Athens property prices soar
New habits have increased rates for homes in suburbs, while demand continues to expand
Athens properties have seen a major increase in demand which is continuing in 2022, data from the Spitogatos Property Index confirm. While the city center is still dominating demand, not only for sales but also for rentals, it is the capital’s northern and southern suburbs that have witnessed the greatest rise in prices, according to SPI.
Dimitris Melachroinos, managing director at online property ads platform Spitogatos.gr, tells Kathimerini that “2021 was clearly a dynamic year with increased supply and demand, more transactions and new business models in real estate.” He adds that “the first few weeks of 2022 have not been any different; in fact in January our website had 55% more expressions of interest in properties than the average rate for 2021, which was an increase in demand we had never seen in the past.”
The most popular districts in the capital for buying property last year were Kolonaki and Lycabettus, Ambelokipi and Pentagono, Pangrati, Kypseli and Glyfada, the latter being the sole area outside the city center.
As for the suburbs with the highest growth in asking prices, they were Rentis (up 27.1% to 1,270 euros per square meter), Elefsina (up 26.7% to €1,157/sq.m.), Papagou (up 26.1% to €3,150/sq.m.) and Vrilissia (up 25.9% to €2,810/sq.m.). There were also significant hikes in other districts across the capital, such as Petroupoli (up 24.6%), Holargos (23.4%), Agios Dimitrios (20.4%), Anthoussa (20%), Neo Psychico (18.6%) and Lykovrysi (18.1%).
The Spitogatos analysis points out that “the new way of life, as a result of the pandemic, has changed the preferences of tenants and buyers, affecting property rates too. The past year signaled the start of a new era, dominated by hybrid forms of employment, priority and criterion reviews in terms of how to choose one’s home, and generally one’s way of life, confirming the steady trend for moving away from the city center. Suburban houses have grown more popular, as commuting is less of a problem now thanks to teleworking.”
