Alternative housing

The government's decision to expand interventions in the short-term rental market, especially in Athens, seems definitive, following the new statements Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis made on Wednesday.

A recent decision by the Thessaloniki Court of Appeal against an investor who attempted to convert office spaces into residences and utilize them for short-term leases is seen as a new major obstacle to similar ventures by creating a legal precedent.

The European Parliament have approved new data-sharing rules that clamp down on illegal short-term rentals to protect the residents of European cities - many of whom face shortages of affordable housing.

The spread of short-term tourist lets via online platforms such as Airbnb has put pressure on the housing market in many places, as it cuts the availability of long-term rentals.

Every time I go to a nice new wine bar in some Athenian neighborhood on the outskirts of the city center, I am overwhelmed by contradictory feelings.

The government will adopt a wait-and-see attitude this year in order to assess the effects of the newly legislated framework on the short-term residential rental market.