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What has happened? The Greek government is looking at ways to return to the property market some 750,000 residential properties that are declared empty every year, in an attempt to ease a severe housing crisis that has emerged in recent years. Buying and renting homes has become too expensive for locals.
Context. Various disincentives like taxes and fees Cities are being applied in many cities around the world, with very encouraging results.
So far in Greece, subsidies for renovations is the preferred option as an incentive or benefit. However, such schemes are often ineffective, take a long time to implement and ultimately do not have a meaningful impact on the market.
Meanwhile, Greeks who don't have the luxury of owning property or happen to work in another city are facing soaring rents that are rising much faster than wages.
Numbers. Greece has one of the highest rates of empty housing in Europe, with a high concentration in urban centers, according to data compiled by the Eteron Institute for Research and Social Change. According to the 2011 census, the rate of vacant houses in Athens was 31%, in Piraeus 28% and in Thessaloniki 28.2%.
Source: Ekathimerini
Photo by Dragos Gontariu on Unsplash
