GENEVA - Estate agents and the cantonal housing office said vacancy remained close to the bottom of the Swiss table as the April lease season opened. Three-room flats in the city and on the droite du Rhone drew application files thicker than the viewing slots.

New blocks still price at the top of the market. Waiting lists for older, cheaper stock barely moved. Cross-border workers remain part of demand even when they sleep in France.

Premiums on the same kitchen table

Geneva's high KVG level sits next to the rent. A household that survives one may still fail the other. That double squeeze is already a Labour Day speech.