Both of these countries changed their rules in ways that reward one kind of buyer and punish another, and they did it in opposite directions. Portugal took real estate out of its golden visa and then added a transfer tax aimed at non-residents. Greece raised its golden visa thresholds but kept property in, and banned short-term letting on the properties that qualify.
The result is unusually clean. Portugal is now built for people who move. Greece is built for people who buy.
Side by side
| Figure | Portugal | Greece | Source and date checked |
|---|---|---|---|
| Price per m2, capital | EUR 6,100 | EUR 3,200 | Portugal: idealista price index (Lisbon city, median asking, May 2026) | Greece: Spitogatos asking-price data / Bank of Greece index (Athens average; centre ~€2,800, Kolonaki/Riviera €5,000+)(2026-07) |
| Price per m2, rural | EUR 900 | EUR 1,200 | Portugal: idealista/INE municipality map: 139 interior municipalities under EUR 1,000/m2, several under EUR 700/m2 | Greece: Indomio (Spitogatos group) regional data, June 2026: inland prefectures Arta €906/m2, Ilia €1,020, Arcadia €1,448; Epirus region avg €1,703 incl. coast; cheapest mainland prefectures ~€585-900 (Kastoria €585, Spitogatos SPI Q2 2026)(2026-07) |
| 5-year price trend | +70% | +62% | Portugal: INE house price index, cumulative 2021-2025 (approx. +9.4%, +12.6%, +8.2%, +9.1%, +17.6% per year) | Greece: Bank of Greece apartment price index, compounded annual changes 2021-2025 (+7.6%, +11.9%, +13.8%, +9.1%, +8.1%; Q1 2026 +5.7% y/y)(2026-07) |
| Total buying costs | 3 to 11% | 5.5 to 8% | Sum of the transfer tax, notary, registration and legal ranges in each country record(2026-08) |
| Transfer tax | 0.8 to 8.8% | 3.09% | Portugal: IMT 0-8% progressive (residents) plus 0.8% stamp duty; non-residents pay a flat 7.5% IMT from 1 Sep 2026 (Decreto-Lei n.º 97/2026, de 20 de maio), refundable if they become tax resident within 2 years | Greece: FMA transfer tax 3% plus municipal surcharge = 3.09% (AADE); applies to resales and, while the 24% VAT suspension on new builds runs (extended to 31-12-2026 by Law 5246/2025), to qualifying new builds as well(2026-08) |
| Rental income tax | 25% | 15% | Portugal: Flat IRS rate on residential rental income (28% for non-residential lets; lower rates for long-term contracts) | Greece: Progressive: 15% up to €12,000, new 25% middle bracket from 1-1-2026, 35% to €35,000, 45% above; 5% flat expense deduction; same rates for non-residents(2026-07) |
| Capital gains tax | 24% | 0% | Portugal: Since 2023 non-residents are taxed on 50% of the gain at progressive rates of 12.5-48%; 24 = maximum effective rate, most sellers pay an effective 6-24% | Greece: 15% CGT for individuals is suspended through 31-12-2026 (suspension renewed annually since 2015); frequent sales can be retaxed as business income(2026-07) |
| Wealth tax, non-resident | Yes | None | Portugal: Portutax / AIMI regime (CIMI) | Greece: Greece levies no net wealth tax; ENFIA is the only recurring property tax(2026-07) |
| Gross rental yield | 4.3% | 4.4% | Portugal: Global Property Guide, national average for apartments May 2026 (Lisbon approx. 3.8%, Setubal up to 4.9%) | Greece: Global Property Guide, national average gross residential yield May 2026 (4.38%; Athens ~5.5%)(2026-07) |
| Cost of living, EU = 100 | 87 | 86 | Portugal: Eurostat price level index, household final consumption 2024 (EU-27 = 100) | Greece: Eurostat price level index, household final consumption expenditure, EU-27 = 100 (Greece 86.0 in 2024)(2026-07) |
| Mortgage as non-resident | Yes | Limited | Portugal: All large Portuguese retail banks run dedicated non-resident mortgage programmes | Greece: A few Greek banks (e.g. Eurobank) run non-resident programmes; documentation-heavy, rates ~4-5.5%(2026-07) |
| Typical completion | 6 to 12 weeks | 8 to 12 weeks | Portugal: Cash purchases complete in 4-6 weeks; with a mortgage typically 2-3 months (promissory contract CPCV, then deed) | Greece: From accepted offer to registered deed incl. AFM, due diligence, tax clearances and notarial completion; land-registry backlogs can extend this(2026-07) |
| Golden visa | Active, property does not qualify | Property qualifies from EUR 250,000 | Portugal: Law 56/2023 (Mais Habitacao) revoked the real-estate route; funds, research, cultural and job-creation routes confirmed still open in 2026 | Greece: Law 5100/2024 art. 92 (thresholds and letting ban), Law 5275/2026 (procedure)(2026-08) |
The verdict, category by category
A table tells you what the numbers are. It does not tell you which of them should decide your purchase. That is what this section is for.
Prices
Greece in the cities, Portugal in the countryside
Athens averages around EUR 3,200 per square metre against roughly EUR 6,100 in Lisbon, so the Greek capital costs a little over half. The islands at about EUR 2,650 undercut the Algarve at roughly EUR 3,870. Portugal wins only at the bottom, where 139 interior municipalities sit under EUR 1,000 per square metre against rural Greek averages near EUR 1,200. Five-year growth has been similar and steep in both, about 70 percent in Portugal and 62 percent in Greece, so neither is an undiscovered market.
Buying costs
Greece, especially for non-residents
Greek transfer tax is a flat 3.09 percent and total costs land between 5.5 and 8 percent. Portugal looks better on the resident scale, 3 to 11 percent, but from 1 September 2026 non-resident buyers pay a flat 7.5 percent IMT under Decreto-Lei 97/2026, which pushes them toward the top of that range. Since the buyer choosing between Portugal and Greece is usually a non-resident at the point of purchase, Greece is the cheaper transaction in practice. The Portuguese surcharge does refund if you become tax resident within two years, or if you sign a moderate-rent lease within six months and keep it for at least 36.
Ongoing taxes
Greece, on almost every line
Greece has no wealth tax; Portugal's AIMI charges 0.7 percent above EUR 600,000 of residential taxable value, 1 percent above EUR 1 million and 1.5 percent above EUR 2 million. Greek capital gains tax for private sellers is suspended through the end of 2026, while Portugal taxes non-residents on half the gain at progressive rates that top out around 24 percent effective. Annual charges are comparable, ENFIA at roughly 0.1 to 0.35 percent of market value against IMI at 0.3 to 0.45 percent of taxable value. Portugal wins on inheritance, where there is no tax and close family are exempt from the 10 percent stamp duty; Greek Category A heirs are exempt only up to EUR 150,000 each before rates of 1 to 10 percent apply. Portugal also wins on rental income at a flat 25 percent against a Greek scale that reaches 45 percent.
The buying process
Portugal, clearly
Portugal is the easier country to buy in. A cash purchase completes in four to six weeks against eight to twelve in Greece, the Casa Pronta one-stop service handles the deed and the registration together for a few hundred euros, and all the large retail banks run non-resident mortgage programmes at up to about 70 percent loan to value. Greece has a handful of banks doing non-resident lending at 60 to 65 percent, land-registry backlogs that can extend completion, and an authorisation step for non-EU buyers in the border areas, which include the East Aegean islands and the Dodecanese. Assume you are a cash buyer in Greece.
Residency
Greece, because Portuguese property no longer qualifies
Portugal still runs a golden visa, but Law 56/2023 removed every real-estate route in October 2023. What is left is a EUR 500,000 investment in regulated funds with no direct or indirect property exposure, job creation, or cultural and research contributions. Greece remains a genuine property route at EUR 400,000 outside the main centres or EUR 800,000 inside them, for a single property of at least 120 square metres. The condition attached is severe and specific: those properties may be lived in or let long-term only, short-term letting is prohibited under Article 92 of Law 5100/2024, and a breach means a EUR 50,000 fine per property and revocation of the permit.
Rental yield
Greece, but only just, and only outside the golden visa
Gross yields are close: 4.4 percent in Greece against 4.3 percent in Portugal, the narrowest gap in this comparison. What separates them is regulation. Portugal's Decree-Law 76/2024 lifted the national freeze on Alojamento Local registrations and made licences permanent and transferable again, handing control to municipalities; Lisbon still restricts new registrations in containment zones. Greece requires an AMA registration, has banned new registrations in central Athens districts 1 to 3 through the end of 2026 with Thessaloniki following, and fines start at EUR 20,000. If you are buying in Greece under the golden visa, short-term letting is off the table entirely, which makes Portugal the better choice for that specific buyer.
So which one should you buy in?
Buy in Greece if you are paying cash and want the cheapest way into southern Europe with the lightest ongoing tax, or if you are non-EU and want the purchase to produce residency. Greece wins on price, on transaction costs, on wealth tax, on capital gains and on the residency question, which is most of the scoreboard.
Buy in Portugal if you need a mortgage, if you want to run the property as a short-term let, or if you are actually relocating. A mortgage is realistic in Portugal and marginal in Greece. Short-term letting is workable in Portugal and banned outright on golden-visa property in Greece. And the 7.5 percent non-resident IMT, the single strongest argument against Portugal, refunds itself the moment you become a Portuguese tax resident.
Put simply: Greece if the property is the investment, Portugal if the property is the home. If neither profile fits because you want a low-cost, low-tax hold with a workable short-let regime, look at Cyprus.
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