The Corfiot and all things Greek

Buy or Rent?
This is a tough one. The answer will depend very much upon the individual and their circumstances. We know those who could buy property but choose to rent, those that own their own property in the UK and in Corfu and those that have sold up and now are permanently based on Corfu. We now fall into the latter category.

Without going into specifics, when we first moved to Corfu, we owned a UK property but chose to rent in Greece although we could have  purchased a modest property if we wished. Our reasoning was relatively simple. Having served 30 years as a Copper tends to make you a little cautious and that as much as we love Corfu and the people, we were reluctant to 'burn our bridges' at that point in time.

To be honest, I have seen colleagues who have gone no further than Norfolk, who have decided after two or three years that they wanted to be back where they came from and found that they couldn't afford to do so.

At the time of updating this site, (March 2010) the world is gripped in a state of economic chaos. The Greek government has introduced stringent measures in an attempt to get the country's finances in order and we would consider it foolish to part with money hastily at this point in time.

Forgive us if the following statement does not apply to you! Put simply, "In times of economic hardship, luxuries are the first things to go. A second home is a luxury!"

Property prices are stagnant in Corfu at best. It is not uncommon for properties to remain on the market for many years, in some cases as much as ten years. There is a significant cultural difference when it comes to house purchase in Corfu as opposed to the UK.

In the UK, if you put your property on the market, it is usually because you want to sell it. In many cases here, the vendor couldn't care less! The asking price is often what the vendor thinks somebody might be stupid enough to pay. It is not that uncommon when a property hasn't sold for quite a while, for the owner to increase the price! Honestly! 

This is not always the case. Sometimes it may be the case that they (the vendor) needs a given amount of money. For example, to pay for a wedding or to obtain title to an inherited piece of land or property. The possible reasons are endless. If you consider house purchase here to be an investment we would advise caution. It may take you many years to show any significant profit.

It won't surprise us if we receive abusive or threatening emails from real estate agents as a result of these comments! It won't be the first time! I guess that they have their uses, particularly if you if you feel daunted by the not inconsiderable bureaucracy involved in property purchase in Greece.

Renting
So what's the alternative? Simple! Renting!

There are plenty of properties for rent but do you remember what we have said elsewhere about doing your homework? It has never applied so much as does to renting! Forgive me for repeating this and shouting. DO YOUR HOMEWORK!

That lovely apartment that you stayed in by the sea for two or three weeks every summer for the past ten years will almost certainly be useless in the winter. In case you haven't done your homework, I will give you a clue. Winters in Corfu are VERY wet and cold. Overnight temperatures will often fall to -4°C or lower. Damp is a serious problem in many properties and it will almost not be obvious during summer. Sufficient heating is essential.

Don't let us put you off! Renting is a very viable proposition and one that we would recommend. Even if you feel certain that you want to 'up-sticks' and move here, we would recommend at least 18 months to two years renting to make absolutely sure.

A final word here on renting. We know of several people who feel that others think that they are in some way inferior because they rent. This seems to be a particularly British attitude and not one shared by most if not all other European nationals where renting is considered the norm. We don't know why this should be. I put it down to another British eccentricity!

By now, you may be wondering what route we went down. I will simplify things by saying that we first rented for 18 months. We then purchased a piece of land and designed a house with the aid of a local architect who ultimately built the house. Before our house was built, we rented another house close to our land and oversaw the build.

Having condensed several years into one paragraph, it sounds easy. The renting bit was. The house build is a different matter! If you are considering building a property here, you may care to visit another of our websites at http://www.thehelm.co.uk where we have detailed the trials and tribulations of building in Greece. It is not for the faint-hearted!