5/11/2008

Real Estate in Crete: Investment opportunity or potential disaster?

Crete in Greece is considered an upcoming Real Estate hot spot and in the current climate of the world economy it is about time that some hard questions are answered regarding its potential.

Crete and Chania have been extremely popular for the past few years attracting great numbers of interested people from many countries in Europe and mainly from England, Ireland, Norway, Denmark, France, Belgium, Holland, Germany and many more as well as from Russia. The real estate market has given birth to an increasing number of construction companies and even more real estate agencies. Naturally when you are talking to most of these professionals about it they will tell you that buying a home, a villa, an apartment or any type of property in Crete is the best thing that can ever happen to you or maybe even imply that it will make you richer in the long term.

First of all, it is extremely important for you to have organized in your mind your reasoning behind your decision to buy a property abroad.

■ Why do you want to buy a property abroad?
Are you just looking for a holiday home, a retirement villa or investment in real estate? Your criteria will vary widely for any of these categories. If it is a property for personal usage, only then must you take into account your individual needs. But if you are looking at it as an investment, things are different. There are many factors to consider and advice from an independent Real Estate agent or Property Consultant, rather than from a specific builder or constructor, would be of great usage to you.

■ Country and place of interest
Crete and the Chania region is objectively speaking a unique place which combines all types of views (sea, mountain, country side) and amenities (cities, large hospital, international airport, commercial port, etc). But is it the right place for you that you are looking for something to use personally? Make sure that you visit, look around and ensure that you personally, like it.

■ How much do you want to spend?
Everybody has a minimum they would like to pay as well as a maximum. However before you define that you need to do a bit of research through available re sales, new builds, off plan etc so that you can have a realistic idea of what to expect. Having a budget will also help you when you ask people for help. Remember that apart from the selling price of a property there are also the legal and other expenses which you also have to calculate.

Defining the above will be great help to you. But what about the question
How will property value in Crete evolve in the future?
The hard truth is that realistic predictions are not possible in the long term. Many will claim that they have the answer for a five year period or slightly more but if you ask anyone about a ten years period their confidence will waive. Properties are not like some expensive wines.
They do not increase in value over time. So you need to ensure that two things are secured when you are looking for a property: Location and Quality of construction. At the end of the day these are the factors that define the value of properties in any place in the world. The good news is that in Chania and in Crete the location and climate are superb while there are some high standards properties available. Additionally there are qualified real estate agents or property consultants that will offer you professional, fair and independent advice without limiting your options to specific products and that is something that you can use in order to make the best decision for you.


Andreas Batakis has lived in Greece, Ireland and Cyprus, acquiring a Business Administration Degree in Greece, an International Marketing Diploma and a Bachelor of Science in Human Resource Management in Ireland. He is also a member of the UK based Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development. Andreas has extensive experience in helping people from all over the world to locate a home in Crete and is a founding member of the independent consultancy Talos Properties.

Talos properties was created in order to guide and protect all of you who wish to acquire a property in Crete via offering you a wide range of choices as well as professional advice in property related matters. For more information please access the Talos Properties website at: http://www.talosproperties.com