Renovating a Greek house.

RENOVATING A GREEK HOUSE

Many foreign buyers in Greece fall in love with the Greek village life, and seriously consider renovating a Greek house. Every village has a few rundown buildings, lying forgotten amongst the new homes. Resurrecting an old house is a rewarding experience, and ensures that your Greek home is unique and beautiful.

THE LEGALITIES OF GREEK RENOVATIONS

Until very recently, Greeks did not understand the principle of renovating a tumbledown house, preferring to build a new one with modern facilities and a better layout. The influx of foreign buyers filled with romantic notions, and stricter planning laws governing the usage of local materials, has revived the market for renovation and restoration. Old stone houses can be extremely beautiful and unique, and offer sanctuary from the heat of the summer.

Renovating a Greek house does carry a few legal niceties, and it is essential that you are aware of these before buying an old house and renovating. Submitting plans to the planning office can take months, and will cost a few thousand Euros. Since the tightening up of the planning laws, there is no guarantee that you plot will be given permission, so it is much better to buy a plot with existing permission. In most cases, you have four years from the date of the permission to finish the project.

ARCHITECTS AND BUILDERS – MAKING SURE THAT EVERYTHING RUNS SMOOTHLY

The first stage is to employ an architect or civil engineer, often known as a ‘building mechanic’, especially if a new roof is required. Tough planning laws mean that any major construction has to meet certain earthquake restrictions. They will also be able to give you advice upon local planning laws and they will draw up plans to submit to the planning office. Most architects will be only too happy to give you a rough idea of the price for renovating a Greek house. The architect will also be able to tell you if the plot is in a historically sensitive area. If this is the case, an archaeological survey will be needed, often taking months, with the cost coming out of your pocket.

Finding a reputable builder can be difficult, so do not be afraid to ask around and search for somebody that you trust implicitly. As in any country, do not pay large amounts of money upfront, as you run the risk of never seeing it again. Rather than merely going for the cheapest offer, ask for a copy of his license and indemnity insurance. Run it past your lawyer, and draw up a contract of schedules and payments. This binds the builder to completing the work on time, but bear in mind that it also protects the builder if you fail to pay, as he will be paying money out of his own pocket for materials.

THE COST OF RENOVATING A GREEK HOUSE

In terms of the cost of renovating a Greek house, you should generally assume to add double to the price paid for the house, so, for example, if you paid 40 000 Euros, you should add another 80 000 Euros for a stone house, with an additional 20% on top. Of course, this depends upon the condition of the building and the specialist work required, but it will give you a rough idea of the cost of that pile of stones that you saw advertised on a property website. It is cheaper to buy or build a new house, but that would lose some of the charm and attraction of moving to Greece in the first place.