The Kyriakos Mitsotakis government has initiated an ENFIA tax cut. The Ministry of Finance of Greece plans next year to further reduce the single property tax. On average, ENFIA decrease by 10%. In 2019, it was reduced by 22%.
Owners pay the ENFIA tax in 5 equal monthly installments: this year the first is due at the end of September and the last at the end of January 2020.
Opinions and a new base
Quite a lot of experts opposed innovation. They believed that reducing the tax burden for the Greeks would result in significant losses to the state budget. Since, under the criteria for tax reduction, hundreds of thousands of property owners fall. And the Greek government has allocated additional funds to cover the losses.
Previously, the tax increase was due to the economic crisis. Now the situation is improving, which allows reducing the tax burden on the population. Simultaneously with the reduction of the unified property tax, a base of cost coefficients is created, from which the real value of a real estate in a particular region of the country will be understood.
Tax bonuses
The relevant ministry reports that, in addition to lowering the ENFIA rate, the real estate sector is still waiting for an increase or decrease in zone tariffs in certain areas. In 2019, property owners whose value did not exceed € 60,000 began to pay 30% fewer taxes. Property owners worth up to € 200,000 receive a 10% discount.
According to experts, owners of cheaper real estate can pay €50-70 this year, and more expensive – €100. Already in 2020 and 2021, owners of properties worth more than € 200,000 will save even more. For them, it is envisaged to reduce the ENFIA tax by 20% in 2020 and by 10% in 2021.
The situation and prices in the real estate market
Recently, the real estate market in Greece is experiencing a boom: the construction of new facilities is underway, many buildings are under reconstruction, some are being rebuilt for a new purpose. So the former business centers are being modernized and changing their purpose for housing facilities. Amid rising prices, the interest of foreign investors in Greek real estate has increased.
The highest cost of residential and commercial real estate is fixed in the central areas of Athens and some resort areas. In 2019, there was an increase in rents throughout the country. Somewhere, the cost per square meter increases faster, somewhere - more slowly, but the national average is fixed at around 9%.