Student housing in Greece turns into one of the most profitable real estate segments: small studios near universities are rented at €500–610 per monthand public hostels cover only a small part of the real demand.
Small apartment with an area of 20–50 sq. m until recently was considered a relatively affordable option for a student or a single young man. Today, just such an object has turned into a real one “golden” investment product.
The reason is simple: demand is huge, supply is limited, and the state student residence system is physically unable to accommodate the vast majority of those studying away from home.
According to data provided in a study of the student housing market, in Greece there are approximately 9,200 places in state student dormitorieswhereas approximately 200,000 students study away from their family’s place of residence.
In other words, state dormitories can satisfy only about 4.6% of real need.
The rest have to find an apartment, live with relatives, share housing, or turn to private student residences.
19 square meters for €610
It is precisely from this deficit that the new real estate segment has been growing rapidly in recent years – private student residences.
It’s not just Athens and Thessaloniki anymore. Such projects appear in Patras, Komotini, Ioannina, Volos, Rhodes, Larissa, Sparta and other university cities.
Typically we are talking about fully furnished studios with an area of approximately 18–25 sq. m.
The price includes electricity, water, internet, electricity, sometimes access to a gym, common areas, laundry and other services.
But the price is impressive.
- Athens: about €610 for 24 sq. m;
- Larisa: about €570 for 25 sq. m;
- Hair: about €500 for 22 sq. m;
- in individual Athenian residences – approx. €610 for a room of only 19 square meters. m.
Formally, this amount already includes the main accounts. However, market experts note that the real cost of utilities for the operator is significantly lower than the difference that the tenant pays.
The reason is the effect of scale.
One Internet channel serves dozens of rooms, the common infrastructure is distributed among all residents, laundries and a gym are shared.
For the owner of such an object, this means high profitability per square meter.
A small apartment has become a “golden product”
The President of the Panhellenic Federation of Realtor Associations Lefteris Potamianos directly says that small housing has long become one of the most sought-after market products.
Moreover, it is not only students who create demand.
Due to the general increase in rental costs, residents of large cities themselves are beginning to look for smaller and smaller apartments, trying to reduce monthly expenses.
As a result, the student competes for the same studio with:
- a young working person;
- single tenant;
- a couple without children;
- digital nomad;
- short-term tourist rentals.
The Athens News has already shown how difficult this market has become. In our August guide “Student housing in Greece: how much does it cost to rent a studio and where to look cheaper” We have provided current prices for Athens, Thessaloniki and Crete.
And back in July they wrote that options up to €300 have practically disappeared.
In Athens, 93% of small apartments cost more than €400
According to data provided by the student movement ΜΑΣ, the situation in the capital looks particularly dire.
93.4% of available apartments up to 50 sq.m. m are offered for more than €400 per month.
And seven out of ten properties of the same area are offered at a higher price €500.
In Zografou, one of the most popular student areas in Athens, there is a studio of about 35 sq. m. m costs approximately €420and the apartment is about 50 sq. m – order €590.
Average rental rates in the capital itself also continue to rise.
According to the data given in the material, in 2026 the average rental price in Athens and neighboring areas reached about €9.8 per square meterwhich is approximately 5.4% higher than the 2025 level.
In Kolonaki we are talking about €14/m², in Lykabettos – €13/m², in Neos Kosmos – €10.6/m².
The situation in the regions is not much better
The student housing crisis has long ceased to be unique to Athens.
According to ΜΑΣ:
- in Thessaloniki more than 80% of apartments are up to 50 sq. m. m cost above €300;
- in Chania an apartment of 30–45 sq. m can reach up to €650;
- in Heraklion apartment of about 50 sq. m – up to €750;
- in Ioannina housing up to 45 sq. m. m can cost about €700;
- in Kalamata 50–60 sq. m reach approximately €730.
In tourist cities the situation is complicated by competition from short-term rentals.
In Chania, Rethymno, Rhodes and other popular destinations, it is often more profitable for the owner to work with tourists than to rent out an apartment to a student for the whole year.
“Wallets on legs”
Representatives of student organizations describe what is happening much harsher.
According to Asimina Yanniou, chairperson of the student association of the Faculty of Education at the University of Athens, private student companies:
“… attacked students, especially freshmen, treating them like wallets with legs.”
The wording is emotional, but it well reflects the feeling of many families.
Parents have been financing their child’s preparation for the pan-Greek exams for years, and after admission they are faced with a new monthly expense of €500–700 just for housing.
At the same time, according to student representatives, the total expenses of one student can reach up to €900 per month.
Even contracts are unusual
A separate issue is the conditions of private student residences.
In one of the published agreements, a condition was found according to which the student actually undertakes not to transfer to another university in another city and, if we are talking about a man, not to interrupt his studies for the sake of military service during the term of the agreement.
The owner’s explanation is purely commercial: if a student terminates the contract in the middle of the academic year, it will be more difficult to find a new tenant for specialized student housing.
We have separately collected recommendations for students and parents in the material “How to rent student housing and not lose money”.
But is private business to blame?
There is another side.
Lefteris Potamianos puts it simply:
“Private initiatives are not to blame. The market fills the gaps of the state.”
And it’s hard to argue with that.
Private companies have not created a shortage of government hostels. They came to a place where tens of thousands of potential customers already existed without affordable public housing.
Moreover, the all-inclusive model is not always as unprofitable as the first number looks.
If a student rents a regular apartment for €400, then pays separately for electricity, water, internet, electricity and transport to the university, the total amount could be close to the cost of a private residence near campus.
But this does not change the fundamental problem: the student has to choose between two expensive options, because there is practically no cheap option.
Where are the government hostels?
This is where the root of the problem lies.
According to the National Housing Policy Strategy 2026–2035, the current stock of public hostels is about 9,200 places.
At the same time, approximately 200,000 students study away from their family home.
In some university cities there is no state student residence at all.
Student organizations name among these cities Volos, Lamia, Alexandroupolis, Kastoria and Ptolemais.
In Athens, the problem is further related to the age and condition of existing hostels.
The state promises another 8,600 places
The government recognizes the problem and promises a massive expansion of the fund.
Ministry of Education announces plans to create about 8,600 new seats through public-private partnership projects, as well as modernize existing dormitories.
For the next three years, the stated goal is to receive about 10,000 new and renovated seats. In addition, €226.36 million is being allocated to renovate 17 student residences across the country.
The University of Western Attica is preparing a project for 1,100 new places, and the Pantheon University is due to receive its own dormitory for the first time in the spring of 2027.
But even the implementation of all announced projects will not change the situation instantly.
A student entering the university in the fall of 2026 needs an apartment now, not at the end of the decade.
While the state builds, the market earns
This is why private student residences continue to pop up in almost all major university cities.
For an investor, the economy looks attractive:
- small area;
- high rental cost per square meter;
- stable annual demand;
- parents often act as actual guarantors of payment;
- scaling utilities reduces costs;
- student is interested in living near the university.
But for families, the choice increasingly looks different:
€500–600 for a small private studio or a comparable amount for a regular apartment, plus bills and transport.
For current price guidelines for university cities, see also the Athens News directory: “Student housing in Greece: how much does it cost to rent a studio and where to look cheaper”.
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