Yanis doesn't pour concrete or lay tiles. He makes sure the people who do, do it right: weekly site visits, photo reports, fair prices and clear written agreements, for owners renovating their Athens home from abroad.
From the first brief to the final handover folder, and every milestone in between.
Yanis turns your plans into a written brief, gets 2-3 quotes from vetted contractors, compares them line by line and negotiates. You get a clear written agreement with payments tied to finished stages.
Yanis visits the site every week and sends you timestamped photos on WhatsApp. Stages are only signed off with your approval, and delays are flagged the day they happen. He works with your architect or engineer where needed.
Deliveries are checked against what you ordered, which is where most swaps happen. Yanis pays contractors on your behalf, only against proper invoices, and every change is priced and approved before work goes ahead.
Yanis walks the finished home with the contractor and lists anything to fix before final sign-off. You get every agreement, invoice, photo and certificate in one folder, with an easy move to monthly home watch afterwards.
Yanis takes no referral fees from contractors. He works for you, not for them.
Contractors in his network issue proper invoices and come back to fix defects at no extra charge.
Renovation oversight is a member service, quoted per project. Yanis quotes his fee once your project is scoped, before any work begins.
You can't drop in, you can't see what was delivered versus what was ordered, and every update arrives second-hand, often translated and almost always optimistic.
Responsive in week 1, silent by week 4, back in week 12 with a 40% overrun and no explanation.
You ordered Italian porcelain and got cheaper ceramic. You only find out if someone checks the delivery.
"But you asked for that." Without changes agreed in writing, every dispute is your word against theirs.
Good intentions, a full-time job, and two site visits in five months.
Weekly visits, timestamped photos, materials checked on delivery, changes agreed in writing, and an early warning when the project drifts.
Tell Yanis about your home and your renovation. If it's a good match, he'll arrange a brief intro call and tell you honestly whether oversight makes sense for your project.
A written brief, 2-3 vetted quotes compared line by line, a recommendation, and a clear agreement with stage payments.
Yanis visits every week and sends photos on WhatsApp. Stages are signed off only with your approval.
Defects fixed, everything in one folder, and an easy move to monthly home watch.
Yanis spent 15 years living in London while owning a home in Athens. He has renovated two of his own Athens apartments, in Makrygianni and Thissio, so he knows where contractors cut corners because he has watched them try.
Every renovation is run by Yanis personally. He is the sole keyholder, your one point of contact and the person on every site visit.
Two of his own Athens apartments. Every process he uses with members was built and tested on these sites.
A 30sqm studio, fully gutted and rebuilt. It included a new sewage system for the whole building, which needed the building's approval and cooperation from every flat, plus permits to take down main walls and a new kitchen and bathroom. The budget covered appliances and furniture as well as the building work.
A 40sqm 1-bedroom with a 12sqm balcony. New kitchen and bathroom throughout, a soundproofed bedroom wall, durable porcelain finishes and a balcony hot tub with hot and cold water and drainage routed through the walls from the bathroom.
More member projects will be published, with permission, as they complete.
Every renovation member is also a Home Watch member. It covers key holding and the monthly visit, and carries on as ongoing care after handover.
Quoted per project once it's scoped, before any contractor work begins. Light kitchen or bathroom jobs cost less than full apartments or structural work.
Paid separately, at cost: contractors, materials, permits and professional fees such as architect or engineer. Yanis pays contractors on your behalf, only against proper invoices.
Having Yanis look after our holiday home in Athens has changed how we experience it. No more stress, no more holiday time spent fixing things, no more waiting for contractors who don't show up, and someone who can check it after storms or if anything happens. I can't imagine why anyone who owns a holiday home in Athens wouldn't choose this service!
Home Watch Athens, Founder Yanis takes personal commitment to the next level. Trustworthy, Attention to detail, and goes way beyond for every aspect. Highly recommended for anyone who has a second home in Athens.
Home Watch Athens provides founder-led renovation oversight in Athens, run personally by Yanis Zisis. There are no rotating staff or subcontracted project managers: he is the sole keyholder, your one point of contact and the person on every site visit. The service is built for owners abroad who can't supervise the renovation themselves.
Yes, with the right oversight. You need three things: someone independent you trust on the ground, a vetted contractor chosen for your project, and a clear written agreement with stage payments and a process for agreeing changes. With those in place, renovating from abroad is straightforward. Without them, distance and language make it risky.
It depends on the size of the job and how often you can visit. Below roughly €20,000, with a contractor you genuinely know and the ability to visit weekly, probably not. Above that, or if you live far away, yes. Independent oversight usually pays for itself early by catching swapped materials, unagreed extras and slipping schedules.
Yanis quotes his oversight fee once your project is scoped, before any contractor work begins. Light kitchen or bathroom jobs cost less than full apartments or structural work.
Every renovation member is also a Home Watch member, which covers key holding and the monthly visit and carries on after handover. Contractors, materials, permits and professional fees are paid separately, at cost.
No, and that's the point. Yanis doesn't pour concrete or lay tiles; he makes sure the people who do, do it right. He works with vetted contractors but takes no referral fees from any of them, so he works for you, not for them.
That's fine. Yanis can oversee any contractor. He'll check them at the start, put a clear written agreement in place and oversee the project exactly as he would with a contractor from his own network.
For a 60sqm light renovation, plan for 2-3 months. A full apartment up to 100sqm usually takes 4-6 months, and villas or structural work 6-9 months. Add around 30% for permits, building approvals and supply delays; they're real factors in Athens. Yanis tracks the project against the agreed timeline and flags delays straight away.
No. Yanis oversees renovations of homes that stay yours: family apartments, holiday homes, Golden Visa homes and future homes. He doesn't take on Airbnb, short-term rental or rental apartment projects.
Home watch is a monthly visit to an empty home, to catch problems early. Renovation oversight is a project with weekly site visits, to deliver a renovation on time, on budget and as agreed. Many members use both: oversight during the project, home watch after handover.
Tell Yanis about your home and your project, whether you're three months from starting or two years from inheriting the apartment. He replies to every application within 24 hours.
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