Greek Story

Back in 2008, as the great economic episode unfolded....one country was hit exceptionally hard...Greece.

From across the globe today....almost nine years later, you might find that Greece is still in some stage of recovery and suffering from the economic mess.  Among the big hits?  Pricing on real estate.

I noticed three weeks ago, an article from Bloomberg, which discussed an odd phonenum that is unfolding in Greece.  Property purchased has picked up and it's surprising some of the Greeks.  It's not Greeks buying the property, you see.  It's Russians and Chinese.

Here's what they are doing.

You get some experienced real estate guys into the market....some are Greeks...some are Russians....some are Chinese.  They go and look for undervalued real estate.  It might be condo situations....it might be upscale homes.  They talk terms....sometimes in cash, and a deal is made.

The belief by all parties is that the pricing episode has already hit rock-bottom, and growth will occur over the next couple of years.  So, you the foreign buyer....would make money.

Naturally, you'd ask....who is living in the house or condo right now?

Various nationalities (even Turks) are locating into Greece for this deal, and to get what is called the 'golden visa', which means you own this place (substantial amount of money used to buy the property) and Greece gives you a visa which enables you to travel throughout Europe.

The per-square-meter price now in Greece?  2,846 Euro.  Roughly $3,300 US Dollars.

It's an interesting article by Bloomberg and discusses the various angles to the purchase deal. 

Long term effect?  Unless the Greeks pass some law to change this or to slow down the rate....I'll predict that the trend continues for the next decade.  Adding to the positive aspects of foreign ownership is the idea that Athens International Airport is a major complex and you'd be in the position to reach European cities within three hours, or to return to your homeland within four to eight hours. 

Course, this creates this 'fake' build-type mentality about building more homes onto the Athens metropolitan complex.  You can draw a 20-mile circle around Athens and find lots of planning efforts going on with mega-homes or upscale neighborhoods for the future, and economic experts questioning how this is possible with the limited or marginal repairs to the economy.