FAQs

If you are not here for much of the year or will be absent during the building of your villa or house, you would be advised to have someone in Skiathos who can look after your interests, keep an eye on construction work and pay bills as necessary.
If you cannot be in Skiathos for the signing of the contract of sale, you will need to give a Power of Attorney to someone here to act for you. This can be your lawyer, the real estate agent or someone resident here who has your trust.
This is a fairly simple document and can usually be drawn up by the notary within 24 hours.

It depends very much on the location, difficulty of access of your site, and whether you want standard materials, tiles, etc. or are prepared to pay (or import) top quality materials. A rough average is 1,550 Euros per square metre (approximately 10 square feet) for good quality, standard building materials. If the site is quite steep, extra costs will be incurred for retaining walls. Building permission, a swimming pool, and landscaping costs are extra. A full estimate cannot be given until you have talked with an architect, drawn up all the plans discussed what materials will be used, etc. We offer all the services necessary to build a house or villa.

You will need the services of a civil engineer (and possibly an architect) to make the plans and apply for building permission. We provide these services. Building permission can be fairly costly as the Greek Government is anxious to get its hands on as much money as possible. Whilst building, care must be taken to keep all receipts for materials (to prove that VAT has been paid) and for labour. Social insurance for the labour must also be paid. You would be well advised to take a reputable builder for this as otherwise you could end up in a nightmare of Greek bureaucracy. We can advise on this as well.

If you wish to let your property, you must register with the Greek Tourist Organisation, declare the income you make, and pay income tax in Greece. We can help with obtaining your registration papers.

Tax laws have been changing recently. There is a property tax to be paid every year, but it is not (yet) a lot of money. Your accountant will be able to give you the latest information.

If you own property here, but have never made a tax declaration that you own property in Greece, YOU MUST do so now.

Yes, once you have acquired property, you will have to declare it to the tax authorities and you will have many difficulties if you do not use an accountant. Practically, you will not be able to keep your Greek tax affairs in order without a local accountant. As long as you can prove that you didn’t earn the money to purchase the property in Greece, you will not be liable for income tax. Your tax declaration is made the year after the year in which you purchase your property.

In total, anything between 8 & 10% of the actual purchase price.
This includes purchase tax, notary’s fee, lawyer’s fee, Records Office fee, and broker’s commission.

Between 2 and 3% (+ VAT) of the actual purchase price. Usually 3% if you are a non Greek as extra paperwork and organization will then be involved.

You will always have to import sufficient money to cover the purchase of the property,  the notary’s fee, lawyer’s fee, Records Office fee, and the purchase tax.
For non Greeks to purchase property in Greece, it will be necessary to open a bank account in Skiathos and acquire a Greek tax number. If you are buying the property in joint names, the bank account must also be in these names. This is so you can import all necessary funds into Greece thus not incurring Greek income tax.
To get a Greek tax number you will need to give a limited Power of Attorney to a Skiathos resident (we normally recommend an accountant) who will apply for it, and represent you to the tax office.

Yes, anyone who has a valid passport and sufficient funds :o) can buy property in Skiathos.

A real estate agent will represent one side or the other in a sale/purchase deal. A real estate broker does not represent one side or the other. They try to bring both parties together to an agreeable solution, so that everyone is happy. In Greece, most agents are brokers, and as such, take a small commission from both parties.

You would be well advised to use the services of a reputable agent. (Who is reputable? Ask around…Skiathos is a small island and it will become very quickly apparent who can be trusted and who not).
An agent is there to protect your rights, to help make an agreement between purchaser and vendor (often involving translation as many Greeks do not speak another language and most purchaser’s Greek is not sufficient) and smooth the bureaucratic process. If he or she is good at his/her job, he will have earned his commission many times over.

No, unless you decide to live here on a more permanent basis.
You will not need to get a resident’s permit if you buy property but you will need one if you buy car, boat or motorbike in Greece, or wish to register to vote for local elections.
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How long is a piece of string? A minimum of 2 months from the time a verbal agreement has been made between purchaser and vendor. This can stretch to several months if there are issues such as road access, unclear title to the property, legalisation issues, etc.

You are no longer obliged by Greek law to have a lawyer to act for you. However, you would be well advised to have one to check the provenance of the property, and to check that the Notary has all the transfer papers in order. The lawyer’s fee is around 1% (+ expenses) of the contract price of the property. Included in this will be a search through the public records to make sure that the property is free and clear of any debts, mortgages, and other potential problems. Your lawyer will translate the contract price to you or be your representative if you cannot be present in person at the time of signing contracts.