Get Me to the Greek
If it felt like everyone you follow on social media visited Greece this year, well, you probably weren’t wrong. The nation’s 6,000 islands (only 227 are inhabited), rich culture and history, and 18 Unesco World Heritage Sites have long drawn visitors, and tourism is an essential component of the Greek economy. After a two-year pause due to the pandemic, Greece is due to set a record for tourism revenue in 2022, in a bounceback described as a “godsend” by Greek hospitality leaders. International arrivals at Greek airports rose by about 200 per cent during the first seven months of the year, compared to the same period in 2021, peaking at 4.1 million during July, according to economic data website Trading Economics.
The country is increasingly a hotspot for foreign investment, too; travellers arriving at Athens airport are met by adverts touting the ease of buying Greek property, which is among the most affordable in the EU, and foreign real estate investments were up 61 per cent in the first half of 2022, comprising nearly 85 per cent of all purchases, according to Hellenic Central Bank.
Mainland Chinese are second to Europeans in total investments, and Hong Kong buyers not far behind, despite no direct flights from the city to Athens—yet. Although property taxes are relatively high, Greece offers one of the cheapest tracks to citizenship, requiring an investment of at least €250,000 in the real estate market. After half of the average property value was wiped away during the Greek government-debt crisis in the late 2010s and a full recovery is still to be seen, prices have since seen a steady increase year on year.
Athens is always the top destination for real estate investment in Greece, as it is the most liquid property market in the country with the strongest rental demand, according to Get Golden Visa, which guides investors through the buying process. Prices in the Athens Riviera, where The Ellinikon sits, are still down 10 per cent on a decade ago, but experts in the country are expecting the development to spur a surge in interest in the district, possibly pushing Athens property prices to an all-time high.