Buying an Apartment in Thessaloniki: What to Check Legally Before You Buy

Anyone searching for “apartments for sale in Thessaloniki” usually finds prices lower than in Athens and an active rental market. This guide does not deal with whether to buy, but with what needs to be checked legally before buying an apartment in Thessaloniki, and what is different there compared with Athens. The overall picture for Greece is in the legal guide to buying property in Greece.

1Can an Israeli buy an apartment in Thessaloniki?

Yes, without a special permit. Greece has no general restriction on purchases by foreigners, and the border-area exception does not apply to Thessaloniki or Halkidiki. Details are in the guide to buying in border areas. As with any transaction in Greece, you start with a tax number (AFM) and a bank account; see the guide to the AFM and a bank account.

2Can you buy an apartment in Thessaloniki for Airbnb?

It depends where. According to reports from July 2026, from 1 July 2026 no new short-term rental registration numbers (AMA) are being issued in the First Municipal District of Thessaloniki, which includes the historic, commercial and tourist centre, the waterfront and the Ladadika area. According to the same reports, the freeze was set until 31 December 2026, and in September 2026 the Prime Minister announced an extension to 31 December 2027. As of November 2026 we have not found an official publication of the extension.

The implication for a buyer is the same as in central Athens. In the freeze zone, a sale, a gift or a transfer from parents to children of an apartment with an active AMA cancels the registration, and the buyer cannot obtain a new registration while the freeze is in force. The only reported exception is inheritance. The fine for short-term rental without registration is 50% of the income, and at least EUR 20,000. Outside the First District the national rules apply, which are set out in the guide to short-term rental in Greece.

3Student lets in Thessaloniki: what matters legally?

Several large academic institutions operate in Thessaloniki, so student lets are a significant part of the city's rental market. Legally, this is a residential tenancy in every respect, not a separate category. A few points worth planning in advance:

• Lease term: according to professional sources, a residential tenancy in Greece is as a rule for a minimum term of three years, even if a shorter term was written. “Academic year” leases are common in the market, but before relying on them it is advisable to obtain the opinion of a Greek lawyer on their validity and on the options for exiting them.
• Guarantor and deposit: a student tenant often has no independent income. A parental guarantee and a deposit defined in the lease reduce the risk.
• Furniture and equipment: a furnished apartment requires a signed inventory on move-in and move-out, so that damage can be offset against the deposit.
• Payment and reporting: from 2026, every rent payment in Greece must be made by bank transfer, and the income is taxed in brackets of 15% to 45%.
• Turnover: academic seasonality means empty months in the summer. The calculation must take them into account.

4What to check in the building and the apartment?

In Thessaloniki too, a large share of apartments is in older apartment buildings, and resale apartments commonly show the same gaps between the permit and the situation on site: enclosed balconies, storage areas turned into living space and rooftop additions. Law 4495/2017 prohibits the transfer of a property with unregularised violations, and every deed requires an engineer's certificate. Violations dating from before 28 July 2011 can usually be regularised, and the deadlines have been extended to 31 March 2028. A Category 5 violation cannot be regularised. Details are in the guide to building violations and the engineer's certificate.

An engineer acting for you should also check the condition of the structure, the building's compliance with the requirements in force at the time of construction, and the building systems. Anyone buying an old apartment in the city centre to renovate it should find out in advance whether the building is listed or in a protected area, and which licensing level the renovation will fall under. See the guide to old properties for renovation in Athens and Thessaloniki.

5What about the metro and the new projects in the city?

The Thessaloniki metro opened at the end of 2024, and marketers often cite it as a justification for the price. Proximity to a station can affect demand, but it is not a legal factor, and it has no value if the apartment itself is not in order. As with any promise about future development, the property should make sense even without that assumption.

6Golden Visa in Thessaloniki

Thessaloniki is on the list of areas where the Golden Visa threshold is EUR 800,000 in a single property, as in Attica. A property that serves as the basis for the permit may not be let on a short-term basis. Details are in the guide to the Golden Visa in Greece.

7What are the purchase stages, and which taxes do you pay?

The process in Thessaloniki is the same as in the rest of Greece: an AFM and a bank account, an initial title check before any deposit, a preliminary agreement with a deposit of about 10%, full due diligence including the property's electronic identity certificate and the engineer's certificate, payment of the transfer tax, signing before a notary and registration in the land registry. Ownership passes only on registration, and the notary does not represent you. Details are in the guide to the purchase process in Greece and the guide to due diligence in Greece.

On taxes: an effective transfer tax of 3.09% on a resale apartment, 24% VAT on a new property, suspended until the end of 2026, annual ENFIA, and tax on rent in brackets of 15% to 45%. Capital gains tax for individuals is suspended until 31 December 2026. The government has announced an intention to raise the transfer tax to 15% for individual buyers from outside the EU from 1 July 2027, but according to the reports we found, no bill has yet been tabled. See the guide to taxation in Greece and the acquisition cost calculator.

8Checklist before you sign for an apartment in Thessaloniki

• An independent lawyer, an AFM and a bank account.
• A check of title and encumbrances in the land registry before the deposit.
• Which municipal district the address falls in, and whether it is in the First District.
• If there is an AMA: its status, and whether it is cancelled on sale.
• An engineer acting for you: compliance with the permit, violations, structure and building systems.
• The building's rules and common charges.
• For student lets: a lease wording reviewed by a Greek lawyer, a guarantee, a deposit and an inventory.
• A calculation based on long-term rental, including the summer months.
• Timing of the deed against the expected tax changes, and documentation of the money transfers from Israel.

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