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Anastasia Balezdrova

The severe economic crisis that hit Greece affected all types of business adversely. In the difficult situation in which many small and medium sized enterprises ceased their activities real estate market could not remain unaffected. According to the chairman of the union of real estate agents in Athens Yannis Revitis the measures which the Government provides in the medium term rescue plan for the Greek economy could hardly contribute to "warming" the market.

He said in an interview for GRReporter that "any increase in taxes and tax values ​​of real estate burden the market and affect both buyers and owners. As a result, the Greek real estate market remains "frozen". To improve the situation constant tax values should be determined; tax cuts and increases in exempt values should be made.

According to Yiannis Revitis, demand by Greek citizens has decreased. According to data provided by real estate agents and the Bank of Greece, real estate prices have dropped by about 8 to 8.5% in the past year. According to the broker, one of the main reasons is the bank reticence in providing large loans.

According to Yiannis Revitis, the real estates on the islands in the Aegean and Ionian seas remain the most demanded. "Sun, sea, culture and hospitality - that sells Greece. Real estates were sold which were offered at very reasonable prices. Of course, the interest of foreigners to real estates on the islands remains high. And because the prices are reasonable there are sales.  We could say that the foreigners are saving the day."

According to publications in the Greek press, the trend is owners of houses in resort areas to mass sell them to avoid paying the heavy taxes, which are specified in the medium term plan of the government. Yannis Revitis, however, claims that "people in trouble are selling their properties. But in no case we are speaking of a mass phenomenon. We can not say that people are selling their houses quickly and at low prices. They are selling at very reasonable prices that are slightly lower than last year."

According to the broker from Thessaloniki Nasos Vakoulis, the decline in the real estate market in northern Greece is 70%. "This affects the sales and rentals where the decline is even greater. Unlike the south part and the islands, the north is not selling well the real estates in the resorts. "The decline is about 80%. If 100 houses and apartments were sold on the Halkidiki peninsula last year, it is doubtful whether 20 will be sold this year. This is the ratio. Thousands of houses and apartments are offered without drawing any interest."

There have been much of talks about Russian citizens who are looking to buy property in coastal areas in northern Greece in recent years. Nakos Vakoulis argues that this is a myth.

"Even if some real estates were purchased I still have not seen any serious investment. Indeed, there were some people interested to buy several years ago. Rumours began floating and thus made the impression that there is great interest, but ultimately this was not confirmed by the course of things. "

The main reason for the decline is the uncertainty of the investment, said Nasos Vakoulis. "The people who availed some money still avail it but they are afraid to invest in property, because they do not know what might happen tomorrow. When buying a property your second thought before even signing the contract is if you can sell it at the same price and return your original investment, let alone the profit. This is something that does not exist today. You can buy a property for a hundred thousand and it could cost only fifty thousand over time. There is no security. That is why the people who have money to buy do not buy."

According to the broker from Thessaloniki, what the real estate market needs is huge investment from abroad, but it is also needed to clarify how the funds were acquired. "In order to make large investments of millions and billions from abroad the requirement for indicating how the funds have been acquired will have to be cancelled at least for a few years. There are rumours that the Greek capitals only in Switzerland are around 600 billion euros. Let alone the funds in other banks in South and North America, Luxembourg, offshore companies in the Bahamas and the Cayman Islands. If we do not ask them how they have acquired all this money these people will come here and buy property. This requirement prevents people who live in Greece from buying a property for their child, for example. They have to submit a dozen of documents for no reason. If this measure is cancelled for several years, the state will gain a lot. First of all, it will gain from the taxes to be paid by the broker, lawyer, and the notary."

Since these people have not been detained abroad with charges for acquiring the money through illicit means, why do not we attract them here and drive dozens of professions in this way?"

"But stability is needed here too," says the broker. "The question is not to begin to "chase" them to explain how they acquired the funds after this period as they did with the semi-open buildings. First, they said "come to legalize them" and then they began to look for them and asked "how did you built them."

Nasos Vakoulis gave as an example of the large decline in the real estate market Tsimiski Street - the place with the highest property prices in Thessaloniki. "The shops along Tsimiski were full once. Significant amounts were paid for the good location of the sites; the rents were high, amounting to tens of thousands of euros."