First 7 days in Greece — the inherited-property heir's playbook.

Eventually every diaspora heir takes this trip — flying back to Greece to deal with the property your parent or grandparent left behind. Some take it within months of the loss; some put it off for two or three years. By the time you book the flight, you've been emailing accountants and lawyers from your kitchen table in Melbourne or Boston for long enough to suspect that nothing is going to genuinely move forward until you're physically there.

You're mostly right. A focused week in Greece, with the right preparation, can advance the inheritance, property and operational state of affairs further than six months of remote effort. Most heirs we've worked with do this once and only once. This article is the playbook to make that one trip count.

The four weeks before you fly — preparation that doubles the trip's value

The trip works because of what you do beforehand. Without preparation, you spend day 3 still trying to find the lawyer's office. The pre-flight checklist:

Weeks 4–3 before departure

• Engage a Greek property lawyer if you don't already have one. Brief them by email on the situation and your goals for the trip. Request an initial review of any documents you have.
• Engage a Greek accountant / tax representative if not already in place. Same brief.
• Locate the death certificate. If issued abroad, get it apostilled and officially translated into Greek. This takes 2–4 weeks in most countries.
• Locate the Greek will (διαθήκη) if one exists. Often held at a notary's office or in a Greek bank deposit box.
• Identify the building manager (διαχειριστής) of the apartment building, by name and contact details. Often the apartment's neighbour or a building-management firm.
• Confirm whether utility accounts are in the deceased's name or in someone else's.

Week 2 before departure

• Book all professional meetings — lawyer, accountant, notary, bank. Try to cluster days 2 and 3 for these (more on schedule below).
• Confirm property access. If you don't have a key, arrange with the building manager or a family contact for a key handover on day 1.
• Ask the lawyer for the formal list of documents to bring. Standard set: passport (current), foreign-country ΑΦΜ equivalent, death certificate (apostilled and translated), heir certificate if already issued, prior ENFIA statements, any Greek wills, your accountant's contact details.
• Notify your home-country bank you'll be in Greece — saves card freezes.
• Get a Greek SIM ordered for delivery to your accommodation, or plan to buy one at Athens airport on arrival (Cosmote, Vodafone, Nova kiosks open in arrivals).

Week 1 before departure

• Confirm all appointments in writing. Greek scheduling is fluid and double-bookings happen — verify the day before each meeting.
• Print three copies of every key document. You will be asked to leave originals or certified copies at various offices.
• Cash: bring €500–€1,000 in euros for incidental costs (notary copy fees, taxi, expedited document services). Cash is not for the major work — that's all bank-transferred or invoiced.
• Confirm accommodation. Many heirs stay at the property itself if it's habitable; some prefer a nearby hotel for the first night because the emotional weight of the property is genuinely heavy.

Day 1 — arrival and the property

The first day is not for paperwork. Land, sleep, eat. Visit the property in daylight with someone — family member, building manager, friend. Don't go alone the first time if you can avoid it.

What to do at the property:

• Walk through every room. Note physical condition, mould, leaks, broken fixtures, missing items
• Photograph everything systematically — every room, every wall, every appliance, every cupboard interior. This becomes your reference baseline
• Locate and photograph: electrical fuse box, water shut-off valves, gas shut-off (if applicable), boiler, water heater
• Find any personal documents — bank statements, recent bills, the deceased's address book (often contains names of everyone you'll need to find over the next few days)
• Find utility bills for the last 12 months if possible — these tell you which providers are actually serving the property
• Meet the building manager in person if you can; introduce yourself as the heir, get their direct contact
• Note the building's communal spaces — what state are they in? What does the building feel like?

End the evening early. Tomorrow is a long day.

Day 2 — the lawyer

Morning: 2-hour meeting with your Greek lawyer. Bring everything. The agenda your lawyer should drive:

• Review of the death certificate and any Greek will
• Map of the inheritance — who are the heirs by Greek law? Are there other co-heirs (siblings abroad you've lost touch with, surviving spouse, etc.)
• Status of any existing inheritance proceedings (κληρονομητήριο)
• Required next steps and their timeline — typically 6–14 months for full inheritance completion
• Any urgent actions to take during this trip (signing affidavits, accepting/refusing inheritance, declaring inheritance to AADE)
• Fee structure for the lawyer's ongoing work — written estimate

Afternoon: time at the property again. Start sorting personal belongings if needed. Take more photos. The first day's overwhelm is wearing off and you'll notice details you missed.

Evening: write the day's notes while fresh. What did the lawyer say? What are the action items? What did you not understand? Email follow-up questions tomorrow.

Day 3 — the accountant and AADE

Morning: 90-minute meeting with your Greek accountant / tax representative. The agenda:

• Get a printed copy of the deceased's current E9 declaration (showing all properties they held)
• Get a printed copy of ENFIA history for the property — last 5 years
• Confirm whether ENFIA is up to date or in arrears
• Discuss the timeline for filing the inheritance tax return (9 months for Greek residents, 12 months for non-residents from date of death)
• Establish the accountant as your formal tax representative going forward — sign the appointment form if not already done
• Confirm fee structure for ongoing work — written estimate
• Discuss whether you need a Greek bank account (see our guide) or whether the accountant's client account can handle bills in the interim

Afternoon: visit the tax office (ΔΟΥ) of your inherited property's area. Your accountant or lawyer typically attends with you. Tasks:

• Apply for a Greek ΑΦΜ if you don't already have one
• Register your foreign address with AADE
• If the deceased's ΑΦΜ is still active, ask about closing it (technically the inheritance lawyer handles this; visit anyway because being present moves things forward)

Day 4 — the building and the utilities

Morning: longer meeting with the building manager (διαχειριστής). Sit down, get a written breakdown of the building's status:

• Current monthly κοινόχρηστα for the unit
• Any outstanding amounts owed by the unit
• The building's reserve fund position
• Upcoming building works scheduled or planned
• Building rules — pet rules, noise rules, short-term-rental rules, common-space rules
• The building manager's preferred communication channel and language
• The building's annual financial accounts — request a copy

Afternoon: visit the utility providers as needed. ΔΕΗ (or current electricity provider) and ΕΥΔΑΠ for water (or local equivalent). Tasks:

• Confirm account status — in whose name, current balance, last meter reading
• If utilities are still in the deceased's name, initiate the change-of-name process. See our utilities guide
• Provide your address and contact details
• Set up direct debit or authorise your accountant to manage payments

Day 5 — the bank and the property again

Morning: bank appointment if you've decided to open a Greek account during the trip. See our bank account guide. Bring everything documentation-wise. Allow 2 hours.

Afternoon: back at the property. By now you have a clearer sense of what's needed:

• Decide what to do with personal belongings — keep, give to family, charity-donate, dispose
• Identify any immediate repairs needed (leaks, broken locks, electrical hazards)
• Take inventory of furniture and major appliances
• If you're going to engage a home-watch service, this is the day to walk them through the property (we travel for in-person handovers; many local services do too)
• Decide your medium-term plan — leave property empty under home-watch supervision? Long-term rent? STR? Renovate first? Sell?

Day 6 — final loose ends

Morning: anything that didn't fit. Notary visit for any documents requiring formal witnessing. Insurance broker meeting if you need to update or initiate property insurance. Final check-in with lawyer.

Afternoon: practical handover preparation. The key question: when you fly out tomorrow, who has the keys, who knows the building manager, who is checking on the property, who is paying the bills?

Set up:

• Keys — one set with the property manager / home-watch service, one with a trusted family contact, one set you take home
• Building manager has your accountant's contact and your contact
• Utility providers have your accountant's authorisation for payment management
• Your accountant has all the documents they need to start filing
• Your lawyer has the timeline and action plan written down and shared
• You have a written summary of every meeting, every action item, every deadline

Day 7 — fly out

Don't book any meetings. The afternoon is for the property — a final walk-through. Photograph the meters as you turn off lights. Confirm doors are locked. Hand over keys per the plan. Say goodbye to the building manager.

On the plane home, write while it's fresh — the running narrative of the week. Who you met, what you decided, what's still open. This becomes the reference document for the next twelve months of remote follow-up.

What "good" looks like four weeks after you fly home

If the trip went well, four weeks after you fly home you should have:

• Inheritance proceedings formally initiated by your lawyer, with a written timeline
• Tax representative appointment formally registered with AADE
• E9 update plan in motion to put the property in heirs' names
• Utility accounts transferring (or transferred) into heir name
• Building dues current and a relationship with the διαχειριστής
• Greek bank account either opened or in progress
• Property under monthly inspection by a home-watch service or trusted local person
• Insurance in place
• A written plan for the property's medium-term use
• Costs for the entire setup transparent and budgeted

If most of the above is in place, the next twelve months become manageable from abroad. If half of it is still pending, you're heading for another visit sooner than you wanted.

Where home watch fits — before, during, and after

For diaspora heirs we typically engage in three phases:

• Before the trip: initial property assessment visit, photo documentation, document gathering, identification of the building manager and utility status. Saves you days of work on arrival.
• During the trip: if requested, accompanying you to building meetings, utility provider visits, notary appointments, acting as Greek-language interpreter where useful. We don't replace your lawyer or accountant but we can be the on-the-ground concierge for the practical day.
• After the trip: ongoing monthly inspections, bill management coordination with your accountant, building liaison, contractor engagement when maintenance is needed. The operational layer that makes remote ownership work.

See our inherited Greek apartment guide for the broader picture, or arrival & departure service for the trip-specific support.

Companion reading: Law 5221/2025 inheritance rules, inheritance tax brackets, the E9 declaration guide.