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Rural properties in coastal towns today on the other hand definitely have good prices. Recreation property for vacation, particularly in the area of Attiki are not much. Such a property must certainly be close and even with a view towards the sea, because otherwise similar properties are not a priority in market demand these days. Greater interest in these properties show foreigners - like western Europeans  love Greece very much and in many cases they want to have ownership of property on the Cycladic Islands or the Isle of Crete, there the interest is greater.

In the past ten years, many Greeks became owners of real estate property in Bulgaria and other Balkan countries with respect to the high return on investment. Do you think this is a problem for the local market?

Those who entered early on the real estate market and sold five or six years ago the properties won a lot of money. Mark ups proved to be very high. Companies and individuals who invested at that time, got very high returns on the investment, but also had a successful business in Greece. Ultimately, such an investment was a very good move that in no way can be reported as an error. All who have acquired and kept their property in Bulgaria will soon have the opportunity (if they wish) to enter the market and gain high profits.

Share your experience on the Bulgarian real estate market.

We opened our office in Sofia shortly before the outbreak of the last major crisis when property prices had already reached some pretty high levels, and demand started to shrink. I missed the moment seven or eight years ago when people first advised me to open a branch in Bulgaria and is now I am waiting for better times to come in order to continue my work there.

Board of Directors of the IMF Dominique Strauss-Kahn, and also the government policy today is to restore the competitiveness of Greece at an international level through a general reduction in prices of goods and services offered. How can this be applied in the real estate market and will it have the required result according to you?

Real estate property prices are regulated by the basic economic logic that demand determines the supply. Surely reducing salaries, pensions and the overall decline in standard of living of the average Greek will inevitably lead to a more drastic contraction in the market. For example, if the total decrease of income for the Greeks ranges at about ten percent, then the property market will also register a ten percent decline. The market is self regulated, in accordance with the current economic conditions.

How do apartment prices vary in different neighborhoods? /Around the sea, the northern suburbs, downtown, west of Athens/ Which areas are more popular in the capital?

Greek families choose the place they will live in first in regards to the area in which they work and second according to the funds they have available. Prices on the other hand range from 10-20 thousand euro to 3-4 million, depending on the socioeconomic status of the buyer. For about ten to twenty thousand euro are most often sold ground floor and semi-basements, which are mostly used by students, or immigrants, or just very poor people. The acquisition of a shelter of your own, however, is rooted deep in Greek culture, so regardless of price, real estate purchase is a dream come true.

What risks are hidden in the new economic reforms of PASOK for the real estate market, what consequences do you predict?

From now on all citizens should be very well aware of the taxes they owe to the state. Property with a tax assessment jof under 250,000 euro are not subject to high taxes. Where taxes are significantly severe is for the expensive properties and for the owners of many properties. With the introduction of new tax reform, property owners will need to show sources of income, using which they bought the property. Offshore property owners have to transfer the property to local companies, because the new property tax for the Greek companies is 0.6 percent, and for the offshore companies it is 15%.

Another problem is the highly inflated tax when acquiring property. While in most countries in Europe it varies between 3% -4% in Greece it is already 11 percent. This definitely creates an obstacle in the decision to buy a property in the country. In the dialogue we had with the committee responsible for drafting the new tax law, a proposal was given for this indicator to be reduced, but due to the requirements of the International Monetary Fund this was not adopted. An argument for the refusal was the need of the state to collect as much revenue into the Treasury from tax collection as it can. But I think that was the wrong move which will not have the desired result. When we have such a high taxation and economic recession in full swing, the sales decrease and so the tax revenues will be significantly smaller, and the turnover of funds in the market extremely low.

What causes the big difference between tax assessment and real market prices of real estate properties?