Ultra-luxury residences in magnificent seaside areas of Greece are attracting the interest of the international real estate market. The ever-increasing demand, both from abroad and from within the country, is still difficult to meet due to the limited stock of such assets.
Most of the existing properties are family properties, most of which are passed on to future generations without ever being put on the market. As a result, prices are constantly escalating, but in Greece they are still significantly lower than those of competing destinations in the Mediterranean and beyond. The strengthening of the country's brand name internationally, combined with its natural beauty and its participation in the euro zone, which provides the relevant legal and financial security to potential owners, are the drivers of the escalating demand.
Slowly but surely foreign buyers are discovering new charming destinations in Greece, beyond Mykonos and the Athenian Riviera. And together they are pushing prices higher. According to Greece Sotheby's International Realty - a real estate firm specialising in distinguished high-end properties worldwide - «2022 looks set to be the best year yet for the Greek market in luxury real estate, with transactions reaching record amounts, both in areas of stable interest, such as Mykonos, and in other parts of the country, such as Syros and Lefkada».
As the real estate company explains, the reference point for the sales of second homes, i.e. second homes for foreign and Greek buyers remains Mykonos, where recently «the absolute record for the value of a single residence sale in Greece was set, with the transaction amount exceeding 23 million euros». According to Sotheby's, this transaction is around four times the value of the average transaction on the island and «comes to seal Mykonos» rightful title as the flagship of Greek luxury real estate".
However, many other regions of Greece are also on the rise this year, with Sotheby's recording landmark transactions on islands such as Syros, Lefkada and Paxos. In Paxos, the house reports increased buyer interest, but also transactions made at particularly high levels, «with records following one another». More specifically, the island of Syros recorded this year the highest value transaction in the history of the island, with the sale by Greece Sotheby's International Realty of a property for 3.7 million euros. This transaction value is about 3 times higher than the average level of deals of this scale in previous years, according to the house.
In Lefkada the historical record for the sale value of a luxury home was broken in 2022, «not just once but twice, with transactions of 4.1 and 5.4 million euros, in one of which the highest amount per square meter was recorded, with the value of 16,700 euros per square meter.» It is worth noting that in Lefkada luxury property transactions are minimal, with most of them being in the 1.5 million euro range and the specific records set in 2022 represent almost triple the values, Sotheby's International Realty points out.
An additional example that confirms the diffusion of demand to new destinations, but also the rise in prices caused by the increased demand, is Paxos. As Sotheby's explains, in just four years the values of the most expensive transactions have multiplied. More specifically, from May 2018 to July 2021 through the house's transactions, the region's record was broken 6 consecutive times, rising from 1.6 million euros in 2018, to 1.9 and 2.5 million euros in 2019 and 3.5 million, 5 million and 5.2 million euros in 2021.
According to Greece Sotheby's International Realty, the first in demand for the eight months of 2022 are Corfu and Mykonos, with the Athenian Riviera, Paros and Rhodes following. Tinos, the centre of Athens, Crete, Kea and Paxos complete the top ten. In terms of countries of origin of demand for luxury property in Greece, Great Britain remained in first place in 2022, with the USA and France occupying second and third place, but still showing excellent dynamics.
Significant scope for further price increases in Greece
Despite the fact that Greece is 11th in the world in terms of coastline size, there is a significant shortage of sufficient beachfront property stock, meaning that there is significant scope for further price rises. While prices for established second home destinations of this type in the Mediterranean, such as Italy, southern France and the Balearic Islands, range from €25,000 per square metre to over €60,000 per square metre, in Greece prices are still hovering around €10,000.
In addition, «whenever one looks at the Greek luxury real estate market, one should always take into account how much recognition it has received in recent years in international markets and especially in the circles of high spenders», explains the president and CEO of Greece Sotheby's International Realty, Savvas Savvaidis, speaking to «K». «Regardless of the broader developments that have led the real estate market upwards internationally, in the past few years in Greece we have also had a significant upward price correction while the country's properties began to be effectively promoted to the “big wallets”», he adds, stating that «the international network of Sotheby's International Realty has been talking to these people for five decades, having substantial and long-standing relationships». «It is quite different to actively market and promote properties in England, France, USA, etc. and quite different to passively wait for visitors to discover Greece to sell them a property. Consider that in terms of the ultra-luxury housing segment, a 50% of international property buyers have come to Greece for the first time,» he reveals to K.
Asked whether this price rally in the expensive part of the seaside real estate market can continue, Savvas Savvaidis answers that «we will be able to have a complete picture of the market in the medium term as soon as the third quarter of 2022 is completed». However, his optimism for the future of the market is evident.
