Owners in Greece’s Anakainizo (Ανακαινίζω) renovation scheme can submit their documents during October 2026 and receive a 50% advance on the grant, Social Cohesion Minister Domna Michailidou said on 1 October. Grants reach up to €36,000.
The scheme targets the same older flats many foreign buyers look at. A home that receives a grant comes with conditions on how it can be used, including a ban on short-term letting.
What changed
About 94,000 applications passed the first stage: 80,000 for owner-occupied homes and 14,000 for vacant ones. Funding applications go through the Technical Chamber of Greece’s electronic system. They must include an intervention plan, an energy performance certificate and the Building Identity Certificate.
The grant covers up to 95% of eligible costs, with a ceiling of €36,000 or €300 per m², for homes of up to 120 m². To qualify, a home must:
- have a building permit issued by 31 December 1990;
- be rated energy class C or lower;
- have a main area of up to 120 m², or 150 m² for families with three or more children;
- exist legally and not be condemned.
The conditions after the works matter most to a buyer. The home must remain the owner’s main residence or be let for at least five years, with the rent fixed for the first three. Short-term letting is banned for at least five years after completion. Homes already funded by energy-saving programmes since 1 January 2020 are excluded.
The published details do not say what happens to these obligations if the owner sells the home. That is the question a buyer needs answered in writing.
What to do
- Ask the seller whether the home is in Anakainizo or any other grant scheme. Ask for the application, approval and payment documents.
- Ask your lawyer how the scheme’s conditions apply after a sale. Ask whether the grant could be reclaimed and from whom.
- If you plan holiday lets, rule out homes under a short-term letting ban. The ban runs for at least five years after the works.
- If the home is let, ask for the lease. Check whether its rent and term follow the scheme’s fixed-rent rules.
- Check the permit date and energy class. They show whether the home could fall within the scheme at all.
- Ask for the works file. Contractor invoices, the energy certificate before and after, and the Building Identity Certificate show what was done.
What to check before you sign
- A written statement from the seller on any grants received or pending for the home.
- A contract clause on who bears any repayment of a grant.
- The current energy performance certificate matches the works described.
- Any existing lease, its rent and its end date.
- Whether the home can be used as you intend, including short-term letting.
Buyers should confirm how this applies to them with a Greek lawyer or accountant.
