A "cry for help" from Greek real estate

Faced with the specter of collapse in the housing market, the Hellenic Property Federation is calling for the salvation of the Greeks' property.

In particular, in view of the tax system reform, POMIDA are requesting a suspension of the real estate tax as long as the real estate levy is enforced, a reduction in the zone above 1500 euros and the marketability factors, and the ability to sign over properties to the state for payment of fiscal obligations.

The Federation makes it clear that it has arrived at such requests in order to prevent the domino effect of auctions. These were made at a joint press conference of organizations of property owners, lawyers, notaries, merchants and realtors.

Most crucial of all, however, is the complaint that the main feature of the current tax regulations on private property is that they seem to be designed in such a way that owners cannot pay, thereby ceasing to be owners, while there was a specific reference to the criminalization of tax defaulting, directly threatening the owners of vacant properties, who cannot afford to pay the levy after their last bank deposits are exhausted, with heavy prison sentences, in flagrante arrests and referral procedures

Among other proposals submitted is to keep the EETIDE with lower tax rates and a reduction for underground levels and auxiliary spaces, repealing the levy, cancelling it or having a new and unified annual tax introduced without a tax-free amount but with an established amount of 50 euros per taxpayer, covering the value of the primary residence of the family of “underprivileged” citizens (100.000 euros), with a maximum broadening of the tax base and tax rates less than half than the existing ones in the current realty tax so that taxpayers are able to meet their obligations.

There was a parallel proposal about a price reduction in zoning above 1500 euros, especially in the Athens center  and deprived areas of the country, and the reduction by 50% of all marketability factors due to the dramatic reduction - almost annihilation - of their real and lease value.

This means that for ground floor shops and offices in many areas where the commercial factor is equal to a unit, there should be a negative rate of 0.5 because the ground floor shops are permanently out of the transaction. On its part, ESEE is asking for the temporal and percentile extension of the negative coefficient of age.

The coefficients of the value reduction of objective values of properties due to age originate in the 1980s. Since then a big part of the business real estate of the country has aged by nearly 3 decades and has major problems with large maintenance costs, restoration, energy upgrades and other constly renovations.

However, despite the large costs, the reduction factor “locks” at 0.80 after 20 years and is not open to further growth. It is necessary to remedy this injustice.