Golden Visa bolsters house sales

Over one in 10 property transfers in 2023 and 2024 aimed at securing five-year residence permit.

The share of real estate purchases and sales through the Golden Visa program reached 10.77% of the total volume of real estate purchases and sales in the two-year period 2023-24, based on the latest available data.

This is a clear reflection of the surge in transactions carried out in the Greek market for obtaining a residence permit, especially during the last two years, when consecutive records were broken in applications. Comparing the data of the tax authorities for the total value of real estate purchase and sale transactions in 2023 and 2024 with the corresponding data of the Migration Ministry on applications for residence permits, it appears that one in 10 transactions concerned an investor through the Golden Visa program.

In 2023, 8,477 applications were submitted for a residence permit and in 2024 another 9,289 applications, corresponding to a minimum investment amount of 4.44 billion euros – this figure could be much higher, as some certainly invested in assets worth more than €250,000 each.

In the same period (2023-24), according to data from the Hellenic Property and Investment Authority, realty transactions worth a total of €41.2 billion were recorded – i.e. €18 billion in 2023 and €23.2 billion in 2024.

However, such performances are considered unlikely to be repeated in the near future, following the recent changes to the Golden Visa program. After all, these were precisely the changes that caused the investment rally of the last two years, as investors were anticipating the increases in the minimum investment amount required to secure a permit.

However, according to a recent analysis by Astons, the British migration investment group, even after the changes, Greece’s Golden Visa program is attracting significant investment interest, especially considering that it is one of the last available in the European South, following Spain’s recent decision to discontinue its own corresponding program. Greek expats in the US contributed to the 50% surge in American interest.

Source: https://www.ekathimerini.com/economy/real-estate/1261421/golden-visa-bolsters-house-sales/