The short answer
Short-term letting can generate more revenue yet leave less after costs. Long-term letting offers a more predictable payment schedule, alongside arrears risk and a longer commitment. First establish whether both options are legally available at the address.
Updated 9 November 2026
1. Check that you actually have a choice
Airbnb is a platform. Short-term rental is a letting model that can operate through other platforms or direct bookings. Under Greece’s Article 111 framework, each letting lasts less than 60 days and provides no services beyond accommodation and bed linen. That duration concerns each agreement, not the total nights let during a year. AADE — Article 111 framework
Thessaloniki has a local restriction that matters to new investors. From 1 July to 31 December 2026, first-time registration in the Short-Term Stay Property Registry is prohibited for properties in the municipality’s First Municipal Community (Α΄ Δημοτική Κοινότητα). This is a defined area, not a citywide prohibition. Government housing-policy portal
Buying a property already used for short-term letting in that area does not preserve its registration: the law provides for removal following a sale or gift and prevents re-registration while the restriction applies. Check the address and transaction before attributing value to an existing listing. Law 5313/2026, article 5
For either model, review the property’s permitted use, building rules and existing tenancy. The comparison below assumes both uses are lawful. It makes no assumption about restrictions after the stated period.
2. Build twelve months of income
For a long-term rental, deduct vacancy and unpaid amounts from the agreed rent to estimate collections. A signed lease does not guarantee timely payment. Keep refundable deposits outside rental income.
For short-term letting, multiply each month’s paid nights by the average accommodation rate achieved, after discounts and refunds but before operating fees. Add the months together. A busy weekend or the highest advertised rate cannot represent the annual average.
Define occupancy consistently. For an apartment available all year, use 365 nights as the denominator. Show dates blocked for personal use or repairs separately: high occupancy over a limited available calendar can conceal modest annual income.
Seek booking records reconciled to payouts and expenses, or clearly labelled scenarios for a new operation. Compare similar locations, size, floor, lift access and condition. A listing calendar cannot explain unavailable dates; city tourism totals cannot establish demand for one apartment.
3. Include the work behind the rent
Frequency matters. Long-term letting involves tenant finding, collection, maintenance and renewal or departure. Short-term letting adds repeated guest communication, pricing, arrivals, cleaning, laundry and booking administration.
| Question | Long-term rental | Short-term rental |
|---|---|---|
| What drives collections? | Monthly rent, vacancy and payment reliability | Paid nights, achieved rates, cancellations and refunds |
| Which costs change with use? | Letting costs, repairs and some management charges | Platform charges, management, cleaning, laundry and consumables |
| Who pays everyday bills? | Check the lease and which costs remain with the owner | Budget owner-paid electricity, heating, water and internet |
| What interrupts income? | Tenant departure, arrears or major repairs | Weak booking periods, operational failures or unavailable dates |
| What work remains with the owner? | Decisions, statements and exceptional problems | Those tasks, plus oversight of a more frequent service cycle |
Compare management scope: cleaning, platform charges and tax administration may be extra. Check the fee base—accommodation revenue or a wider booking total—and VAT inclusions.
Value self-management hours and emergency availability separately from cash expenses. Even with a manager, owners need time to review decisions and performance.
Separate initial furnishing and safety preparation from operating maintenance and replacements. Count each expense once, and retain cash capacity for an unusually expensive repair.
4. Allow for compliance and the right tax treatment
The national short-term property standards took effect on 1 October 2025. They cover lawful main-use space, natural light, ventilation and air conditioning; liability insurance; electrical certification, fire extinguishers, smoke detectors, residual-current protection and escape signs; pest-control certification, first aid and emergency contacts. Law 5170/2025, articles 3 and 34
The Tourism Ministry continues to publish the implementation guidance on its short-term accommodation page. Treat compliance as a property assessment and budget item: an attractive renovation does not establish that the legal and technical requirements are met.
For an ordinary apartment operating under the registry route, allow for registration, displaying the property registry number (AMA) and stay declarations. AADE’s short-term rental service sets out the reporting process.
Tax treatment can change the comparison. An individual letting up to two furnished properties without additional services is generally taxed on property income. Letting three or more properties on a short-term basis, or operating through a legal entity, falls within business-income treatment. Finance Ministry — income taxation
AADE distinguishes VAT treatment between these cases and also identifies applicable accommodation-related levies. The climate crisis resilience fee is borne by the guest and remitted by the operator; keep it separate from the owner’s rental revenue. AADE — short-term rental FAQs, questions 10 and 23–27
The calculation below stops before income tax and financing. Operating income is not automatically taxable income. The final tax comparison depends on ownership, other relevant income and tax residence, including any applicable tax treaty.
5. Compare one apartment over one operating year
Illustrative example — assumptions for calculation only, not a Wiser transaction, forecast or offer. Every rent, rate, fee and expense below is hypothetical, not a Thessaloniki market benchmark or a Wiser service price.
Assume the same 50 m² apartment is already owned, furnished, compliant and ready for either model outside the restricted area. No additional setup or major capital works are required during this illustrative year. The owner is an individual with only this short-term property and provides no additional guest services, so the example assumes no accommodation VAT or business-only municipal stay levy. All supplier costs include any applicable VAT. The climate fee is collected separately and remitted in full, outside both income and expenses below.
The long-term option collects €650 for 11 months, with one vacant month and no arrears. The short-term option is available all 365 nights and sells 180 at an average €70, without a separate guest cleaning charge. Three-night stays mean 60 changeovers at €30 for cleaning and laundry between stays, with no services during a stay. The remaining 185 nights produce no revenue.
| Annual item — assumptions | Long-term | Short-term |
|---|---|---|
| Rental revenue collected | €7,150 | €12,600 |
| Platform fees: 0% / 15% of rental revenue | €0 | €1,890 |
| Management: 8% / 18% of rental revenue | €572 | €2,268 |
| Tenant placement and turnover preparation | €300 | €0 |
| Guest changeover cleaning and laundry | €0 | €1,800 |
| Owner-paid utilities and internet | €150 | €1,500 |
| Maintenance and small replacements | €500 | €600 |
| Insurance | €200 | €300 |
| ENFIA — annual property tax | €250 | €250 |
| Owner’s common building charges | €180 | €300 |
| Accounting and reporting | €180 | €300 |
| Recurring short-term safety checks and pest control | €0 | €180 |
| Total operating expenses | €2,332 | €9,388 |
| Net operating income, before income tax and financing | €4,818 | €3,212 |
Net operating income deducts every listed expense from collections. Maintenance is assumed spending, not a separate reserve. Long-term utilities cover the vacant month; the tenant pays their consumption during occupation. Vacancy is already reflected in collections.
The short-term option collects substantially more but retains less in this scenario. Change the paid nights and the result changes:
| Short-term scenario — same €70 rate and three-night stays | Paid nights / 365 | Net operating income |
|---|---|---|
| Lower bookings | 150 / 365 = 41.1% | €2,105 |
| Base example | 180 / 365 = 49.3% | €3,212 |
| Higher bookings | 240 / 365 = 65.8% | €5,426 |
These scenarios hold the other annual costs at €3,430. The formula is: paid nights × €70 × (1 − 15% − 18%) − changeovers × €30 − €3,430. This is a sensitivity calculation, not a claim that the higher occupancy or unchanged utility budget is achievable.
At 240 nights, short-term letting leads by €608 before owner time, income tax and financing. Long-term letting also has downside: a second vacant month, with other expenses unchanged and management still at 8% of collections, reduces its result to €4,220.
These are operating comparisons, not investment yields. A real decision must also account for any difference in initial furnishing or compliance expenditure and the capital committed to the property.
6. Match the model to the property and the owner
Long-term letting may suit an apartment with credible residential demand and an owner who values a steadier payment schedule and fewer turnovers. Its risks include dependence on one tenant, arrears, damage and limited flexibility to recover possession. For a residential tenancy covered by Greece’s statutory protection, the starting point is a three-year minimum even if a shorter term is written into the agreement. Greek Supreme Court — judgment 650/2007
Short-term letting may suit an eligible apartment with evidenced guest demand and reliable operational support. It offers flexible pricing between bookings and planned personal use, at the cost of saleable nights. Risks include booking volatility, reviews, platform dependence, service failures and regulatory change. Switching models involves costs and legal constraints.
Choose according to the annual result, the workload you can manage and your capacity to fund a weaker year. Wiser focuses on long-term rentals in Thessaloniki; for the practical responsibilities involved, read the guide to owning and managing a property.
General information as at 9 November 2026. Property-specific legal and tax treatment should be assessed by your independent advisers.
Frequently asked questions
How can I check an Airbnb occupancy forecast before relying on it?
Ask for a month-by-month breakdown of paid nights, realised nightly rates and days when the flat was unavailable. For an operating property, reconcile booking records with receipts; for a new listing, comparable properties can inform a scenario but cannot prove future performance. A full-looking calendar is insufficient because nights can be blocked for other reasons, and high occupancy calculated from a small number of available nights can be misleading.
Should I lower the nightly rate to increase occupancy?
Only if the extra bookings improve net operating income. Compare the additional receipts after fees with the extra cleaning, laundry, utilities and other costs of hosting, and consider whether the discount also reduces income from nights that would otherwise sell at a higher rate. To compare with long-term letting, recalculate the full year using the revised price and occupancy, with consistent expense categories and both results before income tax and financing.
Does length of stay matter if the number of booked nights is unchanged?
Yes: the same number of paid nights can involve very different numbers of bookings, and each changeover brings work and potentially extra costs. For the same flat at the same average nightly rate, fewer changeovers can reduce cleaning and laundry between stays, as well as coordination and check-in time. If longer stays require a discount, check whether those savings exceed the lost revenue. Compare the number of stays and realised rates alongside paid nights.
How do I compare a self-managed Airbnb with a professionally managed long-term rental?
Show the cash result and the owner’s workload separately. Calculate net operating income for each option, then estimate the time and availability required for messages, pricing, cleaning coordination and repairs. You can add a scenario that assigns a value to your time, or compare both models with paid management to see what happens if you stop managing personally. Keep that time valuation separate from actual cash expenses.
Can I switch between residential letting and Airbnb whenever demand changes?
Not automatically: first check when you can lawfully recover the flat and whether the next use is permitted. A Greek residential tenancy covered by the relevant statutory protection has a minimum three-year term even if the contract specifies less. Also, first-time short-term rental registrations in Thessaloniki’s First Municipal Community are prohibited from 1 July to 31 December 2026. Only after confirming that switching is legally possible should you include preparation costs and the expected period without rent in the alternative scenario.
