Cooperatives in the Sihlfeld quarter in District 3 - everything you need to know

Once located on the outskirts of the city, the Sihlfeld neighborhood in District 3 has become a central, on-trend area thanks to intensive construction over the last 100 years. Here you’ll find bustling Albisriederplatz, the quiet Sihlfeld cemetery, and of course many very popular cafés and restaurants. Sihlfeld is home to many small and medium-sized housing cooperatives, which are strikingly often named after the street of their first estate (for example Kalkbreite, Zurlinden, and Zentralstrasse). Read on to learn all about the cooperatives in the Sihlfeld neighborhood in District 3.

‍

Allgemeine Baugenossenschaft Zürich

Regular readers of our blog know that this largest housing cooperative in Zürich owns properties practically everywhere in the city. Accordingly, you’ll also find it in the Sihlfeld neighborhood in District 3. Right on Bullingerplatz, you’ll find a colorfully painted estate with 138 apartments (2–5.5 rooms) that is almost 100 years old. The café and the fountain where children can splash around in summer are probably very popular too. Getting an apartment from ABZ requires a good deal of patience and persistence. The cooperative does own a lot of apartments (over 5,000), but it posts relatively few listings. Listings appear on the cooperative’s website and usually stay online for about 24 hours. There’s also a free newsletter where you receive all listings by email. Naturally, they’re also included in our Suchabo, and we often send the apartments out before ABZ itself does.

‍

Baugenossenschaft Im Gut

This cooperative owns a total of 44 multi-family buildings with 453 apartments across 5 estates. The original estate with 131 apartments is located on Gutstrasse in Sihlfeld in District 3. The estate stands out for its abundant greenery. In the immediate vicinity you’ll find the Heuried sports center and the Sihlfeld cemetery. It’s also not far to Triemli Hospital. Accordingly, the apartments in this cooperative are of course very popular. Prospective tenants can leave their email address on the website . Supposedly you will be notified when something becomes available. That hasn’t happened to us yet, but it certainly can’t hurt to sign up! We’ve also noticed that Baugenossenschaft Im Gut is working on a new build (see photo). We’ll of course keep an eye on it.

Baugenossenschaft Rotach

The original estate of the now 100-year-old cooperative Rotach is located in Sihlfeld. This estate near Goldbrunnenplatz comprises a total of 350 apartments (1 – 6.5 rooms). It is particularly family-friendly, offering large green spaces as well as generous family apartments with 6.5 rooms. Unfortunately, Baugenossenschaft Rotach is currently not accepting applications for its estates in the city of Zürich. There isn’t even a waiting list to put your name on. Apparently, they already have too many people who want an apartment. If you are also interested in apartments in the Greater Zürich area, you can apply here.

‍

Baugenossenschaft Turicum

This housing cooperative, with a rather concise website, has an estate in Sihlfeld on Leonard Ragaz Weg. The 10 buildings contain a total of 167 apartments — unfortunately there is no information on their sizes, but the estate is advertised as family-friendly, which suggests larger apartments. The apartments of Baugenossenschaft Turicum are managed by IVAG AG. Apparently the apartments are advertised on Homegate, but we haven’t come across any yet. In addition, a replacement new build is reportedly being constructed in Affoltern, but there are no concrete details yet.

‍

‍

Baugenossenschaft Wiedikon

With just under 150 apartments, Baugenossenschaft Wiedikon is one of the smaller cooperatives in the city of Zürich. As the name suggests, its properties are in prime locations in District 3, including in the Sihlfeld neighborhood. Here you’ll find the estate at Saumstrasse 61 and 63 and Goldbrunnenstrasse 158, 160 and 162 with a total of 48 apartments (2 – 5.5 rooms). Baugenossenschaft Wiedikon does not post listings; instead, it maintains a pool of interested applicants. When something becomes available, people on this list are contacted by the participatory rental committee. This year, there was a short window in November to put your name on the list of interested parties. We informed our subscribers immediately, of course. At the time, you had to pick up a form in person at the community room on Goldbrunnenstrasse. After a few days, the application window closed again. If you are interested in BG Wiedikon, it’s best to check the website every few days so you don’t miss the application window, or subscribe to our Suchabo.

‍

‍

Baugenossenschaft Zentralstrasse

The founding estate of Baugenossenschaft Zentralstrasse (BGZ) is located in Sihlfeld on — who would have guessed — Zentralstrasse. The houses built in 1919 are now listed. Particularly charming are the buildings on Bertastrasse with their Art Nouveau facades — perhaps you’ve noticed them. They are, unfortunately, quite difficult to photograph, so you’ll have to take a look on site yourself. BG Zentralstrasse also owns properties over 100 years old on Sihlfeldstrasse and Haslerstrasse. Thanks to various renovations, the standard of finish of these older buildings is in good condition. And the location of the properties, right in the heart of District 3, really leaves nothing to be desired. Accordingly, BGZ’s 153 apartments (1 – 4 rooms) in Sihlfeld are highly sought after. To snag one, you need to monitor the cooperative’s website , where it posts vacancies. Or use our Suchabo, which sends all matching listings straight to your email.

‍

‍

Baugenossenschaft Zurlinden

The history of Baugenossenschaft Zurlinden began in Sihlfeld, namely on Zurlindenstrasse (the name says it all!). The first property was completed here in 1924 — back then the area was still considered one of the outer districts of the city of Zürich. Today, by contrast, the area around Albisriederplatz is a lively and popular trendy neighborhood. The estate on Zurlindenstrasse comprises 53 apartments in 5 buildings — there’s no information on sizes on the website. If you want to rent an apartment from Baugenossenschaft Zurlinden, you can fill out the form for prospective tenants. If something suitable becomes available, the cooperative will get in touch. We don’t know how often this happens, as — like many cooperatives — it isn’t communicated. But it certainly doesn’t hurt to sign up. By the way: In Horgen, Baugenossenschaft Zurlinden is currently constructing stage 2 of Zentrums Tödi, a forward-looking new-build project. You can put your name on the list of interested parties here. You can, of course, also find current information on our website under new-build projects.

‍

‍

Evangelischer Frauenbund Zürich

This is not a cooperative, but the Evangelischer Frauenbund Zürich (efz) offers affordable housing, which is why we’re including this institution here. The Brahmshof estate in Sihlfeld in District 3 comprises 65 apartments with 2.5 – 5.5 rooms. Students, families, people with physical disabilities, seniors, and people with mental impairments are all welcome. Vacant apartments are listed on Homegate.ch, though this happens only very rarely.

By the way: efz is currently working on its Pilgerbrunnen new build. A children’s home, a daycare center, and a property with 2.5- and 3.5-room apartments as well as four large apartments are being built. We expect information by the end of 2025. We recommend checking the website regularly, or subscribing to our Suchabo so you don’t miss the start of leasing. Please do not contact the association about membership. Members cannot rent apartments, and joining is therefore counterproductive if you are interested in the new-build project. We also publish updates on this construction project freely accessible on our list of new-build projects.

‍

‍

Genossenschaft Kalkbreite

Named after the location of its first property, this cooperative has 91 housing units (1.5–9.5 rooms!) in a striking estate in Sihlfeld. You’ve surely already noticed the eye-catching structure. Completed in 2014, the estate offers a wide variety of housing forms, not only traditional floor plans but also cluster apartments and a large shared household. According to its own statements, Genossenschaft Kalkbreite positions itself as an innovative force in housing and neighborhood development.

Apartments from Genossenschaft Kalkbreite are rented only to members — so we unfortunately don’t know how often apartments become available or whether it’s worth it. In principle, any legally competent natural or legal person can join Genossenschaft Kalkbreite. You’ll find all the information on the website. Please note that a share certificate of CHF 1,000 (refunded when you leave) and a processing fee (CHF 200, non-refundable) are required.

Genossenschaft Karthago

This is a very special cooperative: the property at Zentralstrasse 150 is run as a large shared household — essentially a large shared flat. So there are no apartments here, but individual rooms to rent. If you’re interested in a room in this slightly different cooperative, you can sign up for the newsletter. You’ll be contacted when something becomes available.

‍

Siedlungsgenossenschaft Eigengrund

This cooperative has a strong presence in Sihlfeld. Right across from the Letzigraben outdoor pool (which we love) on the edge of the neighborhood, you’ll find the distinctive seven- and eight-story buildings of the original estate of Siedlungsgenossenschaft Eigengrund (SGE). They are set in a park and offer 90 housing units (1–5.5 rooms) plus a daycare center. A second SGE estate in Sihlfeld is located on Gutstrasse, directly adjacent to the Sihlfeld cemetery. A full 110 apartments (2–5.5 rooms) are rented here. You need quite a bit of luck to get one of these apartments, as unfortunately there are only a few listings. When something becomes available, the cooperative lists on Homegate. Of course, we monitor SGE and send the links to the listings in our Suchabo as well. Per year, we find about 10 vacant apartments from Siedlungsgenossenschaft.

‍

‍

Stiftung PWG

Although this is a foundation and not a cooperative, we’d still like to mention it here because it offers affordable apartments in the city of Zürich. PWG owns over 180 properties with more than 2,200 apartments in the city of Zürich. You’ll also find some of their buildings in Sihlfeld — you can view the full list here. PWG posts its apartments on its website, where they usually stay online for a few days. You can then apply directly using the application form. Vacant apartments come up very often at PWG — in our latest ranking (Annual review 2024), the foundation came first among institutions in terms of number of listings. There’s a vacant apartment here almost every other day! We, of course, send all PWG apartments in our Suchabo.

‍

‍

Wogeno

Wogeno is a cooperative of self-managed houses with properties in the city and canton of Zürich. What’s special about this cooperative is that tasks related to managing the houses are delegated directly to the house communities. Wogeno is represented almost everywhere in Zürich, and thus you’ll also find properties of this cooperative in Sihlfeld, for example on Idastrasse. To rent an apartment with Wogeno, you must first become a member. This costs 3,000 francs, which unfortunately do not earn interest. After 3 months, you are in principle eligible to rent an apartment. Vacant apartments are advertised to all members via newsletter. According to the website, people who have been members longer have better chances; however, we’ve learned from Wogeno that it usually takes years before you might make a shortlist. So if you’re willing to deposit 3,000 francs with WOGENO, you can give it a try. Naturally, you can cancel your membership and get the money back. For a duration of less than 2 years, they may charge an administrative fee.

‍

‍

Conclusion – It’s not all that easy with the cooperatives in Sihlfeld in District 3

‍

‍

Sihlfeld is a very popular residential neighborhood in District 3 — not least because of its cozy cafés, diverse restaurants, and various bars. There are various cooperatives here that manage apartments. However, your chances of getting a cooperative apartment here are not as good as in some other neighborhoods (for example Unterstrass, Oerlikon, or Albisrieden). With some of the cooperatives in Sihlfeld, you unfortunately have to become a member and pay quite a bit before you’re even informed about vacant apartments. Others have a waiting list — in some cases with a sign-up freeze. In our opinion, the best chances at the moment are with PWG or the efz new build. All listings for vacant apartments can of course be found in our Suchabo.

‍