The verdict in three sentences
In Neuchâtel, redesigning a luxury real estate agency website costs roughly CHF 12,000 to 45,000 in 2026 depending on whether you hire an agency in Neuchâtel, Lausanne or Bern, against CHF 4,500 (Growth) or CHF 8,200 (Premium) on Kolonell's fixed grid, excluding the listings feed. In a small market, a sizeable share of high-end tenants and buyers come from abroad or another canton: the multilingual journey and hreflang tags decide what they find. A redesign that breaks the mapping between languages can wipe out English rankings within weeks.
Why do relocating clients drop off your current site?
An executive hired by a watch manufacturer in La Chaux-de-Fonds, or a family looking for a house in Hauterive or Auvernier, compares three or four agencies from abroad. Three flaws keep coming up.
The English version covers only the home page and two listings, then sends visitors to French pages. Neighbourhood pages (lakeside, upper town, the Littoral) exist in one language only. Google shows the French page to an English-speaking searcher, because hreflang tags are missing or inconsistent.
For these visitors, a half-translated site sends a simple signal: this agency is not used to international clients.
Which pages, in which languages?
There is no need to translate everything. The journey must be complete in each chosen language, on the pages that matter for a relocation.
| Page type | French | English | German | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Home and relocation services | yes | yes | yes | main entry point |
| Rental and sale listings | yes | yes | depends on the feed | descriptions generated by your software |
| Neighbourhood and municipality pages | yes | yes | 3 to 5 key pages | Littoral, Neuchâtel mountains |
| Settling-in guide (schools, transport, formalities) | yes | yes | no | general content, no legal advice |
| Enquiry form | yes | yes | yes | identical fields in every language |
| Legal notice and privacy policy | yes | yes | yes | texts to be approved by your adviser |
On the technical side, every page carries reciprocal hreflang tags (fr-CH, en, de-CH), a self-reference and an x-default value. A single page without reciprocity is enough to blur the signal for the whole group.
How much does the redesign cost, and what should you ask providers?
2026 ballpark figures, based on typical agency quotes and public rate pages:
| Option | Redesign budget | Languages planned | Hreflang and 301 map |
|---|---|---|---|
| Neuchâtel agency | CHF 12,000 to 30,000 | 1 to 2, extra language optional | rarely detailed |
| Lausanne or Bern agency | CHF 20,000 to 45,000 | 2 to 3 | usually included |
| Freelancer | CHF 4,000 to 10,000 | 1 | to be checked |
| Kolonell Growth | CHF 4,500 | 1 | included |
| Kolonell Premium (the multilingual tier, languages set in the quote) | CHF 8,200 | set in the quote | included |
Starter, at CHF 2,700, only suits a simple single-language presence. Every tier includes a project manager reachable in your time zone, native English or French copywriting, delivery in 3 to 4 weeks once content is ready and 3 months of support. German translation by an independent translator is a third-party cost; maintenance after 3 months is on quote. The listings feed from your property software, or to Homegate and ImmoScout24, is priced separately. Details are on the international offer page.
Four questions to ask every provider: who writes the English, and is that person a native speaker? How are URLs structured by language? Does the 301 redirect map cover each language separately? What happens to let or sold listings?
Timeline and risks
Once content is ready, allow 3 to 4 weeks with Kolonell:
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- Week 1: URL inventory per language from Search Console, mapping table.
- Weeks 1 and 2: site structure and mock-ups.
- Weeks 2 and 3: French and English copy, integration of third-party translations.
- Weeks 3 and 4: testing, hreflang checks, 301 map, compliance review.
The risks to handle: ranking loss (301 map language by language, let or sold listings redirected to their neighbourhood, never to a 404); inconsistent hreflang (automated validation before go-live); content migration (every neighbourhood page proofread); integrations (feed tested on staging); downtime (off-peak DNS switch); compliance (marketing copy reviewed, with no promise on price or time to let or sell; forms limited to name, contact details, property reference and an optional budget range, with no ID). Anti-money-laundering checks belong to the agency's process. The Lex Koller restricts purchases of residential property by persons abroad: a general mention on the site is enough. The revised Swiss data protection act (nLPD/revFADP) has been in force since 1 September 2023; the GDPR may apply if you target cross-border commuters living in France. This is not legal advice.
When should you prefer a local agency?
If you want a partner who knows every relocation player in Neuchâtel, runs working sessions on site and coordinates your photographers, a Neuchâtel agency keeps an edge. Kolonell fits when your content is ready and the goal is a clean multilingual journey, delivered fast.
Mini case study
Relais Lac et Jura Relocation (illustrative example) lets and sells high-end homes to watch industry executives and families between Auvernier and La Chaux-de-Fonds. The new site has 40 pages in 3 languages, i.e. 120 URLs. Each URL carries 4 hreflang annotations (3 languages plus x-default): 480 annotations to check.
Budget: Premium CHF 8,200, German translation by an independent translator (third-party cost) CHF 1,400, i.e. CHF 9,600. Photos by a local photographer as a third-party cost, listings feed on quote.
FAQ
Should every listing be translated into English?
Yes if the feed allows it: a journey that switches to French on the third page loses the visitor. On a 40-page site, listings often account for more than half of the traffic.
What does an hreflang error cost?
One tag without reciprocity can make the wrong language appear across a whole group of pages. Checking the 480 annotations in the case above takes less than a day with an audit tool.
Does Premium cover three languages?
Premium at CHF 8,200 is the multilingual tier, with languages set in the quote. An external German translation remains a third-party cost.
How long does the project take?
3 to 4 weeks once content is ready, plus the listings feed schedule set in its separate quote.
Let's scope your project. A multilingual redesign in 3 to 4 weeks, from CHF 4,500 to 8,200, with the listings feed priced separately. See the international offer or request a free quote: detailed reply within 48 hours.
Mohamed Bah
Fondateur, Kolonell
Passionate about digital and entrepreneurship in Africa, Mohamed has been helping Sénégalese businesses with their digital transformation since 2020. Founder of Kolonell, he believes every SME deserves a professional and accessible online présence.
