Greek Mortgage Checklist Before an Offer

Put the money in the right order

Greek property prices must be paid through the banking system. Since 11 December 2023 a contract that records a cash payment of the price is treated as invalid, and the fine is 10% of the unbanked amount with a minimum of €10,000. In practice that means a Greek bank account in your name, a Greek tax number (the AFM, which the account and the deed both need) and a plan for how dollars become euros there before the notary appointment.

These steps sit on the critical path. Start them before you make an offer, not after the seller has accepted one.

Ask the bank the question the listing cannot answer

A pre-approval says what the bank might lend a borrower like you. It does not approve a property. One major bank states that its pre-approval is valid for 120 days, and the loan itself depends on a valuation and on the legal papers for the specific home. Ask each lender in writing for the ceiling that applies to a borrower living outside the EU, the term, whether it requires an account with it, and what it does if its valuation is below the price. Published ceilings for non-EU residents range from 65% at Eurobank to 70% at Alpha Bank, both measured against the bank's own valuation.

Have your lawyer pull the title, not the agent

Ask your own lawyer to obtain the title deed and the chain of ownership; the cadastral extract or, where the area is not yet in the cadastre, the land registry certificates for the last 20 years that Eurobank asks for; a search for mortgages and seizures; and the seller's tax and social-security clearances. Under Law 5293/2026 the notary is meant to act as a one-stop shop that collects several of these electronically, so ask whether that is operating for your deed, and have your own lawyer read what comes back.

Match the building to the paper

A transfer of a building generally needs an Electronic Building Identity prepared by an engineer, and Greek price lists treat it as the seller's cost. Ask to see it, or at least the engineer's findings, before you offer. Compare the agent's description with the permit, the cadastral plan and the building as it stands: terraces, pools, extra floors and island outbuildings are the usual places where the legal status differs from the photographs. Our guide to unauthorised construction explains why this can stop a mortgage.

Buyers who are not EU citizens should also ask whether the property sits in a border area, which can require additional approval; see our guide to border-area approval for US buyers.

Read the preliminary agreement against your finance

If you sign a prosymfono and pay a deposit before the bank has valued the property, a refused loan can cost you the deposit unless the finance condition is written to cover it. Ask your lawyer to explain in writing what the word arrabonas means for your deposit, what happens if the bank's valuation is low, and which date the finance condition expires. Our guide to preliminary agreements and mortgage finance covers the drafting points.

Check which tax rule will apply on the day of the deed

The default is the 3.09% transfer tax on a resale, or 24% VAT on a new build unless the developer uses the VAT suspension that runs to 31 December 2026. For a deed after 1 July 2027, the government has announced a 15% transfer tax on homes bought by non-EU individuals. It is not yet law, and the transitional rules were not published as of 10 October 2026, so a timetable that depends on signing before that date should be tested with your lawyer first.

If a residence permit is part of the plan, check the Golden Visa threshold for the exact area before you offer: €800,000 in Attica, Thessaloniki, Mykonos, Santorini and islands with more than 3,100 residents, €400,000 elsewhere, for a single property of at least 120 square metres that may not be let short term.

Settle the US side before you sign

Name the tax preparer who will handle the FBAR before money moves; the Greek account will trigger it once foreign accounts together pass $10,000 at any time in the year. Decide where the deposit comes from, and if it depends on borrowing against a US home, read our guide to the mechanics before you accept a completion date, because a US loan that closes on a principal residence cannot normally fund until a three-business-day cancellation period has passed.

Questions US buyers ask

Continue your Greek property research

• Greek Mortgage or US Home Equity: Which Route Fits?
• Documents Needed for a Greek Mortgage
• Additional Costs When Buying Property in Greece
• Greek Preliminary Agreements and Mortgage Finance