The increase in tax revenues from short-term rentals has been great in recent years.

Revenues have increased more than tenfold from 2017 to date, as reported by the head of the Independent Public Revenue Authority (AADE), Giorgos Pitsilis, in the context of the 25th Prodexpo.

“In 2017, tax revenues were around 70 million euros, while last year they reached 740 million euros. This year, in the first 9 months, we have revenues of 742 million euros (against 640 million euros in the corresponding period of 2023) and we estimate that at the end of the year we will reach 830 million euros”, emphasized Mr. Pitsilis. AADE, as he said, has developed, in collaboration with the short-term rental platforms, tools that provide quality data for the market. According to this data, 6,200 legal entities have declared more than 3 properties, with the image of compliance with the law being good, as 90% have opened books, about 500 have given wrong codes, while another 500 have not taken any action . “We have identified them and will harass them in the next period of time to make them comply“, said Mr. Pitsilis, adding that now, only 12% of listings on these platforms are problematic.

Mr. Pitsilis was also asked by the moderator of the discussion, journalist Stelios Kraloglou, about the issue of vacant properties, saying that we cannot know exactly how many there are, something that will change in 2025, when the property ownership and management register will be developed , in collaboration with the Land Registry.

For his part, the Prime Minister’s economic adviser, Alexis Patelis, quoted a series of figures on short-term rentals, according to which 100,000 residences have a unique AMA (property registry number) and are rented on a short-term basis, with 40,000 AMAs having been added in the last four years. “Of these 100,000 AMAs, 1/4 lease them for more than 90 days per year, which is why we finally decided not to institute a time limit,” said Mr. Patelis. He stated that 80,000 are owned by natural persons, of which 4/5 are rented for less than 90 days. Accordingly, 20,000 are owned by legal entities, with at least half being leased for more than 90 days, which is why the framework for legal entities has been tightened.

Mr. Patelis limited the average income per AMA to 7,350 euros per year, while regarding the restrictions in three apartments of the municipality of Athens, he explained that in the center lurks the danger of altering the social fabric. “In these neighborhoods, short-term rentals exceed 5%. The measure will be implemented from the beginning of 2025 and at the end of the year we will judge whether the measure has an effect and should be extended”, added Mr. Patelis.

The prime minister’s economic adviser pointed out that the government will focus on creating better databases and ensuring greater transparency in the property market, saying there is a huge amount of information across various agencies that needs to be “buttoned up”. He said that many regions of the country have not benefited from the development of tourism, as a result of which a regional imbalance is created, while he characterized the climate transition and the energy upgrade of buildings as a big issue.

Restrictions on short-term lettings have not benefited local communities while property prices have risen

In her presentation, Valentina Reino, Airbnb’s Head of Public Policy for Southern Europe, emphasized that the agreement that short-term rental companies have made with AADE in Greece is a best practice in Europe. He said it is easy for hosts to register on the platform and comply with the law, as the process is automated and repeated every year. He also pointed out that Airbnb’s experience in other countries, which have imposed restrictions on short-term rentals, is not positive, as they did not benefit local communities, while property prices increased.

On the sidelines of the conference, Valentina Reino was asked if short-term rentals are having an impact on the housing crisis, stating that “Airbnb has little to no effect on the availability or price of housing in the vast majority of areas. While in certain neighborhoods and city centers, short-term rentals may compete with long-term housing, a private space (main or secondary residence or even rooms) that is rented out occasionally does not affect finding available housing. On the contrary, this extra income helps the average Greek to afford and get by, while ensuring better utilization of existing assets, especially in rural areas».

On the recently announced regulation in Greece on short-term rentals, Valentina Reino proposed to review the impact of this measure in order to support families that rely on income from hospitality to make ends meet, as well as the further exclusion of hosts who have their main or secondary residences and rooms on short-term lease, as they stay in them for a few months or the whole year”.

For his part, Stratos Paradias, president of POMIDA and the International Union of Property Owners (UIPI), expressed his concern about the conversation that has opened, both about short-term rentals and about “alleged” hypertourism. He emphasized that the development of short-term rentals has improved the image in many neighborhoods of Athens, arguing that the ban on the three apartments in the city center will create significant problems for many properties from leases that will expire and from the termination of cooperation with the manager, in whose name the AMA is. “The AMA must be linked with the Property Identification Number (ATIK), to ensure the investments that the owners have made in their property”, stressed Mr. Paradias.

Commenting on the planned measure of the three-year tax exemption for vacant properties to be re-integrated into the market, the president of POMIDA noted that it will bring most houses to the market, as long as it is properly legislated. “Unnecessary cutters should not be inserted. Every restriction deprives young people of houses on the market”, stressed Mr. Paradias, adding that it does not make any sense for the three-year vacancy period to also apply to short-term housing, i.e. someone who wants to leave the short-term housing immediately should have to waiting for three years to complete.