Hundreds of property owners risk losing their assets, as these could be transferred to the State, due to an error or delay in registering them in the Property Registry. The replacement of Mortgage Offices with the National Property Registry represents a significant step toward modernization, but at the same time poses a “trap” for those who have not timely verified their property records. According to an article by lawyer Marina Diafa, member of the “S. Provatas – M. Athanasaki” Group, published on voria.gr, over 500,000 properties in the country were not declared timely or correctly to the Property Registry. The new extension granted for correcting initial registrations represents the last opportunity for owners to secure their property before the process is definitively completed.
It should be noted that for the first time, real estate property is being recorded in a unified, digital and transparent manner. In the updated Property Registry system, the focus is no longer on the owner, but on the property itself, which now has a unique “identity” — the KAEK (National Property Registry Code Number). This consolidates both legal information (rights, encumbrances, claims) and the technical characteristics of the property, such as location, boundaries, shape and size.
Property registry: Properties of “unknown owner”
According to Ms. Diafa’s article, as emerges from the most recent data, approximately 70% of Greek territory has already been integrated into the National Property Registry, while it is estimated that by the end of 2025 the cadastral survey process will be fully completed. Nevertheless, during the registration process, errors or omissions occurred in the records, resulting in thousands of properties appearing today in the Property Registry database as belonging to “unknown owner”. These cases concern both urban properties and agricultural plots, while a significant percentage of erroneous registrations is due to forgotten or unclear rights, such as building “air rights” or parking spaces.
As further stated in the article, the consequences for property owners are particularly serious. If the initial cadastral registrations become final without being corrected, then these specific properties are automatically transferred to the State. This regulation is based on the principle that what does not belong to a private individual belongs to the state. This practically means that, with the expiration of the correction deadline in the Property Registry, a significant part of private real estate property risks being lost and transferred to State ownership.
The new deadline for correcting initial registrations
However, through recent legislative intervention, additional time is granted to property owners for correcting cadastral registrations. The new regulation extends the original deadline of November 30, 2024 by a full year, providing substantial relief to thousands of owners who need to update their property information. However, the deadline extension does not apply uniformly across the country. Each area follows a different timeline, depending on the start date of operation of the local cadastral office. For areas that were incorporated into the Property Registry before 2006 or those with initial registrations between 2013 and 2016, the final deadline is set at the end of 2026. The remaining areas maintain the framework of eight years from the start of operation of the respective office, with a final date of December 31st.
Updating cadastral information goes beyond bureaucratic obligation, constituting a fundamental security mechanism for real estate property. Owners must conduct thorough checks of their properties, verifying the accuracy of submitted declarations and identifying potential errors in initial registrations.
Available correction options include:
- Extra-judicial procedure through obvious error application
- Judicial route with lawsuit against the Greek State
- Correction of owner details, contract or geometric characteristics
- Addressing erroneous forest classification of property
However, proper recording of ownership rights in the Property Registry functions as a protective shield against future claims and legal complications. A preventive check today can prevent the loss of an entire property in the future, while ensuring smooth conduct of future transactions.
