The plague of bedbugs that affected Paris caused a lot of ink around the world, and was even cited as a reason that could jeopardize the holding of the Olympic Games this year. But the topic ended up being used, in an EU country, as a ‘weapon’ to combat the proliferation of Airbnb, which is identified as one of the causes of the real estate crisis that this territory is experiencing.
We talk about Greece. In December, several buildings in the Exarcheia neighborhood of Athens woke up one morning with flyers plastered on their doors, electricity poles and walls. The documents had the symbol of the Greek Ministry of Health and called for “the immediate evacuation of guesthouses and local accommodation to protect permanent Greek tenants.”
At issue was an alleged “plague of bedbugs”, and the leaflets announced fines of 500 euros for owners or temporary residents who did not comply with the supposed eviction order.
After the initial panic, it was quickly realized that it was all a hoax. The police, at the request of the Greek Ministry of Health, determined that it was a campaign to keep tourists away.
Despite the humorous contours of the story, the phenomenon has become more common in Greece, which is facing the worst real estate and housing crisis in Europe.
In the country, the house sales market is gaining dizzying speed, to levels before the ‘bubble’ burst in 2008. Since 2018 alone, house prices in the Athens region have soared by 70%. In the same period, according to data from the Bank of Greece, rents rose between 35 and 50% in most of the country.
But the ‘fault’ was not the Greeks: The Global Property Guide highlights that foreigners were responsible for 85% of the total value of recent home purchases made in Greece. In the 1st half of last year, foreign investment in the sector grew 38.9%, but shows a tendency to accelerate after a record 68%, registered in 2022.
Another analysis, by Henley & Partners, cited by El Confidencial, found that 70% of foreign buyers of property in Greece do not live in these houses. They are contributing to the massive proliferation of Local Accommodation and Airbnb.
The number of short-term home rentals has skyrocketed in the last six years: if in 2016 it was 57 thousand, at the end of 2022 there were almost 130 thousand.
The situation sounds similar to that in other parts of Europe, including Portugal, but, according to Eurostat, it is Greek citizens who suffer most from the situation.
The data indicates that Greeks have the highest rate of housing cost overload, which is the percentage of the population for whom housing expenses represent more than 40% of their income. In Greece this occurs both in urban areas and in