The picture of short-term rental in Greece in 2024 - revenues at 874 million euros

Rapid growth has been recorded in short-term rental in Greece in the last three years, with the president of the Association of Short-Term Property Rental Companies (Stama), Nasos Gavalas, emphasizing, opening the official conference of the Association (February 14 & 15), that this is not a marginal activity but a pillar of the Greek economy and a critical driver of development for local communities.

This upward trend was presented at the STAMA Conference through data available to the Independent Public Revenue Authority, according to which declared short-term rental income in 2024 reached 874 million euros.

The levels of declared income in 2024 are increased by 128 million euros or 17.1% compared to 2023 (746 million) and by 330 million euros or 60.6% compared to 2022 (544 million).

It is noted that these figures relate exclusively to short-term rental declarations and not to accommodations with additional services.

For every 2 properties in 2022, a new one has been added

The increase in income is due to the increased supply of properties. Specifically, the number of active short-term rental properties registered with the AADE today reaches 213,000, up 4.4% from 2024 (204,000), 20.3% from 2023 (177,000), and 53.2% from 2022 (139,000). This means that for every 2 properties that were available for short-term rental in 2022, one new one has been added.

With the announcement of the ban on the registration of new short-term rental properties within the 1st, 2nd, and 3rd municipal districts of the Municipality of Athens for 2025, an increase of one unit was observed in the central districts of Athens as many people rushed to register in order to secure the right to short-term rental.

At the same time, according to the AADE, the picture of tax compliance of owners is shaping up at very satisfactory levels and now exceeds 90%, compared to 88% in 2023, 80% in 2022, and 63% in 2021.

The Authority carries out compliance checks having concluded a memorandum of understanding with the largest short-term rental platforms. In the first stage, the platforms notify the AADE of all registrations, the validity of the AMA is checked and then the data is returned to the platforms. If issues are identified with the registration, the administrators are informed and if the issues have not been resolved in the second exchange of data, then the platforms are informed so that they can download the registration.

Prospects for further growth

Priceline data from Airbnb for Greece in the first 12 months of 2024 show prospects for further growth of short-term rentals in Greece. Priceline recorded an increase in listings by 11% in 2024 and a greater increase in overnight stays (+16%) compared to the increase in supply, indicating that demand continues to exceed supply, leaving room for growth.

In more detail, Priceline data records the following...

• an 11% increase in the average annual listings, compared to 2023. Indicatively, in September 2024, approximately 141 thousand listings were recorded, compared to 128.5 thousand in 2023 and 110 thousand in 2022.
  an increase in average overnight stays by 16%, with an upward trend in all months of 2024 compared to 2023.
• The most monthly overnight stays are recorded in August 2024, amounting to around 2,500, followed by July (over 2,000), September (very close to 2,000), and June (over 1,500 overnight stays).
• In individual areas, Crete shows a pattern of strong seasonality, with high occupancy in the summer and a drop from September onwards, reaching 80% in August. In contrast, Thessaloniki has the lowest seasonality, maintaining more stable occupancy throughout the year.

In Athens and Crete, revenue (RevPAR) moves on a parallel trajectory, with peaks during the tourist season. In Thessaloniki, on the contrary, revenues are more uniform throughout the year, with smaller fluctuations.

Regarding the average daily rate (ADR), Athens and Thessaloniki have parallel trends, with prices in Athens not exceeding 100 euros, while Thessaloniki is lower. In contrast, prices in Crete show a “seasonality” starting from around 100 euros in December to skyrocketing to around 180 euros in July. Compared to Malta, Portugal and Croatia, Greece has a higher average room rate during the peak season.

There are also prospects for improving revenues through flexible pricing policies. Specifically, 80% of the market is owned by small hosts, who often do not implement sophisticated dynamic pricing strategies, 66% of listings use fixed or low-capacity prices, while almost 40% of properties maintain unchanged prices throughout the year.

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