The Airbnbfication of Athens.
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THREAD
According to the OECD, house prices in Greece have increased by 69% between 2017 and Q2 2024 and have risen much faster than incomes and rents.
In the wider Attica region — regional home of Athens — there are only 255k vacant houses. Of these, only 152k are available for rent or sale.
If we look at the average monthly rent across top European cities, we see that Athens places at the lower mid level of the distribution.
If we look at the average monthly rent across top European cities, we see that Athens places at the lower mid level of the distribution.
Greeks face the highest housing costs in Europe — north of 35% — as a percentage of their total disposable income, on average.
31% of Greeks living in a city like Athens had housing costs over 40% their income.
The average was just 10.6% for other EU cities.
The average was just 10.6% for other EU cities.
As of December 2024, there were more than 14,642 total Airbnb listings in central Athens alone.
More than 70% of all Airbnb listings in central Athens are multi-listings (i.e. hosted by Airbnb hosts with two or more listings).
There are only 4,333 listings each belonging to single hosts (1 listing each), yet 4,960 listings belong to hosts with 10+ listings each.
There are only 4,333 listings each belonging to single hosts (1 listing each), yet 4,960 listings belong to hosts with 10+ listings each.
The 12th top Airbnb host in Athens has 58 listings connected to their name, while the 1st top host has 125 listings — more than twice as many.
If we look at the broader Attica region, we see that short-term properties available for rent increased on average by 29% from 2019 to 2024.
Attica currently dominates in terms of short-term overnight stays, with top summer destinations like Crete, the Cyclades and the Ioanian Islands following behind.
The number of available short-term rental beds in the city of Athens has increased drastically — more than doubling in 5 years.
Short-term rentals in Athens command an average price (euro per square feet per month) that is significantly higher than long-term rentals.
Airbnb-style rentals are not inherently good or bad.
They can be an economic blessing for tourism-prone regions.
But they can also become a socio-economic nightmare for people priced out of their neighborhoods or suffering from loud tourists barging in/out their building daily.
They can be an economic blessing for tourism-prone regions.
But they can also become a socio-economic nightmare for people priced out of their neighborhoods or suffering from loud tourists barging in/out their building daily.
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