Report: Athens Leads Greek Property Market Momentum

The Greek property market is showing signs of recovery with Athens leading the way, according to the annual Emerging Trends in Real Estate 2022 report released this week.

Carried out by the Urban Land Institute (ULI) and PWC, the study titled “Road to Recovery” and conducted on 844 market professionals, estimates that rents and values are expected to rise in the coming year and lists Athens in 23rd spot up from 28th last year among other European capitals with regard to the overall outlook of the real estate market.

The Greek capital garnered higher scores in investment prospects (4.29 out of 5) and potential for development prospects (4.24 out of 5) – achieving a performance similar to Rome, Helsinki, Stockholm and Prague and higher compared to Dublin, Warsaw, Barcelona and Brussels.

According to the report, investor interest is focused on business properties, offices and shops.

Athens, Greece. Photo source: @Athens Traders Association

At the same time, Athens is first up from 9th in 2021 on a list of 31 European cities where change is expected in rents and capital values. Athens is followed by Copenhagen, Berlin, Hamburg and Munich.

Those surveyed from the Athens market said “the Greek capital offers the strongest growth perspective in all of Europe”, attributing the change to an anticipated strong tourism recovery, political stability, and a more investor-friendly environment. 

Overall, real estate professionals in Europe are expecting strong profit in 2022 in the aftermath of Covid-19 and a returning confidence in the real estate sector. Indicatively, 38 percent of those surveyed predict higher returns, compared to 25 percent in the 2021 survey and 13 percent a year earlier. Among those surveyed, 82 percent expect inflation to rise next year, against 34 percent last year. A total of 44 percent said they expect an increase in short-term interest rates and 62 percent and increase in long-term interest rates.

In general, the real estate professionals polled were optimistic, claiming that the worst was over for the sector and that real estate remains a favored asset.