Owning Property in Greece While Living Abroad: The Complete Practical Guide

Owning a property overseas is rarely a complete disaster from the beginning. It typically takes time to develop into one. Initial problems with non-payment of ENFIA, issues with koinoxrista building charges, policies being cancelled on properties that are left empty, and leaks that are allowed to develop in the walls or ceilings of a property all take time.

In this guide to owning property in Greece we will take you step by step through the 11 main areas of a foreign owner’s experience. It is intended to be a brief introduction to each problem and a link to a more in-depth guide. It is intended for international owners, for Greeks living abroad, for Golden Visa holders with second homes or empty properties, and for anyone inheriting a property in Athens who lives outside Greece.

The eleven areas to get right

Area	What typically goes wrong	Start here
Tax and digital access	No AFM or codes, so notices are missed	Get a Greek tax number from abroad
Property declarations	E9 out of date, ENFIA paid late	E9 declaration and the new property register
Documents	When are documents needed?	Which documents to keep
Utilities	Accounts in the wrong name, bills unpaid	Paying Greek utility bills from abroad
Building charges	Koinoxrista unpaid, meetings missed	Koinoxrista explained
Insurance	Vacancy clauses affect a claim	Greek home insurance for overseas owners
Maintenance	Leaks, damp and pests build up unseen	Leaving an Athens home empty
Repairs and renovation	Unsupervised work, unclear quotes	Coordinating repairs without being there
Fire obligations	Plot not cleared or declared in time	Plot cleaning before fire season
Car and other loose ends	Battery, tyres and official correspondence overlooked	Look after the car and other loose ends
Emergencies	Nobody to call, nobody with keys	Emergency property checks

You can also read about the estimated annual cost to own a second holiday home in Greece.

1. Set up your Greek tax and digital access first.

Greek property tax obligations are managed by the AADE tax authority. If you do not have an AFM number and do not have working access codes for the online systems, you cannot view your ENFIA obligations or update your property statement yourself online. The deadlines for most obligations are announced well in advance and the fact that you do not have an AFM number and access codes is usually discovered by the owner late in the day.

Solve once and solve right. Keep current thereafter.

• Get an AFM. The AADE website for Greeks abroad outlines the process for the online issuance of a tax number (AFM) by AADE without the holder being physically present in Greece. In this website we provide step-by-step instructions for Greek tax numbers for non-resident Greeks abroad.
• Secure your TAXISnet and myAADE login. Get the details on how to login in TAXIS and myAADE and keep your credentials secure. If a trusted person needs to act on your behalf, arrange the appropriate authorisation rather than sharing your password.
• Keep a Greek mobile number alive. It’s the way that many government services and also many banks’ online services deliver single use pins to your mobile account. Keep it alive or you could find you’re locked out of services abroad. How to keep a Greek mobile number alive abroad.
• Consider a Greek bank account: Many bills can be paid by direct debit. These can be easier to manage from the account of a local bank. In the link below we explain step by step how to open a bank account in Greece from abroad.

There is also a Taxpayer’s Helpline provided by AADE to connect taxpayers with agents to resolve any issues they may encounter: Call 1521 while in Greece. (Monday to Friday, 07:00 to 20:00 in Greece).

2. Know what you have declared: E9, ENFIA and the property register

ENFIA is an annual tax and it is levied on the owner of a property, regardless of whether that owner generates any income from that property. ENFIA is an electronic tax and as such owners may not know that a bill has been raised unless they access their online account. Late payment of ENFIA incurs interest whilst unpaid ENFIA can complicate a sale or transfer and the associated certificate requirements.

The E9 form behind the ENFIA tax is a register where property owners declare their property rights in Greece. Residents abroad generally have the same obligation as residents in Greece: acquisitions and changes must be declared by 31 January of the following year. Inheritance has a separate deadline linked to the expiry of the period for renouncing the inheritance. Some transactions generate an E9 automatically through myPROPERTY, but owners should still check that the resulting record is correct. Late filing can result in penalties, depending on the circumstances. ΑΑΔΕ

The solution.

1. Check the owners, percentages, and total surface area for accuracy: Verify that your property rights, ownership percentages and declared surface area are accurate in your E9 form. Read our E9 form and Greece’s new property register (MIDA) – all you need to know about the new system guide.
2. Cross-check the ownership against the Greek land registry of your property. Here is how to check your Greek property in the Hellenic Cadastre.
3. Payment of ENFIA: For 2026, ENFIA is payable in 12 monthly instalments, from March 2026 to February 2027. You can also pay the outstanding amount in full. Ways to pay ENFIA from abroad are specified in this guide. aade.gr
4. Keep a note in your diary/calendar: our annual admin calendar for Greeks living abroad lists all of the above dates for the following year and all of the ‘annual’ issues with a Greek property abroad.

Income tax has to be looked at on a completely separate basis and the AADE advice to the foreign resident is to file a return if you have any taxable income from Greek sources. If necessary, you will need to seek advice from a Greek chartered accountant on the preparation of your tax return.

3. Keep a paper file you can actually find

The key documents are needed for a variety of occasions: for example, for a sale of a property, for a renovation, for an insurance claim and for an inheritance. They are usually kept in three countries, and often in none of them. Some owners even discover that their original plans for a property do not correspond with the actual building, which can lead to problems.

The solution to this problem is to create a file or a binder with all the documents listed below in physical form and also save soft copies of them.

• the title deed and cadastral extract
• recent E9 and ENFIA records
• The electronic identity record (HTK) for the building. All you need to know about the Electronic Building Identity record in our practical guide to HTK.
• Floor plans of the property together with the relevant part of the building regulations plus a statement of your hiliosta (percentage of ownership expressed in thousandths).
• utility account details and insurance policies
• every contractor quote, invoice and certificate

For a full list of documents that you should hold in relation to your property please see here: What documents should I keep for a property that I own in Greece?. We have also written a first-year guide to inheriting property in Greece which may be of use if you have inherited a property abroad.

4. Keep the utilities in order

A house left empty whilst its owner is abroad can still incur standing charges and municipal fees, which are typically collected through the electricity bill. Unfortunately previous owners’ names are still listed on accounts of utilities such as electricity, water, gas etc for many properties and this causes owners of such properties problems when they try to sort out the utilities for their new home and/or deal with other matters.

Moving Utility Accounts into Your Name. Keep track of the accounts that you need to keep paying in order to prevent standing charges building up. Transfer the accounts into your name as soon as possible and consider setting up direct debit or e-billing wherever possible. This can all be managed by our administrative representation service for utility and premium costs charged at cost. Our guides on moving utility accounts into your name, and on paying Greek utility bills from abroad are also helpful.

5. Manage the building: koinoxrista, the building manager and the owners’ meeting.

Most Athens homes are in polykatoikies, or large apartment blocks, and it is not uncommon for foreign owners to own just one of the many individual homes that make up the whole complex. This means that even though you own your own flat, you are in effect a co-owner of the shared parts of the building. You will therefore be responsible for your allocated share of the building’s koinoxrista or running costs as well as shared major repairs, according to the building’s rules and applicable law. Proposed reforms to apartment building management have further underlined the need for foreign owners to take a close interest in the goings on of their building. The distinction between proposals and current law is outlined in the Greece apartment building reform law.

The solution.

• First of all, be familiar with how an apartment building works (e.g. what is a polykatoikia) in order to fully understand how koinoxrista (shared expenditures) are calculated.
• Get your diaxeiristis to supply you with itemized, dated accounts, the allocation table, and copies of the minutes of all meetings of the owners.
• Don’t miss a meeting! Try to attend remotely, where permitted, or ask someone to be there and vote on your behalf with the required authorisation. We explain in detail how Greek apartment building meetings work.
• Clarify who is going to pay for repairs to the roof of the building, shared pipes, etc. etc. What is common and what is private in terms of the structure? If there is a lift in the building, check if it is registered on the new elevator registry and what the costs of maintenance are.

For our members we can attend building meetings, vote as instructed and even send a brief summary of the proceedings to the member afterwards, with attendance separately agreed. We will also note when a building starts to charge abnormally high service charges and if so inform the member.

6. What you need to know about the home insurance for your empty home.

Home insurance for vacant properties may contain restrictions or exclude certain cover after a specified period of unoccupancy. The conditions depend on the policy, so an owner abroad needs to confirm that the insurer knows how the property is used.

The solution.

• Ask your Greek home insurance provider to confirm in writing how long your property can remain empty and what conditions must be adhered to in order to continue to be covered by the insurance policy.
• Keep the declared security measures under regular check to help ensure their proper operation.
• Keep full and up-to-date records of your property’s inspections. These will serve as evidence of the checks and maintenance carried out.
• Notify the insurer promptly and follow its instructions before non-urgent repairs. Do not delay safe, necessary action to prevent further damage; document the damage and any emergency work, and retain receipts.

The same information is covered in our Greek home insurance for overseas owners guide, highlighting vacancy clauses and common claim problems. Our ENFIA guide also explains how qualifying home insurance can reduce the ENFIA tax you have to pay.

7. Maintaining an Empty Property Before Problems Arise

Such properties are left to deteriorate slowly with leaks, penetration of moisture behind furniture, dry drains emitting unpleasant smells, air conditioning units failing on the first hot day of the year and last but not least blocked balcony drains prior to the first autumn storms when all of a sudden a small problem turns into an exorbitant repair job.

Regular property inspections together with a seasonal schedule of works and checks can help to identify problems early and prevent them becoming major issues.

• Every month: Open up the property, check for any signs of leaks, check for any signs of damp (including behind furniture), check for any smells, any sign of pests. Visually check the electrical panel without opening covers or touching wiring. Collect any mail.
• Spring: service the air-conditioning before summer.
• Late summer: clear the balcony and terrace drains before the storms of late summer/early autumn set in. Read more about storms and empty homes in Greece and balcony waterproofing in Greece.
• Autumn: Negotiate start date and shared costs with the building manager for the property’s central heating system. See storms and empty homes in Greece and balcony waterproofing in Greece.

Our home watch checklist and our guide to leaving an empty home in Athens provide full details on what to look out for.

“Most problems with a property abroad are not big issues. A leak, a charge not being paid, an annual insurance premium not being paid, are the types of issues that cause problems for owners of homes abroad. All are solvable provided someone is checking on the property on a regular basis. A property checked on a monthly basis will rarely cause any problems at all.”

Yanis, Founder of Home Watch Athens

In simple terms our property check service consists of a monthly inspection typically lasting 45–60 minutes and covering 12 specific points, with a photo update sent by WhatsApp and a dated log of all visits added to your member area of our website.

8. Manage repairs and renovation without being there

The repair of domestic items within a foreign owned Athenian property and the organization of major capital refurbishment of the same can be fraught with problems when not on site: obscure quotes, unknown & unscrupulous workers, advance payments and unknown & possibly extra expenditure upon ‘completion’.

The solution. Apply the same discipline to every job, large or small:

1. Write down the scope before anyone prices it.
2. Get two or three quotes with a line-by-line breakdown.
3. Approve scope and cost in writing before work starts.
4. Have someone on site while work is done, with photos as evidence.
5. Pay against invoices and completed stages, with any necessary deposit agreed in writing.
6. Keep the invoices, warranties and certificates in your property folder.

This is also described in more detail in our blog post on how to coordinate home repairs in Athens when you’re not there. The maintenance and technical oversight service provided by Home Watch Athens follows the steps outlined in that article, meaning that work is arranged with the Owner’s written approval and contractor access and attendance are agreed in advance. Also, all of the invoices from the contractors will be passed through to the Owner without markup.

For bigger renovation jobs, first check if you require any permits for renovation of apartments. Also, look up the costs of apartment renovation in Greece. Our renovation oversight service can include, within the separately agreed scope: writing a written brief of work to be carried out; obtaining and comparing quotes from interested contractors; scheduled site visits with time and date stamped photos of work completed; coordinating payment of contractors in stages as work is completed; a final folder of all documents relating to the work done.

9. Meet your fire-season obligations if you own land

The problem. Clearing eligible plots and uncovered spaces before the fire season is a responsibility of owners, usufructuaries, tenants and subtenants. The rules cover specified sites within planning areas and settlement boundaries, certain sites within 100 metres of those boundaries, and certain plots outside planning areas that contain buildings, subject to the applicable forestry exclusions.

The declaration deadline is generally 15 June, but extensions can change the date. For 2026, the cleaning and declaration deadline was extended to 22 June. Cleared spaces must also be maintained throughout the fire season. Failure to comply may result in fines. Gov.gr

Clear, declare and document. Each year before the fire season, arrange for the clearing of dry material, make the online declaration through the official service and keep all relevant documentation. Owners abroad will need to organize this through a local contact and retain copies of all relevant receipts. A guide to plot cleaning before the fire season in Greece is here.

10. Look after the car and other loose ends

Make sure you have arranged for someone to periodically check your car in Greece, as well as for your mail to be collected and any official correspondence to be dealt with, in the same way as for your home. A car can spend long periods of time unused on the roads of Greece and, therefore, require regular checks of its battery and tires. Furthermore, annual road tax in Greece is normally due by 31 December for the following year, unless a different deadline or an applicable exemption has been announced.

11. Prepare an emergency plan before you need one

A pipe bursting, a sudden storm or a break-in happen when you least expect them. And although they are contained at first, before you know it they can become big problems when no one is there to deal with them in Athens and you are abroad. Read what to do in case your home in Athens is flooded or has been broken into and also our guide to emergency and disaster home check.

The solution. Keep a one-page emergency sheet with:

• where the main water valve, electricity board and meter are
• your insurer’s claims contact number and policy reference
• the building manager’s contact details
• a trusted person who holds keys and whose availability is understood
• emergency numbers: 112 (for all types of emergencies), 100 (for police), 199 (for fire).

Then make sure that the trusted person you have selected is available and understands the agreed arrangements. We explain how to find someone to look after your home in Athens in this guide. If you need someone to check on your property in an emergency then our emergency property check service is available to members, subject to availability and separately agreed charges. Response times are not guaranteed, and immediate safety or security incidents should be handled by the emergency services or your security provider.

Choosing who looks after your property

Home watch is typically managed by a homeowner themselves, or sometimes a house sitter, or property management company, or even another homeowner watching over a home for their fellow homeowner. We outline and contrast the options for you for choosing a suitable option in home watch vs property management vs house sitter vs friend.

For routine home checks and practical coordination, a notarised Power of Attorney is generally not needed. Specific tasks involving authorities, banks or legal transactions may require a particular authorisation or Power of Attorney, so confirm the requirements for the task. More here on Powers of Attorney for property related issues in Greece.

Yanis, founder of Home Watch Athens, manages a portfolio of holiday homes and empty apartments in Athens on behalf of owners who live abroad. A simple membership scheme is offered to owners of homes left empty for long periods of time. Home Watch offers a single service to members: a monthly home visit, with all other work being offered on a quote basis and undertaken with owner approval as necessary. Owners can rest assured that for as long as they are members of Home Watch Athens their property will be looked after by a sole keyholder: Yanis Zisis. Home Watch Athens covers all areas of Athens and Attica including the Athenian Riviera.

This is just an example of how an annual program for an empty home could work. For more information about our property management service for homes in Athens, you can also read about it here. Become a member of Home Watch Athens here.