The Athens Single-Member Court of First Instance granted an apartment-building manager’s request for interim measures and prohibited the commercial tourist use of an apartment because the building’s internal regulations stipulated that units could be used only as residences.
In its ruling, Decision No. 2937/2026, the court said the regulations governing an apartment building are binding on its co-owners and effectively operate as a contractual framework governing how individual properties can be used.
The dispute began after the building’s representative took legal action against a company that had been renting an apartment to tourists through short-term rental platforms since the summer of 2025.
According to the application filed with the court, the short-term rental operation caused repeated disruption for other residents. The complaint cited persistent noise inside the apartment and in common areas, including during legally designated quiet hours, as well as increased wear and tear on the building’s facilities.
Residents also raised security concerns over the frequent and largely uncontrolled entry of people unfamiliar to those living in the building, arguing that the turnover of short-term guests was disrupting the daily lives of permanent residents and owners.
A central issue in the case was whether building regulations drafted before the emergence of digital short-term rental platforms could be interpreted as prohibiting their use.
The court acknowledged that short-term rentals, as they are understood today, didn’t exist when the building’s regulations were written and therefore weren’t explicitly mentioned.
It nevertheless concluded that the restrictions could be applied to such rentals based on the original intent of the rules.
The regulations prohibited apartments from being used as hotels or for activities that generate overcrowding and unusual levels of noise. The court found that the short-term tourist operation at issue fell within the scope of those restrictions.
The company was ordered to immediately cease using the apartment for commercial tourist accommodation and faces a financial penalty if it fails to comply.
The decision adds a new dimension to the debate over short-term rentals in Greece, where the rapid expansion of properties offered through platforms such as Airbnb has transformed parts of the housing and tourism markets, particularly in Athens and other popular destinations.
The ruling also comes as Greece prepares for a broader overhaul of its property-law framework, parts of which date back nearly a century. The Justice Ministry is establishing a special legislative drafting committee that is expected to begin work in July, with the goal of preparing legislation for a parliamentary vote later in 2026.
