Greece's Residential Property Market Analysis 2025

Greek house prices continue to increase, albeit at a slower pace, amidst continued increases in property demand.

Table of Contents

Housing Market Snapshot


In Greece's urban areas, house prices rose by 7.29% in Q3 2024 from a year earlier, following year-on-year increases of 9.24% in Q2 2024, 10.84% in Q1 2024, 12.58% in Q4 2023 and 13.28% in Q3 2023, according to figures released by the Bank of Greece. It was the 27th consecutive quarter of year-on-year price growth but the lowest since Q2 2021.

Greece's house price annual change

When adjusted for inflation, urban house prices were up by a modest 4.33% in Q3 2024 from a year earlier.

On a quarterly basis, house prices in Greek urban areas increased by 1.11% (0.83% in real terms) in Q3 2024. It was the lowest quarterly growth since Q4 2021.

House price growth in Greece's major cities is also generally slowing:

  • In Athens, Greece's capital city, house prices rose by 7.66% (4.69% in real terms) in Q3 2024 from a year earlier, a slowdown from the prior year's huge growth of 12.52% and its weakest performance since Q1 2021. During the latest quarter, house prices were up slightly by 1.05% (0.78% in real terms).
  • Thessaloniki, the country's second-largest city, led the house price growth of 12.11% (9.02% in real terms) in Q3 2024 from a year ago. Yet it remains lower than the y-o-y increases of 12.5% in Q2 2024, 12.97% in Q1 2024, 15.17% in Q4 2023 and 16.17% in Q3 2023. Quarter-on-quarter, prices increased by 3.07% (2.79% in real terms) during the latest quarter.
  • In other cities (excluding Athens and Thessaloniki), house prices rose by a modest 4.89% (2% in real terms) in Q3 2024 from a year earlier, a sharp slowdown from an annual growth of 14.51% in the same period last year. Quarter-on-quarter, prices were more or less steady (but fell slightly by 0.22% in real terms) in Q3 2024.

Greece Prices of Dwellings Index graph

Despite the nearly seven years of uninterrupted growth, Greek house prices remain relatively lower than most European countries - attracting many foreign investors into the country.

"Real estate prices in Greece remain lower compared to many countries abroad, which acts as a magnet for foreigners who are not only looking to secure returns but also wish to relocate to a popular tourist destination. At the same time, Americans' and Britons' goal of securing visas has dramatically strengthened the demand from these countries," said Kosmas Theodoridis, the president of the European Real Estate Brokers Association.

As such, demand, especially from foreign homebuyers, continues to increase strongly. During 2023, the total value of real estate purchases by foreign buyers, which accounts for about 80% to 85% of all real estate purchases in Greece annually, soared to an all-time high of €3 billion, following annual increases of 68% in 2022 and 34.4% in 2021.

Then in the first half of 2024, property transfers surged by about 20% from a year earlier. Based on the data from the Independent Authority for Public Revenue (AADE), state revenues from property transfers climbed to €302.49 million in H1 2024 as compared to €252.98 million in H1 2023.

Foreign investors have been attracted to Greece, mainly due to the Golden Visa Program, which offers residency to non-EU investors purchasing or renting property worth over €250,000. However, in August 2023, the cost of a Greek Golden Visa was doubled to €500,000, in the most popular areas of the country. The plan is valid for five years and is open to renewal.

The move seems to have negligible impact in increasing the affordability of real estate for Greeks and in discouraging foreign investors. Five months after the policy change (i.e. August-December 2023), a total of 3,626 investors have submitted their Golden Visa applications, up by around 60% from the same period in 2022.

As such, the government announced recently that effective August 31, 2024, the investment requirements for the Golden Visa program will increase further to €400,000 for areas that currently require a real estate investment of €250,000 and to €800,000 for those that currently require an investment of €500,000. In September 2024, Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis announced plans to expand the country's Golden Visa Program with a startup option of €250,000.

Following a strong post-pandemic recovery, the overall economy is now slowing. During 2023, the Greek economy grew by a modest 2% from a year earlier, a sharp slowdown from annual expansions of 5.6% in 2022 and 8.4% in 2021. Yet, it remains well above the country's long-term growth and the euro area average. Last year's growth was mainly driven by private consumption, investment in construction, and net exports.

Greece's economy is expected to post real GDP growth rates of 2.1% this year and another 2.3% in 2025, according to the European Commission.

Historic Perspective:


Housing boom and bust

Greece experienced a great house price boom during the early 2000s. Real estate agents reported 30% to 40% annual price rises for properties near the sea in 2004. In Athens, house prices rose 11.2% in 2006, before slowing to 6.2% in 2007.

When Greece's dramatic economic crisis hit, residential property prices began falling dramatically. Between 2007 and 2017, Greece's GDP per capita fell by a quarter, and house prices in Athens fell by 44.5% (-49.5% in real terms).

Here are the house prices in Athens in the past 16 years:

ATHENS HOUSE PRICE INDEX, ANNUAL CHANGE (%)
Year Nominal Inflation-adjusted
2008 -0.77% -3.57%
2009 -4.21% -6.04%
2010 -5.83% -10.40%
2011 -8.00% -10.49%
2012 -12.91% -13.88%
2013 -11.45% -9.47%
2014 -6.80% -5.04%
2015 -4.99% -4.41%
2016 -0.91% -0.47%
2017 -0.45% -1.27%
2018 4.67% 3.53%
2019 11.86% 11.75%
2020 6.23% 8.45%
2021 11.61% 6.86%
2022 16.90% 7.97%
2023 10.93% 7.35%
Sources: Bank of Greece, Global Property Guide

Greece finally emerged from the recession in 2017 - growing by 1.1% in 2017, 1.7% in 2018, and 1.8% in 2019.

The housing market started to recover in 2018, having fallen 42.5% (-47.7% in real terms) from 2007 to 2017. House prices in urban areas rose by 3.51% in 2018 and by another 7.46% in 2019. Athens experienced an even stronger growth in house prices of 4.67% and 11.86% over the two years.

And, despite the fact that the pandemic dragged the economy back to recession, with real GDP shrinking by a huge 9.3% during 2020, the housing market remains resilient. House prices in Athens rose by 6.23% (8.45% in real terms) y-o-y in 2020.

Fortunately, the overall economic conditions have since improved, with the economy growing strongly by 8.4% in 2021 and another 5.6% in 2022, mainly driven by the easing of pandemic-related restrictions and the low-base effect from the prior year.

As such, house prices in Athens soared by 11.61% (6.86% in real terms) in 2021 while prices in urban areas increased by 10.81% (6.09% in real terms) over the same period. In 2022, house price growth in Athens accelerated to 16.90% (7.97% in real terms) and to 15.05% (6.26% in real terms) in urban areas.

During 2023, the housing market continued to grow strongly. House prices in Athens surged 10.93% (7.35% in real terms) and by 12.48% (8.85% in real terms) in urban areas.

Rapid urbanization has led to a sharp dichotomy between urban and rural areas. Accordingly, more than 35% of the housing stock is vacant, mostly in rural areas. These units are typically dilapidated, or in need of total rehabilitation.

On the other hand, dwelling units in urban areas are amongst the most crowded in Europe. Most children continue to live with their parents after they enter adulthood. The reduction of notary fees from 1.2% to 1% of real estate's value was clearly insufficient in reducing the high transaction cost, which adds to the burdens of first-time homebuyers.

Demand Highlights:


Foreign interest in Greek tourism real estate surging

The property market accounts for about 20% to 35% share of total FDI in Greece annually. During 2023, net foreign direct investment (FDI) for the purchase of real estate rose by 8% y-o-y to €2.13 billion, following annual increases of 68% in 2022 and 34.4% in 2021 and a decrease of nearly 40% in 2020. It is now the highest level recorded in more than two decades.

Then in the first half of 2024, net FDI for real estate purchases increased by 3.6% to €1.14 billion as compared to the same period last year.

But even before the Covid-19 pandemic, foreign investment in real estate in Greece had been rising strongly. Net FDI for real estate surged by 45.3% in 2016, 86.5% in 2017, 172.1% in 2018, and another 28.5% in 2019.

Greece Net FDI Real Estate graph

According to an earlier Ernst & Young investment report, Greece remains resilient and attractive to foreign investors, despite the uncertainty of the international environment. Part of this is due to the Golden Visa Program. The Golden Visa program was launched in 2013 to revive the housing market from a prolonged slump. It offers residency to non-EU investors purchasing or renting property worth over €250,000, similar to Hungary, Spain, and Portugal. However, in August 2023, the cost of a Greek Golden Visa was doubled to €500,000 in the most popular areas of the country. The plan is valid for five years and is open to renewal.

The increased real estate investment requirement was applied to the northern part of the Hellenic Republic, the central and southern sectors of Athens in the Attica region, and the islands of Mykonos, Santorini, and the Municipality of Thessaloniki.

The move seems to have negligible impact in increasing the affordability of real estate for Greeks and in discouraging foreign investors. As such, the government announced recently that effective August 31, 2024, the investment requirements for the Golden Visa program will increase further to €400,000 for areas that currently require a real estate investment of €250,000 and to €800,000 for those that currently require an investment of €500,000.

However, in September 2024, PM Kyriakos Mitsotakis announced plans to expand Greece's Golden Visa Program with a startup option of investing €250,000 for foreign investors to obtain residency in the country.

From 2014 to 2021, 9,610 main applicants received their Golden Visa in Greece. Then from 2022 to 2023, a total of 6,795 main applicants were approved. From its inception to 2023, over 31,000 Greek Golden Visa permits were granted to the main applicants and their dependents, which yielded a total investment of more than €2.6 billion into Greece.

From 2014 to 2023, the highest number of applicants came from China, with a total of 7,186 visas approved which is equivalent to about 63.6% share, followed by Turkey (8.1%), Russia (6.7%), Lebanon (5.2%), and Egypt (3.7%).

As of October 2024, there were 12,577 Golden Visa applications, up by 12% from 11,229 applications in the same period last year, according to the country's Ministry of Migration.

The top five nationalities with the largest number of Golden Visa applications in Greece in October this year included: China with 6,521 applications (51.8% share of the total); Turkey with 1,115 applications (8.9% share); Lebanon with 717 applications (5.7% share); UK with 511 applications (4.1% share); and Iran with 509 applications (4% share).

Greece Golden Visa Applications and Approvals graph

Measures to boost the housing market

Aside from the Golden Visa program, several other measures introduced by PM Kyriakos Mitsotakis have buoyed the housing market recently:

  • Suspension of VAT payments on new building permits: Mitsotakis announced in October 2019 a suspension of VAT payments on any new building permits and unsold properties built after January 1, 2006. The suspension originally runs from December 12, 2019, to December 31, 2023. But in September 2022, Mitsotakis announced an extension of the tax relief for another year - until the end of 2024.
  • Tax relief for real estate: the government ended real estate tax in 26 islands in 2020.
  • Reduction of the single property tax (ENFIA): The ENFIA for individuals was reduced in 2019 - 30% reduction for properties valued up to €60,000; 27% for those valued up to €70,000; 25% for those valued up to €80,000; 20% for those valued up to €1 million; and 10% for properties valued more than €1 million. A further 10% reduction, on average, was applied to all property owners starting in 2020. Then in February 2022, Mitsotakis announced a new 13% reduction in the ENFIA.

Starting from 2022, the main rates of the new ENFIA are as follows:

Property zone rates Old ENFIA New ENFIA
€751 to €1,500 €3.70 per sq. m €2.80 per sq. m
€1,501 to €2,500 €4.50 to €6 per sq. m €3.70 per sq. m
€2,501 to €3,000 €7.60 per sq. m €4.50 per sq. m

Moreover, the new system expands the 30% ENFIA discount for properties up to €100,000 euros each and the 25% discount expands to properties of €100,001 to €150,000. The new law also provides for the payment of the single property tax in up to 10 interest-free monthly installments, up from six tranches in 2021.

"Under the new rules eight out of ten property owners will pay an even lower rate," PM Mitsotakis said. "A fair share will pay the same contribution, while a small minority, around 6 percent, will see a reasonable increase."

High property taxes had discouraged many potential buyers because property taxes had increased seven times since the global financial crisis.

Reducing taxes has been one of the priorities of the Mitsotakis government.

Supply Highlights:


Construction activity continues to increase

Residential construction in Greece has risen continuously in the past seven years, after almost a decade of declining activity. During 2023, building permits rose by 8.1% y-o-y to 26,930 units, following annual growth of 4.6% in 2022, 26.8% in 2021, 8.9% in 2020, 13.5% in 2019, 10.1% in 2018, and 9% in 2017.

Despite this, it remains far lower than the 70,000 to 80,000 permits issued annually from 2004 to 2007.

The rise in construction activity in recent years has been buoyed by Mitsotakis' suspension of VAT on new properties and on unsold properties built after January 1, 2006. The suspension originally ran for four years, between December 12, 2019 and December 31, 2023. However, recently Mitsotakis announced an extension of the tax relief for another year - until the end of 2024.

The VAT exemption is also applicable to situations known as "antiparochi", where owners provide land to builders in exchange for a number of future apartments.

Greece Number of Building Permits graph

Rental Market:


Gross rental yields and rents falling

Gross rental yields in Greece fell to an average of 4.73% in Q4 2024, down from 4.82% in Q1 2024, according to a recent Global Property Guide research. In central Athens, specifically Athens Historical Center and Kolonaki - Lykavittos, gross rental yields ranged from 3.73% to 8.25% in Q4 2024, with a city average of 4.99%.

Smaller apartments tend to have higher rental yields than larger ones.

By major cities:

  • In Athens, gross rental yields of apartments ranged from 3.73% to 8.25%, with a city average of 4.99% in Q4 2024.
  • In Thessaloniki, apartment rental yields ranged from 2.94% to 6.32%, with a city average of 4.32%.
  • In Kavala, apartments offer rental returns of between 3.34% and 5.30%, with an average of 4.27%.
  • In Patra, rental yields ranged from 4.59% to 5.50% in Q4 2024, with an average of 5.07%.
  • In Heraklion, gross rental yields ranged from 4.44% to 5.81%, with an average of 5.02%.
  • In Volos, apartments offer yields from 3.79% to 5.40%, with a city average of 4.73%.

Rents have been generally falling in the past decade. From 2010 to 2023, rents in Greece plunged by about 19%, the worst performance in the European Union, according to the Eurostat. Among the 27 EU member states, only Greece recorded rent declines over the period.

However, there have been some improvements this year. In Q3 2024, the rent price index rose by 4.63% compared to the same period last year. Quarter-on-quarter, rents were up by 1.89% during the latest quarter.

The monthly rents for two-bedroom apartments in Athens ranged from €600 to €1,650, according to Global Property Guide. In Thessaloniki, a similar apartment rents for about €500 to €700 per month.

The price-to-rent ratio, which helps assess whether it is more cost-effective to buy or rent a home in Athens, stood at 21 years. This generally implies that it is cheaper to rent than to buy a house.

Because of this, the proportion of Greek homeowners has been falling in recent years. During 2023, the homeownership rate in the country was 69.6%, down from 72.8% in 2022, 73.3% in 2021, 73.9% in 2020, and 75.4% in 2019, according to Eurostat. The rental market comprises about 30% of the dwelling stock.

Greece Homeownership Rate graph

Mortgage Market:


Mortgage interest rates falling gradually, following ECB rate cuts

Mortgage interest rates in Greece are now falling gradually, following the move of the European Central Bank (ECB) to hike its key rates successively in the past two years to rein in inflationary pressures. In December 2024, the ECB decided to lower its repo rate further by 25 basis points to 3.15%, its fourth consecutive rate cut in seven months, as inflationary pressures ease.

Prior to the monetary policy shift, the ECB raised the repo rate ten straight times from a record low of 0% in July 2022 to 4.5% in September 2023.

In October 2024, the average interest rate for new housing loans stood at 3.77%, down from 4.49% in the previous year but still slightly up from 3.69% two years ago, according to the Bank of Greece.

For new housing loans with a floating rate or up to one-year initial rate fixation (IRF), which accounts for about one-third of all new housing loans drawn in the first ten months of 2024, the average interest rate was 4% in October 2024, down from 5.1% in October 2023 but at par with the 4% two years ago.

For new housing loans with IRF of over 5 and up to 10 years, the average interest rate was 3.89% in October 2024, down from 4.63% a year earlier but still up from 3.24% two years ago.

For outstanding housing loans with a maturity of 1-5 years, the average interest rate stood at 5.41% in October 2024, slightly down from 5.5% a year ago but still up from 4.19% two years earlier. Likewise, the interest rate for loans with maturity of over 5 years was 4.28%, slightly lower than the 4.42% in the previous year but still far higher than the 3.02% two years ago.

Greece Interest Rates graph

Residential mortgage market continues to shrink

The size of the mortgage market continues to shrink. During 2023, the mortgage market contracted to just about 12.8% of GDP, down from 14.2% in 2022, 16.9% in 2021, and 39.5% of GDP in 2012.

The mortgage market is poised to contract further to below 12% of GDP this year.

Since the global financial crisis, cash-basis property transactions have accounted for about 80% of all transactions with only 20% relying on bank loans, according to the Bank of Greece, resulting in a continuous decline in the size of the mortgage market.