Greece’s construction sector: new building volume up 21% over the past 12 months

Specifically, during the period from May 2025 to April 2026, total construction activity—both private and public—across the country reached 31,177 building permits. These permits corresponded to 7.16 million square metres of floor area and 34.47 million cubic metres of building volume.

Compared with the corresponding period from May 2024 to April 2025, the number of building permits increased by 11.4%, while total floor area rose by 14.8% and building volume by 21.0%.

These figures indicate that construction activity is not only maintaining its momentum but is also expanding in terms of the scale of new developments, as the increase in total building volume significantly outpaced the rise in the number of permits issued.

Strong Growth in Private Construction

Private construction continues to be the primary driver of the market. During the same twelve-month period, private building activity recorded year-on-year increases of 11.6% in the number of building permits, 15.5% in total floor area, and 21.7% in building volume, compared with the corresponding period from May 2024 to April 2025.

The data confirm the continued strength of investment in residential and commercial real estate, reflecting sustained demand for new developments and reinforcing the role of property investment as a key contributor to economic activity.

By contrast, public construction activity remained limited, accounting for only 2.8% of total building volume during the period under review.

Growth Continues in April

The upward trend was also reflected in the figures for April 2026. A total of 2,433 building permits were issued nationwide, corresponding to 472,873 square metres of floor area and 2.03 million cubic metres of building volume.

Compared with April 2025, total construction activity increased by 4.2% in the number of permits issued, 12.1% in floor area, and 13.6% in building volume.

Private construction accounted for the overwhelming majority of new permits. Specifically, 2,401 permits were issued, representing 459,139 square metres of floor area and 1.95 million cubic metres of building volume. On an annual basis, this represented increases of 4.3% in the number of permits, 10.3% in floor area, and 10.6% in building volume.

Public construction activity, meanwhile, was limited to 32 permits, covering 13,734 square metres of floor area and 82,111 cubic metres of building volume, representing 4.0% of total building volume recorded in April.

Construction Remains a Key Pillar of the Economy

The sustained expansion of construction activity has become one of the defining features of the Greek economy in recent years. The continued increase in building permits, together with the even stronger growth in total floor area and building volume, suggests that the market continues to attract investment in larger-scale construction projects.

At the same time, the strong performance of the private construction sector underscores the pivotal role of real estate and construction in supporting economic activity. The performance recorded over the past twelve months also provides encouraging indications for the market’s continued growth.

Looking ahead, key factors influencing the sector’s ability to maintain its momentum are expected to include construction costs, the availability of development land, the evolution of interest rates and financing conditions, and continued demand for new residential and commercial properties.