Why is the Greek real estate market so attractive to investors and local residents? What properties are in greatest demand in the country? What is the situation with real estate prices at the moment? Demokrit Tersenov, CEO of Kyriakidis Development, shared with us the latest news and insights from the Greek real estate market.

«Today, more than half of requests and purchases come from the Greeks themselves»

— In 2023, investments in Greek real estate exceeded 1 billion euros. At the same time, in the last six months alone, the country received more than 16 billion euros in profit from tourism and the provision of services. Thanks to this, budget revenues have increased significantly, salaries have increased, infrastructure facilities are being built, as well as new housing. Accordingly, buying real estate in Greece in conditions of strong economic growth and the interest of foreign investors is a very profitable investment.

No wonder that the demand for Greek real estate has almost doubled over the past 3 years. Moreover, if previously the main request for properties in Greece came from foreigners, today more than half of the requests and purchases come from the Greeks themselves due to the sustainable and stable growth of the country’s economy, as well as the attraction and implementation of large infrastructure investment projects.

Crete shows the highest dynamics against this background, which is facilitated by the following factors: construction of a third major airport; construction of a highway for a high-quality connection between the western part of Crete and the eastern; stretching a super-powerful fiber optic cable along the bottom of the Aegean Sea with the prospect of creating an IT cluster on the basis of the University of Crete similar to Silicon Valley and others.   

«Over the past 5 years, property prices in Crete have been increasing annually by 15-20%»

— New properties, houses, villas, apartments, built to modern standards of quality and convenience, are in constant strong demand in Greece. These include, inter alia, detached villas with their own plot of land, apartments with large balconies and parking spaces, small villas with a private pool in complexes with organized infrastructure, and so on.

Dynamics of prices for buying apartments in Greece over the past 8 years shows a steady increase—from 6 to 12-15% per year.

Let me give you an example. Crete has a world-famous resort with year-round tourism infrastructure—Chania. In 2021-2022, a 2-room apartment with 95 sq.m (including a balcony of 25 sq.m) in a completed new building there cost about 250 000 euros, while a similar apartment in a new apartment complex under construction with a completion date of 2024 already costs from 330 000 euros and above, depending on the floor, view characteristics, and so on.

If we compare prices for houses and villas in Greece, over the past 5 years the price increase in Crete has annually reached 15-20%.

Ocean landscape and beach view on the island of Crete

«In 2023, there were 80% more applications for the Golden Visa than in 2022»

— Foreigners buy both locally and remotely. We select and provide suitable options based on the buyer’s criteria, lawyers request and prepare the necessary documents, and the selling company issues an invoice. After partial prepayment, the process of registration and registration in the real estate register begins, this takes about 1,5-2 months. In complexes under construction, phased installments are provided. In short, the purchasing process is simple and transparent.

The geography of foreign real estate buyers in Greece is different: they come from countries throughout almost all of Europe, China, the USA, Israel, the UAE, and others. They buy mainly in locations with accessible infrastructure: an example of this is Crete with its developed and self-sufficient tourism infrastructure, as well as the longest holiday season in the heart of the Mediterranean Sea.

The high demand from foreigners, of course, is facilitated by another factor—the European five-year Golden Visa residence permit provided for the whole family when purchasing real estate. The entry threshold in Crete remains €250 000 (while in some areas of cities such as Athens and Thessaloniki it has increased to €500 000). The increase in the number of applications submitted for a five-year residence permit in 2023 was about 80% compared to 2022.

We must not forget about the high demand for short-term rentals in Greece, coupled with a significant increase in tourist flows (more than 25% over the last 2 years). All this, without a doubt, attracts foreign investors.