Housing crisis: The race to unlock Greece’s empty homes

With housing now one of the most pressing issues in Greece and across the EU, public policy choices are becoming politically decisive. According to Eurostat (2025), home prices in the EU have risen about 60% since 2010, while rents are up 28%.

In cities like Dublin, Amsterdam, Lisbon, and Warsaw, the increase exceeds 100%. In Greece, Bank of Greece data cited by real estate firm Blupeak show prices up more than 50% from 2017 to 2024—and by over 70% in Athens, Thessaloniki, and Crete. Meanwhile, available rentals are shrinking, as many properties move to short-term leasing or sit empty due to red tape and tax complications.

Greece now records the highest housing cost overburden rate in the EU—nearly three times the European average, according to Blupeak. The problem has spread beyond vulnerable groups to the middle class, as rents outpace wages.

Government programs such as “My Home I & II” focused mainly on boosting demand, unintentionally fueling further price growth. Now, policy attention is turning toward supply—specifically, how to increase available housing.

The Building Code and Construction Impact

After the disruptions caused by amendments to the New Building Regulation (NOK), which slowed permit issuance and curtailed supply, efforts are underway to restore momentum. A recent IOBE study found that the 2024 permitting delays could reduce new housing construction by up to 20% in 2026.

Roughly 700,000 homes remain vacant and unused, according to market estimates. Many are unregistered or require costly renovations to become livable. A Prosperty survey found that of 127,000 homes listed for sale, 44.6% were built before 1980, and only 10% of those have been renovated.

Social Housing and European Lessons

Across Europe, governments are combining regulation, subsidies, and public housing expansion.

• France: Encadrement des Loyers caps rents by area, cutting some by up to 13% in Paris.
• Germany: The Mietpreisbremse curbs rent increases and strengthens tenant rights.
• Spain: The Ley de Vivienda limits annual rent hikes to 2.2% and funds 184,000 new homes.
• Netherlands: A point system links rent levels to property quality and location.
• Portugal: €2 billion is being invested in 33,000 social housing units by 2030.
• Vienna: 43% of housing is social or non-profit, keeping rents 30% below market rates.

At an event hosted by the GSEE Consumers’ Union, E-Real Estate head Themistoklis Bakas highlighted that about 400,000 young Greeks still live in their childhood bedrooms, while one in two tenants faces housing-related debt. Homeownership has fallen by over 5% since 2019—around 180,000 homes lost.

Bakas noted the absence of instruments common in other EU states: affordable housing schemes, targeted Golden Visa investment for social housing, or Airbnb levies funding student housing. The EU average for social housing stock is 9.3%; Greece would need 280,000 units to reach that, yet is only now building around 1,500.

The Case for a Digital Property Registry

Blupeak proposes a Digital Property Registry to unify fragmented data from the Land Registry, tax authorities, municipalities, and utilities into a real-time housing map. This system would show which properties are vacant, occupied, or eligible for social or commercial use.

Such integration would allow precise targeting of housing policies—from social housing programs and renovation grants to long-term rental incentives. Greece, Blupeak notes, now has the tools, EU funding, and political will to do it. While the registry alone won’t solve the crisis, it provides the essential foundation for any effective housing strategy.

Municipal Role and Data Gaps

Blupeak has begun pilot programs in Rafina, Chalki, Platanias, Karystos, and Maroussi, but most municipalities are still unprepared. Many lack any accurate record of their real estate assets—often declaring far fewer properties than they own. Some list 100 assets on E9 forms while actually holding over 1,500.

The issue extends to ministries, universities, and hospitals, where vast properties remain unaccounted for or idle. Without comprehensive digital records, national and local housing policies remain theoretical.

Toward a Unified Real Estate Register by 2026

At a recent Technical Chamber of Greece (TEE) conference, Olympia Markellou, Director General of the Hellenic Cadastre, described the Unified Property Register as a major reform underway. Centered on the KAEK property ID, it integrates data across all public databases. Funded by the Recovery Fund, the project should be complete by 2026, with over 92% of cadastral mapping already posted and 70% of the country digitally registered.

National Housing Policy Authority

A new Unified Housing Policy Authority is also being established to fill the void left by the dissolved Workers’ Housing Organization. It will coordinate and oversee Greece’s national housing strategy and programs for citizens’ housing needs.

In essence, Greece’s housing crisis is not only economic—it is administrative. Without reliable, interconnected property data, no policy can succeed. The Digital Property Registry may finally change that.