PCP
Geneva distinguishes stocks and flows
The cantonal account records 2,917 homes built in 2025 and 7,259 new homes under construction at year end. The first is annual production; the second a stock on one date. Their difference is neither a loss nor a measurable delay without project schedules.
A major project can remain in work in progress for several years and then raise one year’s completions sharply. Annual comparisons need those projects, rather than interpreting every change as a permanent shift in capacity.
From gross to net
In 2024 Geneva recorded 2,549 homes constructed, including conversions, and 467 homes removed from the stock: 341 demolished and 126 lost through conversions. Net growth was 2,082. The gross figure alone does not describe the stock. Conversions can create homes, but also remove them.
For affordability this is crucial. More homes can accompany the loss of inexpensive flats. The PCP therefore connects net output, rents, sizes and non-profit housing. Volume alone does not establish access.
Permission is not a uniform delivery date
Finance, connections, contractors and site preparation affect the subsequent timetable. More permits show potential, not identical deadlines. Useful monitoring follows transitions and actual blockages.
Completed does not yet mean suitable
Price, allocation, location and suitability determine access. A home for sale is not automatically rental supply; an expensive flat does not replace an affordable apprentice residence.
The PCP supports a complete public account: committed capacity, net additions and needs met. It enables specific land and finance instruments, rather than treating every rising indicator as the end of shortage.
Cranes do not provide a delivery calendar
Sites are at different stages. A project just begun and one nearing handover both appear in work in progress. Anticipating supply requires expected dates and uncertainties without turning every announcement into a firm promise. A missing connection can delay occupancy beyond apparent completion.
Size matters too. Ten small units do not offer the same capacity as family homes. Floor area and rooms complement the count. Arbitrarily multiplying dwellings by average household size cannot replace them.
Connect construction and access without invented causality
Higher output can ease pressure, but type, price and location determine beneficiaries. A one-year comparison does not prove one measure caused the entire change. Major projects, earlier decisions and finance also contribute.
For the PCP, precision strengthens action. It distinguishes new projects, preserving existing homes and improving suitability. The aim is not to dismiss construction, but to select interventions whose effects use appropriate units and can be checked when homes actually become available.