Germans have climbed to the top place among foreign home buyers in Greece, spending increasing amounts on beachside property in areas such as Crete and the Ionian islands.
Data from Elxis, a leading provider of real estate services that specializes in high-end holiday homes, show that house sales to German nationals tripled in the first half of this year relative to 2021.
This places Germans in the top spot among second-home buyers in the country, above investors from other European countries, such as the Netherlands, Belgium, and the UK.
Germans have the highest budgets for home buying in Greece
The figures from Elxis indicate that Germans also have the highest budgets with home purchases averaging at close to 350,000 euros.
This figure represents an increase of some 20 percent from last year amidst rising confidence in Greece, points out Elxis CEO Giorgos Gavriilidis.
“Greece offers exceptional value and investors are seeing this more and more,” said Gavriilidis. “Overbuilt coastlines in countries such as Spain, and very high prices in other Mediterranean countries are pushing buyers to seek other quality alternatives and turning to our country.”
“Despite the challenges brought on by the Ukraine war and inflationary pressure, demand for homes remains solid and we expect this to continue,” said Gavriilidis.
Demand for homes leads to property price hike in Greece
The price of properties in Greece has increased to unprecedented levels in 2022 with the Athens Riviera and the Cyclades leading the post-COVID recovery of the real estate market.
According to Spitogatos the leading app used in Greece to search for real estate, the southern suburbs of Athens are the most expensive areas to buy property.
The average price along the Athens Riviera, the shoreline along the Saronic Gulf just outside the Greek capital city, is 3,067 euros per square meter, an increase of 10.9 percent compared to the same period in 2021.
The demand for properties in the Athens Riviera has also driven up prices in neighboring Pireaus, where there has been an increase of 11.9 percent. Prices in the center of Thessaloniki have risen by 11.7 percent.
The Cyclades is the second most expensive area to buy property in Greece. The price has risen by 6.9 percent in the second quarter of 2022 compared to the same period last year. The average home in the Cyclades costs 2,887 euros per square meter, making the region the second most expensive in Greece.
Related: The Most Expensive and Cheapest Areas in Greece to Buy Property
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