Airbnb

Tax inspectors are now focusing on individual taxpayers, who until recently were not on the authorities' radar as interest was focused on large-scale tax evasion by businesses. However, the major rise of short-term property rentals on platforms such as Airbnb and HomeAway is leading to individuals cropping up in the monitoring schedule too.

A recovery in Greece's housing market gained momentum in the last quarter of 2018, central bank data showed, suggesting that a recovering economy and growing foreign interest might lift property prices further.

The constant increase in Attica's hotel room supply combined with the drop-off in the soaring growth in demand and the market entry of thousands of apartments for short-term lets have already started to drive occupancy rates and room prices at the capital's hotels toward a decline.
The current prospects for both supply and demand are pointing to a further gap in the near future.

The government is considering introducing restrictions on the utilization of properties advertised on short-term rental platforms such as Airbnb and HomeAway for holiday accommodation. The restrictions will be imposed on individual owners as well as investors and professional agents who benefit from the new market.

An ever-greater share of the short-term property leasing market in Greece is passing into the hands of investors and professional property managers, a trend that is also being observed in many other countries.

"A Greek government scheme that grants visas to non-EU citizens in exchange for €250,000 property investments is leading to mass evictions, with renters removed from their homes to make way for AirBnB properties," UK newspaper Telegraph reports.

Homeowners leasing their properties through platforms like Airbnb or HomeAway have until February 28 to register these assets with the Independent Authority for Public Revenue (AADE).

Owners can also use the authority's online platform to correct or amend any details pertaining to the property they are offering as a vacation rental.

Only 49,000 owners have declared their properties on the platform of the Finance Ministry's Short-Term Accommodation Property Register, which means that more than 35,000 owners have neglected to do so.

The first signs of an oversupply in the short-term rental market started to become evident in late 2018, with a rise in available properties and a drop in takings, according to data presented on Thursday at a conference in Athens.

Several property owners in Greece have seen their monthly incomes from rent shoot up by as much as 105 percent in the last couple of years, thanks to the growing popularity of homesharing.