Greek Travel Community
Why are there so many half built buildings in Greece?
- Thread starter nadellii
- Start date
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LOL this is a good and funny question to ask! 
My answer is pure speculation based on years of going to Greece (and hearing family/friends stories, etc), could be a combination of the following:
- Wanting to build on a plot of land and not wanting to pay taxes.
- Running out of funding during construction process.
- Fire or another natural disaster and waiting for insurance company to repair.
- Waiting for building permits to get approved.
Again, these are some thoughts and ideas as to why buildings might not be fully built in Greece.??
My answer is pure speculation based on years of going to Greece (and hearing family/friends stories, etc), could be a combination of the following:
- Wanting to build on a plot of land and not wanting to pay taxes.
- Running out of funding during construction process.
- Fire or another natural disaster and waiting for insurance company to repair.
- Waiting for building permits to get approved.
Again, these are some thoughts and ideas as to why buildings might not be fully built in Greece.??
The most common is running out of funds but they know when they start they don't have enough funds to complete. They start the project and continue until they run out in the hope they will have the funds to finish some time in the future .LOL this is a good and funny question to ask!
My answer is pure speculation based on years of going to Greece (and hearing family/friends stories, etc), could be a combination of the following:
- Wanting to build on a plot of land and not wanting to pay taxes.
- Running out of funding during construction process.
- Fire or another natural disaster and waiting for insurance company to repair.
- Waiting for building permits to get approved.
Again, these are some thoughts and ideas as to why buildings might not be fully built in Greece.??
Building insurance is not very common in Greece like it is in your country, it does exist but only a very small % have some cover . The same with comprehensive motor car insurance but a bigger % have it.
paharo45
Active member
Yes this is true and the majority of the reason you'll see so many half built buildings. Also many people take out loans and then run into more money issues down the line. In general, there isn't a lot of financial planning and thinking ahead on Greece, people are trying to make a quick buck
k_tsoukalas
Administrator
In Greece, there is a loophole tax rule (at least, there was when I asked someone in Greece this question). If the home is unfinished, you don't need to pay taxes. So, many homes were made to look unfinished to try to avoid being taxed. Then, there are also some areas where there was a housing boom, then the boom ended and the construction on certain homes was abandoned. This happened on Crete - there were many homes being built around an American military base, but then the base was closed. So there are a fair amount of home skeletons in the area where the base was.
DemarcusGentry
Member
I’ve seen this too and locals told me it’s partly because unfinished buildings avoid some property taxes until they’re complete. Sometimes people just build as much as they can afford, then pause until they save up more. My cousin owns a construction company in Patras and even he gets asked why projects stop midway. For anyone dealing with public opinions on these kinds of issues, https://reputationbuilder.us might be useful.
