Golden Visa shift from realty to holdings?

Consultancy firms are reporting investment interest that could shape the conditions for a shift from real estate to financial placements in search of the five-year residence permit the Greek state offers for major investments, given the questions the firms receive from capital owners, thanks to the new tools in the Greek Golden Visa program.

“Amid the high growth of real estate investment, there is a shift of interest in inquiries from potential program applicants who want to explore options in financial instruments. So far, the most popular of them is the term deposit option (with a 500,000-euro threshold). Up next comes the investment in government bonds (also €500,000),” Marios Raphael, head of the Geneva office of Henley & Partners, and who is responsible for the Greek portfolio, reports to Kathimerini.

The multinational, which has reportedly raised €12 billion worldwide for similar types of investments, has an advisory role to the government regarding the management of the Golden Visa program in Greece.

The main reasons that seem to push investors to explore the possibilities in the financial sector, even at an initial stage of interest, are considered to be the following:

• The increase of the minimum investment limit – to €800,000 and €400,000 euros depending on the area – in the real estate market for the granting of a Golden Visa turns the eyes of investors to other tools in the program.

• The upgrades in Greece’s credit rating and in particular the return to investment grade make investments in Greek financial products, such as government bonds, more attractive.

• There are investors who prefer to avoid real estate and the requirements that come with maintaining a property.

So, in reference to the Golden Visa program, will we therefore see a decrease in real estate investment and an increase in holdings in the financial sector? “That’s hard to say, as the real estate market is producing attractive returns and the trend is likely to continue. But on the other hand, the Greek government, given the exponential increase in the number of investors applying for real estate, wants to aggressively strengthen investments in financial instruments,” the executive of Henley & Partners explains to Kathimerini.