Today, individuals that are interested in buying real estate in Greece are faced with a dilemma: Whether to purchase a piece of property immediately before the property’s objective value is increased as is expected after January 2011, or further wait with the hope that real estate prices will decrease in the near future?
The objective value of a piece of property in Greece relates to the taxable value that the Greek revenue department assigns to a piece of real estate. The market value is the actual price paid for the real estate. The objective or taxable value is usually equal or less than the market value (at least up to now) and may start from 10% and reach up to sixty percent of the market value. The remaining amount (the market value minus the objective value) is a gift usually to the black economy and is strangely accommodated (at least up to now) by both the revenue service and the ministry of finance.
Purchase or Postpone?
In any part of the world, housing-related purchases are considered high risk purchases not only because of the large sums of money needed, but because of the possibility of cognitive dissonance setting in after the purchase. This is one strong reason that individuals consult with both family members and close friends, and also with reference groups and market experts such as real estate agents.