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Greece’s Golden Visa Reform Returns Thousands of Properties to Rental Market · IMI Podcasts

• 0:00
  SPEAKER_00: A slowdown in Greece's golden visa property purchases is helping boost supply in the country's long-term rental market, potentially alleviating Athens's housing shortage, according to data reported by local media.
• 0:14
  SPEAKER_00: Of roughly sixteen thousand properties foreigners acquired by the end of twenty twenty four, nearly fifteen thousand entered the long-term rental market immediately after purchase, particularly after a 2024 law prohibited new golden visa properties from short-term lettings, including platforms like Airbnb.
• 0:35
  SPEAKER_00: The report notes that between 1,000 and 2,000 completed apartments are already nearing market entry, with conversions of idle commercial properties expected to deliver an additional 3,000 to 5,000 homes in the Athens metropolitan area by 2027.
• 0:55
  SPEAKER_00: Foreign property purchases under Greece's Golden Visa program have declined in 2025, with investment flows dropping 24% in the first nine months of the year as higher golden visa thresholds took effect.
• 1:10
  SPEAKER_00: During this period, property acquisitions linked to the program totaled approximately 1.46 billion euros between January and September, down from 1.925 billion euros during the same period in 2024, according to Bank of Greece data.
• 1:29
  SPEAKER_00: The decline accelerated in the third quarter, with investments falling 32.7% to 527 million euros compared to 783.7 million euros the previous year.
• 1:44
  SPEAKER_00: While 2024 set a record with 2.75 billion euros in golden visa-related property investment and 9,411 initial applications, the program has witnessed slower momentum following the threshold adjustments.
• 2:01
  SPEAKER_00: The new rules, which mandate single property purchases of at least 120 square meters in high demand areas, have reportedly pushed many participants toward commercial conversions, tourism developments, and residential projects with longer-term business plans.
• 2:19
  SPEAKER_00: Indeed, while property investment contracted, overall FDI reached 8.6 billion euros in the first nine months of 2025, led by investments in healthcare, technology, and logistics.
• 2:35
  SPEAKER_00: Shift to upgrading idle property to meet lower threshold requirement.
• 2:41
  SPEAKER_00: Investors can still qualify for the golden visa at the lower 2005,000 euro threshold by purchasing and converting old historic or commercial buildings, such as vacant offices, retail shops or warehouses into residential apartments.
• 2:59
  SPEAKER_00: This exception has reportedly driven a wave of renovations in central Athens neighborhoods, like Ixarcia, Metaxorgeo, Kipsale, and Piraeus, where many such buildings have sat empty for more than a decade.
• 3:15
  SPEAKER_00: These projects benefit from lower construction costs because the building structure already exists, while allowing applicants to qualify at the lower 250,000 euro threshold and adding needed housing supply to Athens' tight market.
• 3:31
  SPEAKER_00: Despite the overall decline, foreign purchasers continue to represent a substantial portion of Athens's residential market, accounting for approximately forty percent of property transactions in the capital in 2025.
• 3:47
  SPEAKER_00: The capital region of Attica houses approximately 11,500 of the 13,499 golden visa applications awaiting processing nationwide as of September 2025.
• 4:04
  SPEAKER_00: In 2025, authorities have substantially reduced processing times, with some recent applications clearing in under 30 days, compared to the 18-month delays that characterize the program in 2024.
• 4:21
  SPEAKER_00: This episode first appeared as an article by Mustafa Daily on imidaly.com.
• 4:26
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• 4:33
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