# Buying a repossessed property from a loan servicer in Greece: what an as-is sale outside the auction leaves with you

> Thousands of Greek homes taken at auction are now resold, one by one, by the companies that manage bad loans. Who those servicers are in law, why the seller on the deed is usually someone else, and the risks that come with the house: occupants, illegal works, a title that starts at an auction the courts may still be arguing about, and arrears. The checks that still apply, as verified in November 2026.

- Canonical URL: https://honestcrete.com/buying/buying-a-repossessed-property-from-a-servicer-greece/
- Author: Fotis (Honest Crete, Heraklion)
- Section: Buying property in Crete · Stage: Risks
- Rules verified: November 2026 · Updated: 2026-11-01 · Published: 2026-11-01
- How to cite: "Honest Crete — Buying a repossessed property from a loan servicer in Greece: what an as-is sale outside the auction leaves with you (rules verified November 2026), https://honestcrete.com/buying/buying-a-repossessed-property-from-a-servicer-greece/"
- Disclosure: Honest Crete does not sell or list property and nobody here is an estate agent. Enquiries sent from this section go to a licensed, registered estate agent, not to us. No article names a developer or a specific property. Adverts on these pages are labelled as adverts and buy no say in the text.
- Sources:
  - Taxheaven, law 5072/2023 (read November 2026) — Gazette Α 198/04.12.2023; loans, transparency and borrower protection; Part B transposes Directive (EU) 2021/2167 on credit servicers and credit purchasers: https://www.taxheaven.gr/law/5072/2023
  - Taxheaven, law 5072/2023 article 4 (read November 2026) — a credit servicer manages and enforces the rights under credit agreements on behalf of a credit purchaser; servicing activities are collection and recovery, renegotiation, complaint handling and informing the borrower: https://www.taxheaven.gr/law/5072/2023/arthro/4
  - Taxheaven, law 5072/2023 article 5 (read November 2026) — servicing only by firms licensed by the Bank of Greece; §5: servicing firms may manage real estate securing the loans once it has passed to the claim holder, but may not acquire it by transfer, assignment, voluntary sale or auction: https://www.taxheaven.gr/law/5072/2023/arthro/5
  - Taxheaven, law 5072/2023 article 12 (read November 2026) — the Bank of Greece keeps a public register of licensed servicing firms and of EU servicers active in Greece, online and regularly updated: https://www.taxheaven.gr/law/5072/2023/arthro/12
  - Bank of Greece, supervised institutions (read November 2026) — publishes the table of credit-servicing firms holding a credit-servicer licence: https://www.bankofgreece.gr/kiries-leitourgies/epopteia/epopteyomena-idrymata
  - PowerGame (15 October 2026) — figures presented in a discussion with two servicer executives: residential properties held by banks and servicers approaching 15,000 (about 6,400 homes among some 8,000 units managed by servicers, about 8,000 properties held by banks); estimates that 80–90% carry planning violations, some of which can make a transfer impossible; about 36,000 pending cases, mainly objections to enforcement; preparation can take over two years; about 80% sell within three months once listed: https://www.powergame.gr/akinita/1435432/sta-cheria-trapezon-kai-servicers-15-000-kleistes-katoikies/
  - PowerGame (23 July 2025, updated 6 August 2025) — about 25,000 properties held by servicers and banks; obstacles named by servicers: planning issues and missing technical documents, fictitious leases and leases signed after seizure, delays at registries, notaries and the Cadastre: https://www.powergame.gr/trapezes/1022783/anoigei-o-dromos-gia-ti-diathesi-25-000-akiniton-stin-agora-apo-servicers-kai-trapezes/
  - Euro2day (read November 2026; no date shown) — two borrower-servicer disputes before the Supreme Court; Thessaloniki single-member first-instance decision 48352/2025 annulled an auction won by a property company acting as a vehicle for the servicer that ran it, a case expected to reach the Supreme Court; servicers' representatives cite Thessaloniki decision 5151/2026 as taking the opposite view: https://www.euro2day.gr/en/article/2348086/double-battle-in-the-supreme-court-between-borrowe
  - Legal 500 Market Intelligence, Greek practitioner commentary (29 September 2026) — property companies tied to servicers buy at auction and resell; on article 5(5) of law 5072/2023, Western Macedonia Court of Appeal 75/2026 held such a purchase a circumvention of the law, and Athens first instance 3242/2026 found the bidder was a wholly owned subsidiary of the former claim holder; hundreds of transfers may be open to challenge unless time-barred: https://www.legal500.com/intelligence/greece/finance-and-banking/auctions-bank-reos-under-judicial-scrutiny
  - Ziamparas law firm, risks of acquiring real estate through auction (last modified August 2026) — pre-seizure residential leases bind the auction buyer; post-seizure leases can be ended within two months of registering the award summary; evicting occupants takes court proceedings of several months; five years of joint liability for transfer tax (law 1587/1950 art. 5 §3); five years for a true owner's claim; case law unsettled on common charges: https://ziamparas.gr/en/risks-of-acquiring-real-estate-through-auction/
  - Nomiki Vivliothiki blog, lawyer's commentary (20 September 2019) — under prevailing case law each owner of a flat bears the common charges of their own period of ownership, the dividing date being the registration of the transfer (Piraeus Court of Appeal 759/2018); a new owner is liable for older charges only if they took the debt over (Civil Code 471): https://www.nb.org/blog/post/euthini-neou-idioktiti-orizontias-idioktisias-gia-aplirwta-koinoxrista-prohgoumenou-idioktiti
  - Odigos tou Politi (27 February 2024) — under prevailing case law a seller owes the common charges of their period of ownership and the buyer is not jointly liable; the homeowners' federation proposed a seller's sworn statement of no arrears in every deed: https://www.odigostoupoliti.eu/ofeili-apo-politi-diamerismatos-koinochriston-tis-polykatoikias/
  - Taxheaven, Civil Code articles 554, 555 and 557 (read November 2026) — a buyer's claims for non-conformity of real estate prescribe in five years from delivery; a seller who fraudulently concealed the defect cannot rely on prescription: https://www.taxheaven.gr/law/π.δ.456/1984/arthro/554
  - Taxheaven, Civil Code article 332 (read November 2026) — an advance clause excluding or limiting liability for intent or gross negligence is void: https://www.taxheaven.gr/law/π.δ.456/1984/arthro/332
  - Taxheaven, law 5306/2026 article 368 (read November 2026) — the owner's declaration and engineer's certificate attach to every transfer between living persons; valid two months; article 348 makes the Electronic Building Identity's completeness certificate replace it for buildings: https://www.taxheaven.gr/law/5306/2026/arthro/368

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A repossessed home resold by a loan servicer can be a fair purchase, but it is an auction purchase at one remove: the title starts at a foreclosure, the seller usually knows the house only from a file, and the terms put the risk on you. The fair version is the one where your lawyer reads the auction file and your engineer reads the building before any deposit. As checked in November 2026 against law 5072/2023, the Bank of Greece register, the 2026 planning code, the Civil Code and press reporting on the courts.

I am not a lawyer, and this is not legal advice. Every repossessed property carries the history of one foreclosure, and only a Greek lawyer who has read that file can say what survives it.

**Repossessed homes in one minute.** **Credit servicers** are firms licensed by the **Bank of Greece** under **law 5072/2023**, which keeps a **public register** of them. Under **article 5 §5** a servicer may **manage** a repossessed property but may **not acquire** it, so the seller on the deed is usually the **claim holder or a property company tied to it**. Figures presented with servicer executives in October 2026 put the homes held by banks and servicers near **15,000**, with an estimated **80–90%** carrying **planning violations**. Sales are typically **as-is**, but the sale still needs the **engineer's certificate** or the **building identity's completeness certificate**. **Pre-seizure leases** survive; evictions take **months** in court. The courts were **split** in 2025–26 on auctions won by servicer-linked companies, and a true owner has **five years** from registration to claim.

## Who is selling, in law

A credit servicer, under [article 4 of law 5072/2023](https://www.taxheaven.gr/law/5072/2023/arthro/4), manages and enforces the rights under loan agreements on behalf of whoever bought those loans: it collects and recovers, renegotiates, handles complaints and informs borrowers. Only firms licensed by the Bank of Greece may do it, and [article 12](https://www.taxheaven.gr/law/5072/2023/arthro/12) requires the Bank to keep a public, regularly updated register; the [Bank of Greece](https://www.bankofgreece.gr/kiries-leitourgies/epopteia/epopteyomena-idrymata) publishes the table of licensed firms.

The detail that matters to a buyer is [article 5 §5](https://www.taxheaven.gr/law/5072/2023/arthro/5): a servicer may manage real estate that secured the loans once it has passed to the claim holder, but may not acquire it, whether by transfer, voluntary sale or auction. So the company you deal with is usually the manager, and the owner who signs the deed is someone else, typically the loan owner or a property company tied to it that bought at the auction. Check the servicer on the register and the owner on the Cadastre extract, and make sure the deed is signed by whoever the extract names, or by someone holding that owner's power to sell.

## How the sales work, and what as-is means

Legal commentary from September 2026 describes the pattern: the property company buys at auction what private bidders will not take unseen, repairs where needed and resells through its own platforms and agents. The October 2026 figures were presented in a discussion with two servicer executives, as the financial press reported it: homes held by banks and servicers approaching 15,000, preparation that can take more than two years, and about 80% sold within three months of listing. They are an industry's own numbers, not an official count.

The terms are the seller's, and as-is is the norm. The Civil Code still has a floor: a buyer's claims for a property's non-conformity prescribe in five years from delivery (articles 554–555), a seller who fraudulently concealed a defect cannot rely on that limit (article 557), and under [article 332](https://www.taxheaven.gr/law/π.δ.456/1984/arthro/332) an advance clause excluding liability for intent or gross negligence is void. Where an as-is clause lands between those rules is for your lawyer to judge on the actual wording. The practical answer is to learn the defects before signing: an independent [building survey](https://honestcrete.com/buying/building-survey-engineer-check-crete/) is the one protection the seller cannot write out of the contract.

## The risks that come with the house

**Illegal works.** Estimates presented with servicer executives in October 2026 put the share of these homes with planning violations at 80 to 90%, some serious enough to block a transfer. As-is does not get round the planning code: under [article 368 of law 5306/2026](https://www.taxheaven.gr/law/5306/2026/arthro/368) every transfer between living persons carries the owner's declaration and an engineer's certificate, and for a building the completeness certificate of its Electronic Building Identity takes its place. The seller must settle the violations or show an exception before the deed; what settling means is in [illegal constructions](https://honestcrete.com/buying/illegal-constructions-afthaireta-crete/).

**Occupants.** A residential lease signed before the seizure binds the auction buyer for its term; leases signed after it can be ended within two months of registering the award summary, and evicting occupants without a lease takes court proceedings of several months, a law-firm summary from August 2026 explains. Servicers themselves named fictitious leases signed after the seizure as a recurring obstacle in 2025. If the seller has not finished that work, you inherit it. Ask, in writing, who lives there and on what paper.

**The title chain.** The seller's title is the registered award from the auction. A true owner has five years from that registration to claim, the same law-firm summary notes, and the auction itself can be challenged. The courts were split in 2025 and 2026 on whether a property company tied to the servicer may buy at an auction the servicer ran: [press reporting](https://www.euro2day.gr/en/article/2348086/double-battle-in-the-supreme-court-between-borrowe) described a Thessaloniki first-instance decision annulling such an auction, in a case expected to reach the Supreme Court, and a later Thessaloniki decision that servicers cite as taking the opposite view; practitioner commentary added an appeal-court decision calling such a purchase a circumvention of the law and an Athens first-instance decision that looked through the bidder to its parent, and warned that hundreds of transfers could be open to challenge unless time-barred. Neither source analyses the position of a later buyer from such a company. Your lawyer should check which court the auction came through, whether any challenge is pending and when the award was registered.

**Arrears.** For five years after a deed, later holders are jointly liable for unpaid transfer tax on it, the law-firm summary says, citing law 1587/1950, article 5 §3. On common charges, prevailing case law makes each owner liable for their own period, with the registration of the transfer as the dividing date, and a new owner liable for older charges only if they took the debt over; the law-firm summary adds that case law has not settled how that applies to an auction buyer. Ask for a building manager's statement, proof that ENFIA and municipal charges are paid, and every certificate before the deed.

## The checks that still apply

Everything an ordinary purchase needs, plus the auction file. Your lawyer reads the enforcement file, the award and its registration date, any pending challenges, the leases and the registered rights, as in [buying at auction](https://honestcrete.com/buying/buying-property-at-auction-greece/). Your engineer compares the building with its permit and reads the building identity. If a lease or occupant is involved, read [buying with a tenant in place](https://honestcrete.com/buying/buying-a-property-with-a-tenant-in-place-greece/) first. And no deposit until those reports are back: the [preliminary contract](https://honestcrete.com/buying/preliminary-contract-and-deposit-greece/) is where conditions on vacant possession, settled violations and a clean registry belong.

## The honest downside

The discount, where there is one, pays for the unknowns: a seller who never lived there, terms written to give you nothing, and a title that begins with someone else's foreclosure. Some of these houses were family homes until recently, and the people may still be inside. The legal ground under servicer-linked auction purchases was moving in 2026, and nobody can tell you how the Supreme Court will rule. The figures circulating about these homes come mostly from the industry selling them. And the paperwork that makes a property sellable, from settled violations to an empty house, is exactly what an as-is seller is least motivated to finish.

*Disclosure:* Disclosure: Honest Crete does not sell or list property. Enquiries sent from this section go to a licensed estate agent, not to us; the full statement is below. Nothing in this article names a servicer, a bank, a property company, a sales platform, a portal or any other business; publishers appear only as source labels. The Bank of Greece, the Hellenic Cadastre and the courts are named as the public institutions they are.

**The verdict.** **Worth it if** your lawyer has read the auction file and found no pending challenge, your engineer has seen the building and the completeness certificate, the house is empty or the lease is known, and the price reflects what is left. **Skip it if** you are asked to commit before an inspection, the seller cannot say who lives there, or nobody can show you when and through which court the auction was registered.

## Quick answers

**What is a loan servicer in Greece?**

A company licensed by the Bank of Greece under law 5072/2023 to manage loans on behalf of whoever owns them: collecting and recovering debts, renegotiating, handling complaints and informing borrowers. The Bank of Greece keeps a public register of licensed servicers on its website. Servicers may manage repossessed homes, but the law forbids them to acquire the properties that secured the loans they service.

**Who is the seller when I buy a repossessed home from a servicer?**

Usually not the servicer. Article 5 §5 of law 5072/2023 lets a servicer manage property that has passed to the owner of the loan but forbids it to acquire that property, by sale or at auction. The registered owner is typically the claim holder or a property company tied to it, and that owner signs the deed. Check the name on the Cadastre extract, and check the servicer on the Bank of Greece register.

**Are repossessed homes in Greece sold as-is?**

Generally yes, and the seller has often never been inside. Greek law gives a buyer five years from delivery to claim for a property's non-conformity, and a seller who fraudulently concealed a defect cannot rely on that limit; an advance clause excluding liability for intent or gross negligence is void. How far a particular as-is clause holds is a question for your lawyer, which is why the engineer's inspection matters more here, not less.

**Can a repossessed property in Greece have illegal constructions?**

Often. Estimates presented with servicer executives in October 2026 put the share of these homes with planning violations at 80 to 90%. A sale still needs the owner's declaration and an engineer's certificate, or for a building the completeness certificate of its Electronic Building Identity, under the 2026 planning code, so the violations must be settled or fall within an exception before the deed. Have your own engineer check the certificate.

**What if the house still has occupants?**

Ask before any offer, in writing. A residential lease signed before the seizure binds the auction buyer for its term, while leases signed after the seizure can be ended; evicting occupants without a lease takes court proceedings of several months. If the seller has not finished that, you inherit it. Fictitious leases signed after the seizure are a known problem, so have your lawyer read any lease shown to you.

**Could the auction behind the seller's title be annulled?**

It is a live question. Greek courts have split in 2025 and 2026 on whether a property company tied to the servicer may buy at an auction the servicer ran: some decisions treated it as circumventing the law, servicers point to one that did not, and one case was expected to reach the Supreme Court. A true owner also has five years from registration to claim. Ask your lawyer to check pending challenges and dates before you sign anything.