Looking for advice on buying a house in Greece

Hello,

I am an Italian currently living in London.

I am looking to purchase a modest family home in Greece with the following features:

- within 20 minutes drive to the sea;

- 3 bedrooms;

- within 1 hour drive to an airport;

- village or town location;

- intended purposes are holiday home with possible relocation;

Are there specific locations that you can recommend? As a non-Greek national (European citizen) are there any specific rules on the right to buy that I should be aware of? Are there useful websites I should consider to help with my research (aside from the housing section)?

Thanks in advance.

Hi there. Yes many things to consider when buying a home in Greece. Is the building legal? Are the boundaries properly defined? Does it have legal amenities : water/sewage/power etc etc. Is the access to the property public, or over someone else's property. Has there been a search as what if any, are there any plans for the area! ie : building industrial estates, roads etc etc. We have a massive house on the island of Leros, 6000 sq ft, with 3 acres of land. The boundaries were defined by the it Italians, so were accurate. But we had been cheated a number of times by so called engineers, as at the time of purchase, there were no estate agents. We are are selling after being here for 25 years. It is a quiet island, has an airport, and we are next door to a supermarket, 5 mins walk to the beach.  The island is in the Dodecanese,  just a hope from the Turkish coast. The building was built in 1896. It has 18ft high ceilings with 8 main rooms on two floors, 2 on suit, with an extra three bathrooms which were added to the house. 4 to 5 bedrooms two living rooms and two kitchens. All the main 8 rooms are around 20ft by 18ft area, with high ceilings, double doors and double windows. the windows with shutters, all wooden. Most go the building is original, with a massive upgrade over the last 15 years.  5 out houses, a metal machine shop with lath and drills, and a woodworking shop, with table saw and bench saws. 3 main store rooms with a 4th to be finished. It has a donkey driven well, which holds sufficient water to water the garden during the dry season, 100ft deep by 10m wide ( No Donkey?? ). Ample parking for 6 cars, which can of course be increased. The area is open to building many more building if required, we also have a licence for building a swimming pool, which we never go around to!

Well it would be very difficult to advise where you might buy a property as only you know whereabouts you want to be and I could spend lots of time and energy for nothing,you dont say if you want mainland or an island.You need to go about Greece when lockdown ends and see where you like.The only thing i would say is..be careful of islands as they shut down in winter,the weather in winter can be cruel,not for long but it is.But most importantly the medical care will be very poor except on perhaps Crete.If iIwanted to buy on an island it would be Crete,lots of all nationalities who join together for social activities,help each other etc..and Crete is wonderful.The Pelopennese is also wonderful and has a lovely micro-climate,so green,very near Athens or Patra,its very beautiful.Its very important to pay good attention to the build of the property you buy.2001 or 2 was the latest earthquake new regulations on building,you and your familys life could be at risk if you buy a substandard build,everyone concentrates on..oh where shall I be.. instead of..what kind of build shall I buy..You want both to be right or you may see your money as a pile of rubble or worse consequences.You are Italian so you know what means Siezmos,earthquake,the one on Samos just recently I felt,I was at my computer and my chair rocked slightly from side to side,the house that caved in and very sadly killed two teenagers there had a flat concrete and iron roof most likely just sitting on walls without columns and looked like the walls buckled and I could see that the flat roof had burst out onto the pavement as well as the walls of course.I was talking with a taxi driver today and we agreed that Attiki has probably the best climate in Greece as the winters are easy,not too cold and not so much rain,not too humid.Some people like to see more drastic seasons,snow etc..I dont like cold.There are no restrictions on you buying as you are EU.Best to use regional local agents where you want to buy which you will see on line.I love the area around Loutraki,it has mountains,a sea fed lake,ancient sites,small cruises leaving from Corinthos port,so green around there,one hour half to Athens and airport with the train now being diverted into the town from the airport,property is a bit cheaper,easy access to the Peloppenese,a tourist destination for Greeks as well.But you will see where you want to be,I hope this helps you a little.