JK Poulsen – A Company where Danish Quality meets Greeks Hospitality

Interview with Mr. Sale Malek – CEO of Danish company JK Poulsen Property Investment Group. A company with extensive experience in investment and development, which has successfully entered and conquered the Greek real estate market.

1. Who is J.K. Poulsen and why you decided to start the real estate business in Greece? 

JK Poulsen is part of an international company founded by Mr. Jan Kwolbeck Poulsen in Denmark. This company has 25 years of experience in the real estate and investment business. Since 2006, the company has worked closely with the Reitan Group, one of the most successful Scandinavian construction and retail companies, with a turnover of over $ 10 billion in 2019. More than 10 years ago we opened our office in Dubai, where we focused on real estate investments and two years ago we started working in Athens.

2. Could you tell us more about your past projects?

Our company has completed several successful residential and commercial projects. The largest of them is the construction of a residential complex in Odense (the third largest in Denmark). This object included the construction of 168 residential apartments and commercial real estate, the total building area is more than 16.186 sq. M. Another project was the construction of a residential complex in Virum (Denmark) with 19 apartments, as well as the construction of several shopping centers. Our follow-up project will be announced soon and it is a residential project in Copenhagen. In Greece, we are focused on the central regions of Attica, mainly in the southern regions. At the moment we are in the agony of finding good investment projects. These can be unfinished construction projects that will be purchased and brought to the stage of completion, as well as work on the reconstruction and repair of finished construction projects. Our next step will be to start our own construction project in Athens.

3. What services do you offer to your clients and how can you describe your business model?

JK Poulsen is an investment and development company, and with this business model we came to Greece. As investors, while we were conducting research and studying the market in Greece, we realized that there is a need for quality services in the field of investment business. We saw the need to have our own team of qualified employees in order to provide services in accordance with international standards. We understand the importance of receiving timely information that reflects market conditions at any given time. Especially for investors, we must not underestimate the value of time. That is why our company offers a full range of services in the field of real estate – brokerage services, in which we undertake to timely and carefully approach each request. Our highly qualified specialists will always provide professional advice, give an accurate assessment and technical justification. We also offer services for obtaining a “Golden Visa”. Our principle is an “All Inclusive” service, where we accompany the client throughout the entire process, starting with the search for the right housing, undertaking all repair work related to this property in cooperation with leading architectural companies and further selection of tenants for long-term lease or management of the property. Also, when buying a real estate to obtain a “Golden Visa”, in individual cases and if all the requirements are met, our company can provide financing for the purchase of real estate up to 50%.

4. Is there a strong competition in the market and, if so, what is your strategy to improve the competitiveness problem?

The competition is undoubtedly very high, but we have a very large experience of working at the international level and a good partner base. We have offices in Copenhagen, Dubai, Athens, and we also have a representative office in Malaysia. We are well-versed in the market, have a highly qualified, professional team and we are very attentive to each client, we prefer a personalized approach.

5. What difficulties do you face in the course of your activity and on what basis do you choose solutions?

Difficulties exist in any professional business activity. Of the difficulties in working in this business area in Greece, we can single out the complexity of the process of real estate registration and rather long terms. We try to find solutions in a timely manner and, of course, the constant presence of an architect and a lawyer in the office significantly reduces and facilitates the whole process.

6. How do you see the future of the property market in Greece in the post-pandemic period? What is your forecast for market behaviour?

Greece has always been and will be an attractive destination, so we are very optimistic about the future and have no doubt that the market will only grow. There was a sertain deceleration during the pandemic, but now we are seeing a significant increase in demand. Real estate prices continue to rise steadily. The Golden Visa program is one of the most attractive in Europe, so there are a lot of applicants. Also, the new project “Elleniko” for the construction of a residential, shopping and entertainment center will give a great impetus to the development of the market. This project is unique, there has never been anything like it in Europe, so this will definitely help to attract more people to visit Greece.

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