House prices almost double
Attica residences now cost about 88% on average more than they did in 2017, BoG data show
House sale prices in Attica have increased by 88% since the beginning of the recovery of the real estate market in 2017 and up to the second quarter of this year, based on Bank of Greece data released on Tuesday.
This is a clear indication of the speed with which prices have recovered, fueled mainly by foreign demand and to some extent domestic demand. Therefore prices have now exceeded the previous high recorded in 2008 by 4%.
Nationwide, after the second quarter, home sales prices are up 69.2%, but are still 2.4% off their previous peak in 2008.
It is evident that the property market has now almost fully recovered even at the nationwide level, illustrating the challenges that have arisen regarding the solution of the housing problem, which is clearly more intense in the two large urban centers of Athens and Thessaloniki.
Based on the second-quarter data announced by the central bank, prices rose by 9.2% nationwide year-on-year, while in the first quarter they had increased by 10.6% and in 2023 by 13.8%. It is clear, then, that the rate of increase has begun to slow, but it is also obvious that it remains much higher, not only than inflation, but also the rate of growth in household incomes. In Attica, second-quarter growth was 9.1%, up from 9.5% in the first quarter of 2024 and 13.8% overall in 2023. In Thessaloniki prices in Q2 increased by 12.1%, while in the first quarter the increase was 12.8% and in 2023 at 16.5%. In the other major cities, the price increase was 7.3%, while in the rest of the country it was 10.4%.
This picture is reflected in various districts of the capital, and in many cases the hikes are even greater. For example, in Koukaki the average sales price was 1,250 euros per square meter in 2017, and now it is around €2,600/sq.m. on average, a 108% increase. In Ambelokipi the increase is even higher and reaches 136%, from around €800/sq.m. in 2017 to €1,900/sq.m. today. In Halandri, the average sales price is now €2,700/sq.m., while in 2017 it did not exceed €1,100/sq.m., a rise of 145%.
