We are now in a country where traveling abroad is already considered a luxury in light of the current economic conditions. In this case, one cannot help but question the country, people and government they are in.
The visa process, which was not a serious problem until about 4 years ago, has recently turned into an interesting situation, with visa appointments being sold by third parties at high prices and rejection rates reaching up to 40 percent in some Schengen area countries.
In short, the process does not end with preparing our budget. Unfortunately, we are in a reality that we have never encountered in previous years.
Everyone is hearing surprising news about visa rejections around them. Let's briefly summarize the reasons for this; first, Turkish citizens break their own record in asylum applications every year. Turkey's Golden Visa The frivolous attitude of the applicant in investigating the background of the citizenship granted within the framework of the program and being one of the countries that grants passports the fastest, in addition to these, the decline in Turkey's gross national product from year to year are the main reasons. I made you sad, didn't I? Let's look at some statistics.
Residence card, work permit and citizenship
According to OECD data, Türkiye ranks first in terms of house price increases worldwide. Its closest rivals are Hungary, Russia and the Czech Republic. The AKP administration’s irrational economic policy, which has been implemented especially since 2020, its use of the requirements of economic science and its use of Turkish society as “guinea pigs” to shake its foundations, and its prioritization of construction since 2002, its second place, and, yes, construction, its third place are the reasons for this irrational housing market.
So what did Turkish citizens who had the investment power do? Of course, they did not buy a 3+1 house with an en suite bathroom in Esenyurt for the price of a detached house in Miami. They both made a “plan B” and turned to real estate investments abroad to spread the risk in their investments. Who comes into play here? Golden Visa…
Investors Golden Visa‘expectations from residence card, work permit and citizenship. In my previous article we discussed Portugal. This time let’s look at Greece.
First of all, I think it is very important to state this: Golden Visa There is a lot of misinformation in their programs. The main reason for this is that it is a sector that only attracts the attention of people who are interested in real estate investments and have no immigration experience. Wrong investment causes you to make an investment that you cannot claim rights from. I have encountered these cases many times in both Portugal and Turkey. I think we are not rich enough to invest hundreds of thousands of Euros in a program that does not meet our demands.
Greece Golden Visa As for the program, it is a residence card program. It is a country that Turkish citizens enjoy choosing due to both the close distance and cultural commonalities. We are the second country with the most applications after China. This means that we are in first place according to the population ratio.
In this program, there is no minimum travel requirement within a calendar year, as in the past Portugal program. In the Portugal program, there was a 7-day travel requirement. But of course, this residence permit is a residence permit that is valid as long as you keep your real estate investment in Greece.
Thanks to the residence card provided, the applicant and the family members dependent on the application can access the residence card. In this sense, there is also an advantage for students who want to study at universities in Greece. However, there is a small misunderstanding here. The residence card grants you social rights in that country, but it does not grant the same social rights at universities in different Schengen areas.
Two countries that look alike
We remember the famous economic crisis in Greece. After years of accumulation, the country went bankrupt, the Radical Left Coalition (SYRIZA) came to power and became the de facto leader of the EU. Angela MerkelAfter a series of back-and-forth talks with the ‘revolving’ government, a rescue package was agreed upon. Athens planned to pay off these debts in full in 2060 – if all goes well. So how much do real estate prices reflect reality in a country with such an economy? Although there was deep volatility in the housing market, Mitsotakis’ arrival in 2019 also created stability.
The perception that “Greece is the spoiled child of the European Union” is not just our expression, it is also a statement that EU leaders occasionally make. It is hard to say that the similarities between Greece and the Turkish people are only in the climate and food culture, we can also talk about many similarities such as momentary increases in political discourse, populist discourses, etc. This country is, as always, an exciting Mediterranean country that pursues its desires. Predicting what will happen next is as difficult in Greece as it is in our country.
Greece Golden Visa Is there an exorbitant price in real estate sold under the program? Actually, it would not be right to evaluate this question on a Greek basis, because this margin varies in all countries with residence cards and citizenship programs. The increase in prices is unexpected and unfortunately uncontrollable.
My advice to investors is to travel and invest in investment areas that locals can also prefer. After a little research, I came across 35m2 dormitory rooms being sold for 250 thousand euros in the student city of Ioannina in Greece. It is clear that the price per m2 is approximately three times the market value.
New route after Portugal
Until December 2022, investors were required to make a minimum investment of €250,000 in any region of Greece. As of 2023, the lower limit for investment in some regions has been increased from €250,000 to €500,000. The islands of Thessaloniki, Athens, Mykonos and Santorini are at the forefront of these regions. The new law is on its way; Mitsotakis announced that the new lower limit in Greece will be reduced to €400,000 as of August 2024.
In short, Turkey is now so expensive that if you buy a house in Greece for this amount of money, your whole family will have a Schengen visa and you will have an annual rental income of 5 percent in euros. However, the disadvantage of this program is that you will continue to have this residence card as long as you hold your real estate investment. When you sell your investment, your residence card expires.
The Portuguese real estate program was closed at the end of last year, and then discussions began to close the Spanish program. Now, there is an agenda to update the lower limit of the Greek program. However, the housing problem is global. People cannot find houses they can live in at reasonable prices. In addition, these countries are countries with a culture of strikes and action. Unfortunately, in the last 20 years, our culture of action and strikes has completely disappeared as Turkey. All of the issues these countries complain about are common: the increasing housing shortage in the face of rising inflation, the increasing cost of living, and of course the endless pressure from the European Union.
Golden visa I certainly do not think that the programs will end completely, but I believe that the lower limits will become more stringent with each passing year and perhaps the real estate investment option will be removed completely.
