“Low wages, one buying a home where the growth rate has risen sharply rental prices but also sale, policies encouraging foreign investors to position themselves in the real estate market, and an economy with a very high dependence on tourism have made it very difficult for permanent residents to buy or rent a house.” The above characteristics describe the current situation in Portugal, but they may well apply to Greece, where a housing market and a housing problem have emerged in recent years.

The price of extraversion

To a certain extent, the extroversion of both countries and the opening of borders to buyers from abroad, as well as to foreign visitors, whose number has increased in recent years, taking advantage of the popularity of short-term rentals, is to some extent to blame. for this situation. However, real estate executives note that these funds have provided significant liquidity to a struggling market while revitalizing entire neighborhoods. At the same time, they emphasize that the main reason why permanent residents in both Portugal and Greece are unable to access the housing market or rent a house at a low price is mainly the significant drop in household income and the decrease in their purchasing power. ability in previous years of the financial crisis. According to Lefteris Potamianos, President of the Athens Attica Realtors Association, “Portugal has a very important structural difference from the Greek housing market. In particular, the urban planning of large urban centers is much stricter than ours, preventing the mixing of different types of use in one area, as happens here, where we see how different areas are grouped together by residential buildings, offices, shops and even industrial facilities. the same point.” According to him, it is this flexibility (albeit inadvertently) that has allowed the conversion of old industrial buildings and outdated office buildings into residential complexes, the need and demand for which has increased. “We see that the refurbishment and repurposing of former commercial properties to function as residential has gained significant momentum in the market, specifically to increase the supply of housing where there is a lot of demand,” notes Mr. Potamianos. This is not easy to do in Portugal, where neighborhoods in big cities have a clearer and more distinct character, preventing the transformation of, for example, a shopping center into a residential complex.

The Portuguese government has announced the abolition of the golden visa program.

In this context, on Thursday the Portuguese government announced a broad package of measures to tackle the housing crisis, starting with the abolition of the highly successful Golden Visa program, which has generated a total of €6.8 billion since its implementation in 2012. Accordingly, the Greek program, which started in mid-2014 but first investors started buying in 2015, is estimated to have attracted a total investment of €2.5 billion thanks to 9,802 licenses issued by the end of 2022. program, and the Greek one was the opportunity to apply for citizenship, that is, a passport, after the first five years of the residence permit.

First permanent residents

Another measure announced by the Portuguese government concerns the provision of incentives for owners to convert tourist sites into residences to be rented out to permanent residents. New licenses to operate short-term rental housing will also be restricted.

A similar package of measures has now begun to be implemented in the Greek market, although not on such a scale of bans. For example, from May 1, foreign investors interested in obtaining a residence permit will have to pay double the amount (500,000 euros instead of 250,000 euros) in the center of Athens, in the southern and northern suburbs, in Mykonos and Santorini, as well as in the Municipality of Thessaloniki. This is done so that they turn to other areas, leaving “living space” for permanent residents, so that sales prices do not grow at such a pace. At the same time, a number of initiatives have been announced and are underway, such as a subsidy of up to 10,000 euros to owners for the renovation and rental of old properties, exclusively with long-term leases (three to five years). The government hopes to ensure a greater supply of rental housing through the introduction of the institution of social compensation. With this tool, free public facilities will be used, which will be available for use by private individuals. At the same time, a program was also launched to subsidize the interest rate when buying a home by young people under the age of 39.