Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis addressed the “Renovate 2026” program during his weekly review, stressing that the initiative extends to residences already in use as a primary home, in addition to vacant and older properties.
“In very brief terms, this program offers strong incentives for renovating vacant or aging homes, so they can be used either as the owners’ primary residence or made available for long-term rental,” he stated.
Renovate 2026: Primary Residences Also Eligible
The Prime Minister continued: “At the same time, the option of renovation is extended to homes already being used as a primary residence. Why is this new initiative important? Because it addresses the problem of thousands of closed, idle properties, that is, the limited supply of housing. But also because it represents a pilot program across all of Europe, one that Greece proposed first and is implementing with EU co-funding.”
Regarding the subsidy amount, he added: “The subsidy can reach up to €36,000, or 95% of the cost of works, for low- and middle-income households. It is estimated that through this initiative up to 20,000 homes currently sitting idle can be returned to the market. Interest is already particularly high, with more than 6,700 eligibility certificates having been issued through the platform at anakainisi.apps.gov.gr.”
Who Is Eligible
Properties must have received a building permit up to the end of 1990 and have a floor area of up to 120 square meters. For families with three or more children, the limit increases to 150 square meters.
In addition, properties must fall within energy class C or lower, must not have been included in a similar program since January 1, 2020, and must not be registered under a short-term rental scheme.
Both homes that remained vacant during 2024 and 2025 and homes that are currently occupied are eligible for inclusion in the program.
Applications will be evaluated on a rolling basis. Priority will be given to requests involving lower subsidy amounts, with those approaching the maximum ceiling of €36,000 reviewed subsequently.
