More than 12 years of work for the purchase of an apartment of 70 sq.m. in Athens

12.3 years of income, excluding other expenses, will have to be spent by a working resident of Greece to buy a new three-room apartment of 70 sq.m. in Athens, despite the fact that housing in the Greek capital is still cheaper than in most countries EU.

On a national scale, however, it will take half as many years, since for the purchase of an apartment of 70 sq.m. enough labor savings for 6.6 years. Such data are provided in the latest study by Deloitte “Property Index 2023”, which analyzes the development of the residential real estate market in 27 European countries and 76 cities in 2022.

According to financial analysts, the index of how many years you need to work at the current salary to become a home owner is considered the most indicative in terms of housing affordability and is calculated as the number of average annual gross (dirty) wages required to buy a typical new home with an average size 70 sq.m. in every country.

The study states that the average purchase price of a new built house in our country in 2022 was 1478 euros per square meter, while in Athens the corresponding price was 2972 ​​euros per square meter, in Thessaloniki – 1959 euros per square meter, and in Patrach – 1056 euros per square meter.

According to a study conducted by Deloitte, our country is one of the three European countries with the cheapest housing, along with Bosnia and Herzegovina (average price 1237 euros per sq.m.) and Romania (average price 1417 euros per sq.m.).

Athenian paradox

While Athens is cheap compared to Tel Aviv, which overtook Paris (€14,622/sqm) as the most expensive city in 2022 at €14,740/sqm, Munich (€11,400/sqm), Frankfurt (€8,000/sqm), Jerusalem (€7,982/sqm), Amsterdam (€7,775/sqm) and Oslo (€7,548/sqm), low wages increase the time it takes to buy even a two-room apartment.

If we consider all European capitals, then the least accessible city for the acquisition of new typical housing is Amsterdam, which has retained its “first place” from last year. Compared to last year, when buyers had to save 1.9 more average gross annual wages, Amsterdam residents need to save the equivalent of about 15.8 average gross annual wages to own their own home.

Bratislava and Prague follow Amsterdam in the ranking

Residents of Bratislava need to save an average of 14.5 total annual salaries, compared to 13.7 total annual salaries last year. And residents of Prague need to save 14.2 gross annual salaries (compared to 15.3 in the previous study).

If residents of Belgrade, Tallinn, Dublin, Budapest, Vilnius and Copenhagen intend to buy a new apartment, then they need to set aside an amount equivalent to 10 to 13 average annual gross salaries.

In the cities of Warsaw, Riga, Zagreb, London (domestic) and Ljubljana, housing is more affordable, while the purchase of a new typical housing requires the accumulation of an amount equivalent to 8 to 10 average annual gross salaries.

Oslo and Rome are among the most affordable cities in terms of the wages required to buy a new home, where residents need to save between 7 and 8 equivalents of the average gross annual wage.

Significant growth of the Greek real estate market
According to Deloitte, 2022 was a year of significant growth for the Greek real estate market, despite the turmoil caused by the war in Ukraine and the negative impact on the cost of borrowings, energy and building materials in general.

Consistently positive market expectations and unflagging investment interest, especially from abroad, supported high rates of growth in residential real estate prices, especially in prestigious areas.

The dynamics of the residential real estate market during 2022 increased significantly, thanks to strong external investment demand and tourism, which positively affected housing construction through short-term rentals, which was reflected in the inflow of capital from abroad to the real estate market.

The market momentum is confirmed by investment in residential real estate, which increased by 36.1% in 2022 (compared to 27.3% in 2021), although in terms of GDP it remained at a low level (1.7%).

At the same time, a slowdown in construction activity was recorded, caused by a sharp increase in the cost of energy and construction work.

Finally, demand for high-end properties, which is not sufficiently met by existing market supply, is expected to continue to further support prices.

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