Thousands of new students and their parents are looking for a place to live after the announcement of the admission criteria and the names of the successful candidates in our country’s HEIs.

In fact, there are not a few cases where parents consider the possibility housing purchase in their children’s city of entry, especially in cases where there are younger siblings following and who will be taking exams in the next few years, comparing the installment of a home loan to the monthly rent expense.

In the process of searching for a house to rent Panhellenic Federation of Property Owners (POMIDA) through the website (www.pomida.gr) gives new students and parents the following timeless recommendations:

  • Do not panic. You don’t need to rent a residence from the first moment, nor do classes start the day after the results are announced!
  • Don’t look for a house outside the University gate, (common mistake of parents). A few streets or a few stops down, there are many houses waiting for you, discover them.
  • Organize your search and don’t rush to end up with the first one you see, but immediately close the first one that works for you!!!!
  • If they ask you for a rent that exceeds your finances, do not accept it, because you will definitely find what you are asking for a little further.
  • There is no limitation either in terms of the amount of the guarantee, nor in terms of the number of pre-paid rents.
  • Organize your roommate with other students you know, in two-room, three-room and generally large apartments, which are always rented much cheaper than smaller ones.
  • Carefully and unhurriedly check the house you found and the condition it is in. If it is night, you are asked to see it in daylight as well.
  • Fill out and sign a lease document, both you and your concerned parent, but be careful, never pay rent or down payments unless you are sure that the person asking you is actually the owner of the house you are renting.
  • Away from the so-called “information agencies”, which promise that if you pay them a certain amount in advance, they will immediately find you the house you want. Most of the time their “information” is outdated and worthless.
  • Go only to official real estate agencies, where you do not pay any amount in advance, except when you sign a lease and take delivery of the house.

Residential Property – Prices and Trends – Low Supply Modern Homes

However, a large number of Greeks and foreigners who want to invest in our country for different reasons are looking for residential properties together with their parents and students. The “My Home” loan program is also giving impetus to the real estate market, and concerns the granting of low-interest or interest-free mortgage loans to young people and young couples, aged from twenty-five (25) to thirty-nine (39), for the purchase of a first home. The loans are granted through the cooperating Banks and the application is submitted to a Bank of the borrower’s choice.

But in what state is the housing stock in our country today?

In the latest report of the Bank of Greece (BoG), reference is made to the low supply of modern homes and the effects it has on real estate market prices. As reported by the Bank of Greece, the low supply of modern properties gradually leads to the diffusion of price increases to properties of lower technical specifications. At the same time, yields are kept at low levels for the market, but attractive for investors, as a result of which investment activity remains active both from abroad and from within the country.

More generally, in the housing market, the BoE reports, upward trends in prices were maintained during the first quarter of 2023. More specifically, according to the apartment price indices published by the Bank of Greece from data-estimates collected by credit institutions , nominal apartment prices in the first quarter of 2023 were up 14.5% compared to the corresponding quarter of 2022, while for the whole of 2022, based on revised data, apartment prices increased at an average annual rate of 11.7 % By geographical area, the two major urban centers of the country record stronger annual growth rates than the average annual rate for the whole of Greece, mainly due to the continued investment interest. In particular, for the first quarter of 2023, the Athens region recorded an average annual growth rate of 16.5% and Thessaloniki 16.1%, while for the whole of 2022, the respective growth rates were 13.7% and 12.5% .

Low-end properties will also be upgraded

The growing demand for properties of modern specifications is estimated to eventually contribute to the upgrading of the existing stock, which, if not adapted to the new requirements, will further depreciate. However, the real estate market will continue to be under pressure from increased inflation and interest rates, tight financing, high energy and material costs, and broader geopolitical uncertainty.

According to the Bank of Greece, these conditions, combined with the downward correction of values ​​that is already taking place internationally, are estimated to direct investment interest towards sustainable investments and properties with lower operating costs, greater flexibility and quality levels that will ensure income generation and goodwill for a long time horizon. The Greek real estate market, presenting important peculiarities in relation to the rest of the real estate markets in Europe, is estimated to continue to maintain its attractiveness, especially for its high-end stock.