Deed transfers can take up to 2.5 years

The transcribing of a property purchase and sale contract can take, depending on the specific mortgage or cadastral office, between 10 days and two and a half years.

According to notaries, the times in the Maroussi suburb of northern Athens are quite rapid (just 10 days), in the city center it takes roughly four months, while in the Zografou area there are reports of up to 2.5 years.

Property market operators say this is a chronic thorn in the operation of the real estate market, which creates very serious problems in transactions, especially if they are made with bank loans.

“To approve a housing loan, the bank asks for the relevant certificate from the relevant land registry office, or mortgage office. But what seller can wait months or even more than a year for the buyer to obtain a mortgage loan and complete the purchase of the property?” asked Lena Kontogeorgou, vice president of the Athens Notaries Association.

The time it takes to complete a purchase and sale varies depending on the operating status of the office in question – i.e. whether it is still operating as a mortgage office, or is in the process of becoming a land registry office.

Notaries in Attica estimate that it takes roughly six months to transfer the title to the new owner of the property. By then, buyers cannot, if they are seeking a loan, complete their payment to the seller and fully secure their rights to the property, despite the fact that they are compelled to pay taxes for it and all the other expenses that accompany the ownership.

Another factor generating delays is the volume of transactions, like this summer. This is due to the fact that the 400 mortgage offices gradually being transformed into cadastral offices of the National Cadastre are at the same time being fully digitized.