Property tax a heavy burden for Greeks

Greek property owners are among Europe's most heavily burdened by taxes, according to a study by Washington-based think tank the Tax Foundation that examines the tax burden on ownership and its ratio to all tax revenues.

A few weeks before the general election, and while the discussion on overtaxation is growing, the Tax Foundation study, which is based on data from the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), illustrates that most countries both in Europe and globally have a particularly low ratio of property ownership taxes to total tax revenues.

Data analysis shows that property taxation in Europe averages at 4.6 percent of all tax takings. However, in four European Union states, including Greece, the situation is very different.

In the United Kingdom taxes on realty come to 12.6 percent of tax revenues, followed by Luxembourg with 9.6...