Greek STR vs long-term rental — real returns after Law 5170/2025.

The default investor assumption for a Greek property is "Airbnb pays more." Through 2018-2022 that was largely true — gross STR yields of 8-14% versus 3-5% on long-term residential leases. Post-pandemic and post-Law 5170/2025, the gap has compressed considerably. For some property types and locations, the gap has reversed entirely once you count net-of-everything returns.

This article walks through the actual math for a typical Athens apartment in 2026, the post-Law-5170 cost additions, and the property-and-owner profiles where each option still makes sense.

The base case — Athens apartment, €280,000 value, 2-bed, central

A reasonably typical investor property: 75-85 m², two bedrooms, central Athens or near-central (Pagrati, Mets, Koukaki, Neos Kosmos), good but not luxury condition, ~€280,000 declared value.

Long-term rental scenario

• Monthly rent: €900-€1,200 in current market (€1,050 midpoint)
• Annual gross income: €12,600
• Vacancy allowance (5%): -€630
• Effective gross: €11,970
• Property management fee (18% if outsourced): -€2,155
• Repairs and maintenance (typical): -€700
• Insurance (landlord policy): -€350
• Building dues (κοινόχρηστα — landlord portion): -€400 (most is tenant-paid)
• ENFIA: -€480
• Greek rental income tax (15% bracket on first €12K): -€1,170

Net long-term return: roughly €6,715/year = 2.4% net yield on €280K property value.

STR (Airbnb) scenario, pre-Law 5170

• Gross annual revenue (high season + shoulders): €22,000-€32,000 in current Athens STR market (€27,000 midpoint, ~140 booked nights at €193/night average)
• Booking platform fees (15% combined): -€4,050
• STR management fee (25%): -€6,750
• Cleaning between stays (~€60 per turnover, 70 turnovers): -€4,200
• Utilities (now landlord-paid, summer-peak): -€2,800
• Linens, consumables, replacement furniture: -€800
• Insurance (basic): -€350
• ENFIA: -€480
• Greek STR income tax (15% bracket): -€2,000-€3,500 depending on net

Pre-Law 5170 net STR return: roughly €5,000-€7,500/year = 1.8-2.7% net yield.

STR scenario, post-Law 5170 (current 2026 reality)

Additional costs introduced or made more visible by the 2025 reform:

• Civil liability insurance (mandatory): -€220
• Safety equipment installation (one-time, annualised over 5 years): -€100
• Annual fire-extinguisher inspections: -€40
• AMA registration and ongoing compliance admin: -€150
• Climate fee charged to STR properties (introduced 2024, expanded under 5170): -€300-€800/year depending on property class
• 15% surtax on STR income above €12,000 annual threshold for individuals operating 3+ properties: -€500-€1,500 depending on portfolio structure
• Heightened compliance audit risk (priced as insurance cost): -€100

Post-Law 5170 net STR return: roughly €3,000-€5,500/year = 1.1-2.0% net yield.

What this means in plain terms

For a typical central Athens 2-bedroom investor property in 2026:

• Long-term rental: ~2.4% net yield, low operational burden, regulatory stability, tenant-protection downside.
• STR (post-Law 5170): ~1.5% net yield, high operational burden, regulatory exposure, more upside if exceptionally well-managed.

The historical premium of STR over long-term has compressed from 3-5 percentage points down to roughly 0-1 percentage points, and often inverted for properties that are merely averagely-managed.

Where STR still wins

Four specific situations where STR still produces materially better returns:

1. Premium-location properties. Plaka, Monastiraki, top Riviera locations command price points where STR commands a meaningful premium. For these properties, gross revenue can run €40,000-€80,000+, with net yields holding at 3-5% even after the heavier cost stack. Note: the central Athens AMA registration freeze blocks new STR entries in these zones through at least end-2026.
2. Island and coastal premium properties. Mykonos, Santorini, premium Crete and Corfu villas during 5-month peak season can produce €30,000-€150,000+ in concentrated revenue. Off-season vacancy is the trade-off, but net returns often exceed long-term yield comfortably.
3. Owner-managed without paid STR management. Eliminating the 25% management fee improves STR yields dramatically. Only viable for owners physically present or willing to handle remote guest management directly.
4. Multi-unit portfolio operators. Economies of scale on cleaning, management, and platform-marketing make STR meaningfully more profitable per unit at 5+ properties than at 1.

Where long-term wins

Four situations where long-term residential lease is now the better economic choice:

1. Properties in central Athens or central Thessaloniki freeze zones. Cannot register new AMAs. STR is closed; long-term is the only rental option.
2. Mid-market apartments outside the prime tourism corridors. The STR gross revenue advantage is too small to offset the cost stack and risk. Long-term is more reliable and similar net return.
3. Properties needing material maintenance investment. A property that needs €15,000 of cosmetic work to be STR-competitive often produces better risk-adjusted return by long-term renting it as-is.
4. Owners far from Greece without trusted local operations. STR with subpar local management produces well-below-average results. Long-term is more forgiving of remote ownership.

The hybrid path most investors miss

Greek law allows a property to switch between STR and long-term modes — there's no minimum lock-in for either model. Some investors run a hybrid: long-term tenancy for the off-season (9 months) and STR for the peak months (3 months). The lease structure is unusual and requires careful drafting, but for certain seasonal markets (Cycladic islands, beach-resort Peloponnese) it produces blended yields that exceed pure STR or pure long-term.

This isn't broadly applicable in Athens or Thessaloniki — the city markets reward consistency — but for seasonal-tourism properties it's underused.

Where home-watch fits in the math

For STR properties, professional home-watch oversight runs €1,400-€2,400/year and reduces the hidden-cost categories (insurance vacancy exposure, building meeting attendance, regulatory compliance documentation, asset value preservation) materially. The net contribution to STR returns is typically slightly positive — savings exceed cost. See the full hidden-cost math.

For long-term rental properties, home-watch is typically not needed during active tenancy — the tenant provides de facto attendance. It becomes valuable during turnover periods, vacancy windows, and for owner-side admin (insurance, building meetings, ENFIA) that the property manager doesn't handle.

The honest summary for 2026

Three statements that hold across most situations:

• The STR-over-long-term return premium has compressed significantly. Most central Athens mid-market properties produce similar net returns under either model now.
• The choice has shifted from "which yields more" to "which fits your operational appetite." STR demands more management; long-term demands more tenant-relationship tolerance. Pick the constraint you can absorb.
• The regulatory environment continues to tighten on STR. The May 2026 EU registration mandate adds another layer; the central Athens freeze likely extends past December 2026. Long-term rental is the more regulatorily stable choice for new acquisitions.