Athens’ 6.2km² New Town Is Reshaping Glyfada — and Pushing Locals Out

How a new city next to Glyfada is driving Greece property prices higher

A pensioner in Glyfada zigzags across a busy avenue with a shopping trolley, complaining that the suburb was "perfect and much calmer 20 years ago." That simple scene captures a change that now defines the Athens housing debate: the expansion of the Ellinikon development is a central force in recent shifts in the property Greece market.

In the space of a few years this coastline of the Saronic Gulf has gone from quiet suburbia to construction corridor. For buyers and investors, this is a story of opportunity and risk. For many residents, it is a story of displacement and higher living costs. In our analysis below we unpack the data, the drivers and what this means for anyone watching real estate Greece.

What is being built at Ellinikon and why it matters for Glyfada

The site of the former Ellinikon airport was sold to the private sector during Greece’s financial crisis and is now a large-scale, master-planned project developed by Lamda Development. The project covers 6.2 square kilometres — the developer calls it "three times the size of Monaco" — and will include hotels, shopping centers, parks, marinas and 8,000 homes. A 200-metre skyscraper, the tallest building in Athens, is already visible from the city centre.

Why this reshapes property Greece:

• Large-scale mixed-use projects generate strong demand for nearby housing as workers, managers and service staff move in.
• New high-end supply attracts international buyers, who often pay cash or premium prices, lifting nearby capital values.
• The scale of construction changes local infrastructure needs: traffic, water, sewers and parking face sudden pressure.

Glyfada, a seaside suburb with around 90,000 residents, fronts the Ellinikon site and has seen population growth and rising prices alongside the development. Local business owners welcome the economic activity but residents like Vassiliki Karvela say access to the sea is now restricted and everyday life is harder because of traffic.

Data points: how much prices have moved and who is buying

Concrete figures from public and industry sources show the magnitude of the shift:

• The Bank of Greece confirms the metropolitan area south of Athens is now the most expensive in the region, with purchase prices reaching up to €7,300 per square metre.
• The OECD reports that house prices in Greece rose 69% between 2017 and the second quarter of 2024.
• The OECD also finds 27% of the Greek population spends more than 40% of disposable income on housing, compared with 9.4% for the euro-zone average.

Local officials and market participants say foreign buyers are a major demand source. Glyfada's deputy mayor for the environment, Stavros Giakoumakis, points to nationals from the Gulf states, China and Israel as active investors or residents in the area.

These inflows are important for investors to understand: they change the buyer mix and can drive price premiums on waterfront and luxury stock. But they also shape local social outcomes when incomes and budgets diverge.

The economics behind the boom — and the downside

From a macroeconomic perspective the Ellinikon project delivers clear short-term gains: construction creates jobs, property transactions generate tax receipts, and new hotels, retail and marinas promise recurring tourism and service revenues. "This development is good for the economy," says one Glyfada construction company owner.

But the microeconomic effects on communities and housing affordability are uneven. Urban planning specialist Georgia Gemenetzi, associate professor at the University of Thessaly, notes there are "positive and negative aspects". She warns the project can intensify population concentration in an already crowded capital and "exacerbate inequalities by excluding certain social groups" who are pushed to cheaper fringes.

Observed local problems include:

• Deterioration or strain on water and sewerage infrastructure as old systems take extra load.
• A lack of parking and heavier traffic, creating daily friction for long-term residents.
• Replacement of low-rise housing with higher-density apartment blocks, reducing the supply of smaller, more affordable homes.

These are not abstract concerns. Glyfada's deputy mayor lists damaged infrastructure and parking shortages among the real issues residents experience.

What this means for buyers and investors (practical guidance)

If you are considering the property Greece market — whether for a primary home, buy-to-let or capital investment — Ellinikon and Glyfada show a clear playbook for opportunity and risk.

Opportunities:

• Price appreciation: recent data shows strong capital growth across Greece since 2017, and high-end coastal suburbs are leading the move.
• Demand diversity: foreign buyers and tourist flows create demand for luxury condos, serviced apartments and short-stay products.
• New amenities: the master-planned nature of the Ellinikon project will add retail, leisure and public spaces that can raise nearby values.

Risks and what to check before you commit:

• Infrastructure risk: ask about water, sewage, transport and parking plans. Overloaded systems can damage living standards and resale value.
• Social and regulatory risk: large projects can prompt local pushback and regulatory changes; track planning approvals and community responses.
• Supply risk: the addition of thousands of new homes can create short-term oversupply in some segments, hurting rental yields.
• Buyer mix risk: a market dominated by cash foreign buyers may see sharper volatility if those flows slow.

Practical checklist for investors and buyers:

• Verify current price per square metre in the precise micro-location; Glyfada values can hit €7,300/m² at the high end.
• Inspect local infrastructure capacity and ongoing public works or repairs.
• Confirm the developer's delivery schedule and legal permits when buying off-plan from a major project.
• Evaluate rental demand by segment: long-term rentals, holiday lets and corporate leases behave differently.
• Engage a local lawyer and tax adviser to understand purchase taxes, ongoing property taxes and any residency implications for foreign buyers.

Where value might be found beyond Glyfada

Not every investor should chase the most expensive suburb. When a crown neighbourhood undergoes rapid gentrification or luxury development, value frequently appears in:

• Adjacent suburbs two or three stops away on the same transport corridor.
• Established inner suburbs with lower-density stock that can be renovated for higher yields.
• Outlying towns where demand from pushed-out residents creates long-term rental markets.

Our reading of the Greek market suggests that while central coastal suburbs command high prices and strong interest, mid-tier suburbs with improving connections to Athens could offer better risk-adjusted returns for long-term buy-and-hold strategies.

Policy, planning and social questions investors should watch

The Ellinikon case is also a reminder that real estate markets do not operate in a vacuum. Policy choices shape who benefits and who loses:

• Privatization timing: the Ellinikon site was sold to the private sector during the crisis, which influenced the ownership and project scale.
• Affordable housing: heavy private-led development with few affordable units can push renters and low-income families to peripheries.
• Public infrastructure funding: whether the state finances upgrades or requires developer contributions will alter local outcomes.

Investors should track municipal council decisions, national housing policy, and project-level agreements between Lamda Development and government authorities. These elements affect not only delivery schedules but also the broader social licence to operate for major developers.

On-the-ground testimonies: what residents say

Voices from Glyfada highlight how abstract figures translate into daily life. Vassiliki Karvela, the pensioner quoted earlier, says she initially liked the skyscraper but now feels sea access is restricted and considers prices out of reach.