and what they get back.
• The costs: interest, upkeep and taxes, split according to the shares unless otherwise agreed (art. 649 CC).
• Occupation: who occupies the property and the compensation they pay the others.
• Exit: the method for valuing the buyout price.
• Death: what happens to the deceased's share.
• Deadlock: how disagreements are resolved.

Two clauses require more than a private written agreement: a notarial deed is required to exclude partition and for a right of purchase between buyers (art. 650 para. 2 CC; art. 216 para. 2 CO). The agreement binds the buyers to each other, not to the bank.

How do you exit a joint property purchase?

To exit a joint property purchase, each co-owner has the right to demand partition, except where otherwise agreed or at an inopportune time (art. 650 para. 1 and 3 CC).

An agreement can rule out this right for a maximum of 50 years; where real property is involved, it must take the notarial form and can be noted in the land register (art. 650 para. 2 CC).

What the law says (art. 650 para. 2 CC): "Partition may be excluded by agreement for a maximum of 50 years; where real property is involved, the agreement is valid only if made as a notarial deed, and it may be noted in the land register."

In joint ownership, exit takes place through terminating the simple partnership, which triggers its liquidation (art. 546 CO). In co-ownership, four options exist, ranging from agreement between the buyers to a court decision.

• Buying out a share: the departing buyer transfers their share to the others, subject to the bank's agreement to the debt being taken over.
• Selling the share to a third party: the other co-owners take priority over the outside buyer through their statutory right of pre-emption (art. 682 para. 1 CC), within three months of learning of the contract, and no more than two years after registration (art. 681a para. 2 CC).
• Partition action: failing agreement on the method, the court will, as a rule, order partition in kind (art. 651 para. 2 CC).
• Auction sale: the court orders this instead of partition in kind if the property cannot be divided without a significant loss of value (art. 651 para. 2 CC).

This diagram presents the four ways to exit, from an amicable agreement to an auction sale ordered by the court.

What happens to a buyer's share when they die?

In co-ownership, a buyer's share falls into their estate when they die: their heirs acquire it automatically and hold it jointly (art. 560 para. 1 and 602 CC).

Unlike the spouse and descendants (art. 457 and 462 CC), an unmarried partner has no statutory inheritance rights: they end up in co-ownership alongside the heirs. In joint ownership, death ends the simple partnership, unless a continuation clause applies (art. 545 para. 1 no. 2 CO). Four instruments protect the survivor.

• Will: grants the survivor the disposable portion, that is, whatever exceeds the protected share of descendants and the spouse, set at half of their statutory inheritance right (art. 470 and 471 CC).
• Inheritance contract: binds the person making it to their heirs, who can waive their share in advance, using the form of a public will (art. 495 and 512 CC).
• Usufruct or right of habitation: leaves the use of the property, without the share itself (art. 745 and 776 CC).
• Right of purchase: gives the survivor the option to buy out the share, for a maximum of 10 years, noted in the land register (art. 216a CO).

These three panels compare what happens to a buyer's share when they die, depending on their relationship with the other buyers.

Which form of ownership suits your situation?

The form of ownership that suits your situation depends above all on one criterion: the freedom to sell your share alone, which is recognized in co-ownership (art. 646 CC) and ruled out in joint ownership (art. 653 CC).

This choice is made before the notary before signing: the form appears in the notarial deed and is recorded in the land register (art. 216 CO, art. 656 CC). The rest depends on the buyers' profile.

An unmarried couple has no matrimonial property regime; a married couple sees theirs affect what happens to contributions; buying with your parents or your children depends on how the contribution is classified (loan, gift or advance on inheritance); buying with friends or with other investors relies on its own exit rules. Condominium ownership, Geneva's fees and changing the form of ownership after the purchase complete this choice.

This decision tree shows, for each profile of buyers, the common form of ownership and the clause to put in writing.

Buying as an unmarried couple: what are the risks?

Buying as an unmarried couple exposes each partner to three risks, since cohabitation is not governed by any statutory property regime.

• No statutory inheritance rights: without a testamentary disposition, the surviving partner receives nothing from the deceased's share.
• Home without legal protection: the protection of the family home applies only to spouses; a right of habitation recorded in the land register can make up for this (art. 776 CC).
• Pension benefits paid only under the fund's rules: the pension fund pays the surviving partner only if its rules provide for it, after five years of uninterrupted cohabitation before death, or if the partner is supporting a child of the couple (art. 20a LPP).

Does the matrimonial property regime change anything for a married couple?

Yes, for a married couple, the matrimonial property regime decides what happens to each contribution. Spouses without a marriage contract are subject to the regime of participation in acquired property (art. 181 CC).

Contributing individual property, an inheritance or a gift, creates a claim against the spouse or a compensation claim between the two estates, including a share of the gain (art. 206 and 209 CC). Any asset is presumed to be acquired property, unless proven otherwise by the spouse claiming it as individual property (art. 200 CC). Have the origin of the funds stated in the notarial deed and keep your bank records.

Selling the family home requires the express consent of the spouse (art. 169 CC).

Buying with your parents or your children: loan, gift or advance on inheritance?

A contribution from a parent to their child as co-buyer counts as a loan, advance on inheritance, or gift exempted from hotchpot, depending on how it is classified in writing. These three classifications produce different effects when the parent dies.

• Loan: a repayable claim of the parent, recorded as an asset of their estate and set out in writing.
• Advance on inheritance: a gift subject to hotchpot, whose value is credited back against the child's share (art. 626 CC).
• Gift exempted from hotchpot: a gift excluded from hotchpot by the parent's express wish, though the action for abatement remains available (art. 626 para. 2 and 629 para. 1 CC).

The deceased parent's share falls into their estate. Direct-line heirs are exempt from inheritance tax in the canton of Geneva, unless the deceased was taxed on an expenditure basis (art. 6A LDS).

The difference between the contribution actually made and the recorded share constitutes, in the absence of a written loan, a gift subject to hotchpot in the parent's estate, unless expressly exempted (art. 626 CC).

Buying with friends or with other investors: what precautions should you take?

Buying with friends or with other investors calls for three precautions, set out in a written simple partnership agreement, for which no legal form is required (art. 530 CO): failing a written agreement, the default rules of the Code of Obligations govern the partnership. These precautions concern decision-making, costs and the length of commitment.

• Decision rule: unanimity applies unless the contract includes a majority clause; if the contract provides for majority voting, it is counted per head (art. 534 CO).
• Costs and debts: the partners are jointly and severally liable towards third parties (art. 544 para. 3 CO), and how costs and works are shared should be set out in the contract.
• Length of commitment: a partnership of indefinite duration can be terminated with six months' notice, which triggers liquidation (art. 546 CO).

Unanimity can block decisions within the simple partnership, but not a partner's departure.

Co-ownership or condominium ownership: which applies to an apartment?

Both apply, because an apartment generally falls under condominium ownership, a special form of co-ownership: the regime under art. 712a et seq. CC adds, to each co-owner's right, an exclusive right over specific parts of the building.

Two levels of ownership overlap. The condominium ownership unit is itself a piece of property within the meaning of the land register (art. 655 para. 2 no. 4 CC); it can belong to several buyers in ordinary co-ownership or in joint ownership.

Two sets of regulations can apply: the administration and use regulations adopted between the co-buyers of the unit (art. 647 para. 1 CC), and the building regulations, noted in the land register (art. 712g para. 3 CC).

What fees and steps are added in Geneva for a joint purchase?

The fee schedule for a joint purchase in Geneva is the same as for any purchase: Geneva's 3% registration duty applies to the price stated in the deed or the market value (art. 33 para. 1 and 35 para. 1 LDE).

Having several buyers changes the split, not the procedure. The steps to buy a property in Geneva remain the same, with three points specific to a joint purchase.

• Liability for the duty: the new owners bear it, each for their share (art. 163 para. 1 LDE); their internal split is not binding on the tax authorities (para. 3), which do not treat them as jointly and severally liable (art. 166).
• Reduction for a main residence: it is split according to the buyers' shares (art. 4 RDE), and the person benefiting from it must occupy the property for three consecutive years (art. 8A para. 3 LDE); whoever does not live there loses their portion.
• Deed and registration: the sale is executed in notarial form (art. 657 para. 1 CC), and the buyers are recorded in the land register, with their share in co-ownership (art. 656 para. 1 CC).

Can you change the form of ownership after the purchase?

Yes, buyers can change the form of ownership after the purchase, by means of a new notarial deed (art. 657 para. 1 CC) and a new entry in the land register (art. 656 para. 1 CC).

This operation counts as a transfer: if made for consideration, the 3% registration duty applies to the value of the share transferred (art. 33 para. 1 LDE); if made free of charge, gift duty applies instead, which is nil for direct-line beneficiaries (art. 27A para. 1 LDE). The land register fee is payable a second time.

Deciding on the form before signing avoids this second deed and these costs.