Μake us preferred on Google In the 1960s, apartment blocks replaced single-family homes to make room for newcomers to Athens. Today the talk is of taller buildings to add housing supply. But the challenge has shifted: homes must also fit buyers’ and renters’ budgets.
Postwar reconstruction ran on antiparochi, under which landowners traded their plots for apartments in the new buildings. Low-rise houses gave way to apartment blocks that housed internal migrants and families seeking a better life. Athens grew upward, gaining its familiar skyline and the dense neighborhoods that now struggle to absorb new pressures.
Six decades later, the government is again looking up for solutions. Speaking at To Vima’s “Dialogues for Athens” conference, Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis floated additional floor space, possibly one or two extra stories, as an incentive for buildings constructed exclusively for long-term rental.
Build to Rent already has a legal basis in Greece. Under a law published in June 2026, the “Build–Rent” program lets construction and property management companies build new homes or convert other buildings into rentals. Investors keep ownership and earn rental income that is exempt from income tax. In return, the units must be leased long-term for at least 10 years at a predetermined rent.
The details still have to be set. A joint ministerial decision must determine how rents are calculated, who is eligible, and what tenant contracts and maintenance obligations apply. Those terms will decide whether the program can attract investors and still deliver affordable housing. The prime minister’s proposal would add a zoning bonus on top of the tax break, since more apartments on the same plot would make projects more profitable.
Hanging over the debate are rulings by the Council of State, the highest administrative court, on the bonuses granted under the New Building Code. The court found the blanket application of the contested incentives unconstitutional without a prior assessment of each area’s specific conditions. That lends weight to remarks by Pavlos Marinakis, Government Spokesperson, who said that the extra-floors proposal could be considered for specific areas.
Other countries have their own versions of the model. England’s framework requires affordable-rent units in new developments, while Madrid’s Plan VIVE pairs public land with private builders and managers. In Greece, costs, financing and permitting speed will decide whether companies get involved. For households, what matters is whether the rent commitments are kept.
