Greece is the 3rd most popular tourist destination amongst British holiday makers.  Last year 17.5 million tourists visited Greece (2.6 million tourists were British) this figure is increasing year on year.  Being only 3.5 hours flight time from the UK, Greece is sure to remain a popular choice with Brits especially taking the carbon footprint factors into account and long haul destinations are becoming more expensive to access.   There has been significant regeneration investment carried out by the Government for the 2004 Olympics, and this boosted tourism figures, but further to this the Greek government currently has an initiative to increase tourism by over 50% by 2013. The Government are investing £650 million to increase tourist numbers focusing on 4 and 5 star accommodations. They are doing this by easing planning laws and making ownership easier for foreign buyers. The tax system has also been simplified with fewer taxes for investors.  In the past Developers could only build on 2-5% of a plot of land. Under the initiative they can now build on 20% of the space (it’s up to 80% in Spain!) as long as it is based around a hotel of 4-5 stars.   Savills have stated that Greece saw capital growth at a rate of 15% last year. As well as this, a recent survey shows Greece has leaped into the top 10 destinations for Britons wishing to invest in overseas property, the findings confirm established trends which propose that the majority are minor or first-time investors who missed the boat with Spain. The good news is that Greece has stringent planning controls preventing overdevelopment on the coast which has already been witnessed along the coast of Spain. The safest bet would be to invest on the islands which have very limited coastline and will guarantee prevention against hotel saturation for better occupancy rates and exit strategy Samos means ‘somewhere high’.  It has a population of 42,000 and a coastline of 159km.  Samos is the 8^th largest Greek Isle and has some of the most beautiful scenery with an undeveloped coastline.  As it is a large island it has a life outside of tourism so it doesn’t completely close down in the winter.  The landscape of Samos is breathtaking with two mountains, Kerkis standing at 1443 meters (higher than Ben Nevis) and Ambrelos measuring 1160 meters. This creates a stunning backdrop for the coastline and also creates the opportunity for outdoor pursuits such as rock climbing, walking and mountain biking. There is plenty to do on the island.  Apart from the important archaeological sites and outdoor pursuits, Samos has 2 cities which make way for plenty of shops, restaurants and waterfront bars with pretty fishing villages leading to cobbled backstreets. Food is a social event where meals sometimes last 6 hours.   

WHY INVEST IN SAMOS PROPERTY?

GREECE (SAMOS) PROPERTY – CLIMATE 

The fact that Samos is in the Mediterranean basin, affects the island's climate. The main elements of the Mediterranean climate are the mild winters and the cool summers. These are the perfect conditions for vineyards olive-trees and fruit-bearing trees.

This is the reason such cultivations dominate on Samos. In comparison to the coasts of continental Greece, that are found in the same geographic width, Samos has hotter winters and cooler summers. Here appears the favourable effect of the sea on temperatures of the island. July and August are the hottest months of the year, while the lowest temperatures occur during February.

The island has plenty of rainfalls. Usually they begin in the dues of October. In December and January it rains the most, while during summertime the rain is infrequent. When it happens it cools the high temperatures, the rain is abrupt and in a few hours usually big quantities of water are coming down. Samos has more rainfalls in addition to the nearby islands of Aegean. This is because of the island's two mountains, Kerkes and Karvounis.  This mountains influence considerably the climate of island also in other sectors. In its northern and western parts more rain falls and humidity is created. The apiarists know this well because they transport their bees each summer to the northern sides of Samos, where they can find more food for their bees due to the humidity of the area. Probably these high levels of humidity have prevented many fires.  The northern and north-western are the winds that blow more often in Samos. During wintertime when the wind blows from North West - this wind is called mistral by the seamen - with big intensity, the highly destructive phenomenon "Proventza" occurs.  

GREECE (SAMOS) PROPERTY – ECONOMY 

One of the successes of recent Greek economic policy has been the reduction of inflation rates. For more than 20 years, inflation hovered in the double digits, reaching 23% in the early 1990s. But a combination of fiscal consolidation, wage restraint, and strong drachma policies resulted in lowered inflation. Inflation fell to 2.0% by mid-1999. High interest rates have been historically a significant problem. The government's strong drachma policy and Public Sector Borrowing Requirement (PSBR) made the lowering of interest rates difficult, but progress was made in 1997-99 and rates gradually declined in line with inflation and the rest of the Eurozone. In 2001 Greece joined the Economic and Monetary Union (eurozone). Interest rate policy is now in the hands of the European Central Bank. Due to the more stable macroeconomic framework and lower interest rates, growth has picked up significantly. The Greek Economy has been growing continuously since 1994 and above the EU25 average since 1996. In 2004 the Greek economy grew at an estimated rate of 4.7%, the fastest in the EU15. A part of this has been sustained by the investment in infrastructure in the run up to the Summer Olympic Games 2004 that were held in Athens. As a result, real incomes have risen from 85% of EU27 average in 1997 to 100% in 2007 (revised data, source Eurostat, 21 April 2007). In 2004, Eurostat, the statistical arm of the European Commission (after an audit performed by the New Democracy government) revealed that the budgetary statistics, on the basis of which Greece joined the European monetary union, had been massively underreported by the previous Greek government (mostly by not recording a large share of military expenses). However, even according to the revised numbers calculated according to the methodology in force at the time of Greece's application for entry into the Eurozone, the criteria for entry had been met. Recent economic performance has been satisfying. However, there are two challenges for policymakers: a)to avoid an economic slump after the enthusiasm of the Games has gone and the EU farm subsidies get cut in 2006 and b) to proceed with structural economic reforms, especially in the areas of social insurance, welfare, and the labour market which will encourage further investments, lower the country's high unemployment and promote growth and economic stability. The first step was taken on the 30 June 2005 with substantial reforms of the insurance system for bank employees against fierce opposition from the unions and the main opposition political party PASOK with laws liberalising working hours in retail trade and employment and providing for public/private financing initiatives of public works and services to follow over the summer. During the third quarter of 2006, Greece experienced a strong 4.4% growth rate, while in the same period of the previous year, the growth rate was 3.8%. This is among the highest rates in the EU and the Eurozone, where the average growth rates for these periods were estimated to stand as 2.7% and 1.7% respectively. Current challenges include the further reduction of unemployment which currently stands at 8.8%, the reform of the social security system, the further privatization of the public sector, the overhauling of the tax system and the further reduction of certain bureaucratic inefficiencies. Reduction of the fiscal deficit to the Eurozone target of 3% of GDP had also become a key issue. Under a negotiated agreement, the EU had given Greece a two year deadline (budgets of 2005 and 2006) in order to bring the deficit in line with the criteria of the EU's stability pact namely below 3%. In 2005, the deficit stood at 5.5% of GDP, while in 2006 the deficit fell below 3%, standing at 2.6% (figure approved by Eurostat in April 2007). Based on this figure and forecasts for the following years, EU's Excessive Deficit Procedure for Greece officially ended on June 5, 2007. Following European Union rules, Greece revised its GDP in October 2007 upwards by 9.6% (a much smaller revision than the one originally planned in 2006). In contrast to other member states, Greece had not revised its base of measuring its GDP for several years.On 9 October 2008, as a response to the subprime mortgage crisis, Greece introduced a 100,000 Euro guarantee for the 230 billion Euro bank deposits in the country for three years, well above the EU-wide Ecofin-mandated minimum of 50,000 Euro for one year, and gave assurances that the Greek banking system is stable, while the Greek central bank announced a drop in the expected growth of the Greek economy to 3.3% (from 4%) because of decreased consumption caused by high petrol and food prices. As for of the Samos is based mainly on the tourist industry which has been growing steadily since the early 1980s. Samos Agriculture is also very important in Samos. The island produces a sweet wine that is very popular in the national markets of the European Union. Other products that Samos produces include tobacco, very good quality, the famous oil products and honey, grapes, citrus fruit, dried figs, almonds and flowers. Finally, Samian wood gives work to many lumbermen. The island has two principal ports, Karlovassi and Samos (Vathy), which serve the tourist industry (during summer) and the needs of commerce for the whole island (throughout the year). 

GREECE (SAMOS) PROPERTY – TOURISM

Greece comes in the 15th place in the world classification of tourist destinations, receiving 14.179.999 tourists in 2002 (National Statistical Service of Greece, provisional data). The major part (94,3%) are originating from Europe (68,9% from the EU15). By plane came 73,6% of foreign tourists, by sea 5,6%, by road 20,1% and by train 0,6%. The total number of nights spent in hotel accommodations by foreign and domestic tourists in 2001 (61.567.209) marked a 0,43% increase compared to 2000.

The accommodation capacity of the 8.550 hotels is 330.970 rooms with 628.170 beds (2003). Another 450.000 beds are provided by some 28.000 secondary accommodation establishments. There are also 352 camping sites with 30.241 pitches and 1.005 bungalows. Besides the Hotel, Restaurants and Catering sector, there are about 8.000 travel agencies, rent-a-car agencies, and yacht-brokers. Tourism contribution to the GDP is estimated up to 8%. The tourism receipts in 2002 were 10.285 euros. Employment in the tourism sector is estimated to reach 10% (6,1% direct employment and 3,9% indirect) of the total employment in Greece. One would think that since tourism is such an important part of the Greek economy (the most important actually) that there would be a stong partnership between the government and the travel agencies but this is not the case. But that just goes to show the strength of Tourism in Greece. Tourism on the island of Samos has increased by 21% in 2006. The international airport currently handles 250,000 travellers per annum and this is set to increase by 20% per year.  Out of 91 hotels and guesthouses on the island, only 1 is 5 star (The Doryssa Bay) leaving visitors no choice in luxury accommodation.  The 5 star hotel runs at an occupancy rate of 83% (currently only open 214 days per year) so this proves they are in high demand.  

GREECE (SAMOS) PROPERTY – PROPERTY MARKET 

Access to Samos is excellent with Direct flights from the UK in peak season and connecting flights from Athens.  Samos also has 2 ferry terminals.  Easy cruise line is now stopping off at Samos, another sign of increased demand. The property market in Samos is in its infancy.  You are lucky to find a handful of estate agents on the island.  The good news is that  developers have high demand from Greek buyers based in Athens.  This shows that there is a strong local market which is a good sign that the islands property market is isn’t an artificial bubble inflated by foreign investors.  It is also a good sign for investors looking to realise their investment.        

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