Greetings,I came to an idea that I could resell real estate,land plots to be exact,buy the cheaper ones and sell them for more and they would be located in Greece (warm weather,sea is close,etc.),so I was wondering whether I should try to find residential land or agricultural land? In one way residential seems better because I think that more people would be interested in it,to build houses,vacation homes and so on (I would sell it mostly to foreigners or at least post the ads on a lot of foreign sites) ,but it is really hard to find any good cheaper residential land that is in a town/city and that is in city plans and so on,usually the residential land is already expensive,so I wouldn’t really be able to make any money on them and on the other hand,agricultural land seems nicer,because it is pretty cheap,you have potential to make money on it,you have it literally everywhere,so location is not an issue,but I think that people wouldn’t really be interested in land,even foreigners or maybe I am wrong…perhaps if I advertise that they could make farms and summer houses on them,it would make more people interested,but still I don’t know…,so agricultural or residential?
It is possibly a vile calumny but there is an old saying - “If you shake hands with a Greek, count your fingers after.”
Seriously - British people have been buying property in Greece for years, mostly with a view to retirement. Many, but not all, are happy with their purchases, but buying in a foreign country is fraught with problems - this applies to fellow EU members but even more so to ‘real’ foreigners.
Determining ownership is the first hurdle* " ~ you may well find it has been inherited by 20 people, 15 of whom want to sell to you, one of whom does not and the rest of whom disappeared to Australia or America 50 years ago without a trace. If you get over this hurdle, you will find the property is so old it has acquired a lot of rights and responsibilities, not all of which are clearly documented."*
You would need good local legal advice and whatever it takes to get the money there. (note the old saying above.) If you actually manage to acquire some land then you would have to start negotiations to change the use from agricultural to residential - more lawyers and local (obfuscating) bureaucracy.
Having overcome all these hurdles, you now need to sell at a profit. Do you imagine that you are the first to think of this? You will be up against locals, with all the advantages that gives them, and in a market which seems already well supplied.
Edit to add: You are a bit late too. The Greek economy is recovering and is no longer a basket case full of desperate owners anxious to sell. The carpet baggers have already been and gone. Maybe you should try Syria?
Buying is not the problem,the problem is whether residential or agricultural? I am looking for something that can actually make a profit and will not take 2,3 years to sell,basically something that I can live from,for instance I live in Serbia and I can find a billion great deals here,both residential and agricultural,but people here are generally poorer and foreigners don’t want to come here that much,so I wouldn’t really succeed with that,but who knows,maybe I am wrong…
You got more problems than residential or agricultural. If I, as a foreign investor, was going to buy land in Greece, I’d do it by going through a reputable real estate broker in Greece. Not some guy in Serbia posting ads on the internet. I suspect I am not the only potential investor that feels this way. I think you need a new business model.
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Since this is more of an advice question than a factual question, let’s move this to IMHO.
Moving thread from General Questions to In My Humble Opinion.
Thread title also edited for clarity.
Here’s an article which says the property market in Greece is still bad:
I considered Greece to be one of the worst economies in Europe–but it sounds like Serbia is worse.
Who says that we don’t have brokers here? Except that in Europe (entire Europe,not just Serbia&Greece) we don’t call them brokers,we just call them agencies,basically if you want to sell something you just go to them,they post ads and help with the paperwork and stuff and take about 3-5% ,but half of people both in Serbia and Greece don’t go over agencies,maybe its not how it works in Usa,but here people don’t like to throw money away that much,since the salaries are a lot lower.Yes it is a bit of a hassle to do it all by your self,but at least you save money that way,but eitherways…I would probably do it over an agency,that doesn’t mean that I can’t post ads however,I can post ads,but ads for the agency,I have experience doing that,so it shouldn’t be a problem.
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No offense intended, JakeRS, but if you ahve to ask that question, and will rely on the advice of internet strangers for the answer, you probably don’t need to be investing in real estate - especially foreign real estate.
The key to making money on real estate - residential, agricultural, commercial, local, foreign, whatever - is to know that particular market better than the vast majority of others. If you don’t then you’re not investing, you’re simply gambling.