Growth of home sharing market spurs demand for mortgage loans

The rapidly growing home sharing market is the reason for the small increase in interest in taking out a mortgage in Greece.

That trend is confirmed by bank data that show about a 50 percent rise in mortgage applications and a 30 percent increase in savings in the first five months of 2018 compared to the same period last year.

Bank officials point out that the rise in mortgage applications is also due to the fact that the figure was much lower in 2017, as the market had been frozen for years, so the new demand does not translate into any great amount. Still, the figures reflect a trend seen not only in mortgage issues and applications but also in the questions bank branches handle.

Although the new housing loans pale in comparison with those of the past, amounting to just 40 million euros per month, banks perceive this as the first sign of recovery. The existing...