Managed Rental

Income Without the Operations

Own an apartment at Urban City 44 and let the building run it. Licensed, professionally operated, and legal in a postcode where a private landlord currently cannot let short-term at all.

The short version

What the Managed Rental Programme Is

You buy an apartment at Urban City 44. The building’s operating company runs it: guests, bookings, cleaning, linen, maintenance, check-in, compliance, and the paperwork that comes with all of it. Income is paid to you. You do not field calls at two in the morning, you do not chase a cleaner from another time zone, and you do not have to become a hospitality business to own a hospitality asset.

That is the pitch every branded-residence scheme in Europe makes. What makes it materially different here is not the service level. It is the licence — and what that licence lets you do that the building next door cannot.

The part that actually matters, and that most brochures leave out.

Since 1 January 2025, Athens has frozen new short-term-rental registrations — new AMA numbers — in the city’s 1st, 2nd and 3rd municipal districts. That zone includes Omonia and Metaxourgeio, and therefore includes Pireos 44. The freeze runs to 31 December 2026.

In plain terms: a private buyer purchasing an ordinary apartment in this part of Athens today generally cannot obtain a new AMA, and cannot list it on Airbnb or Booking.com. Penalties for doing so start at €20,000.

Urban City 44 holds a tourist-accommodation (aparthotel) licence. That is a different legal instrument from the AMA short-term-rental registry, and it is not affected by the freeze. Nightly-stay income here runs through the building’s licensed, professionally managed operation — not through an owner self-listing.

This is not a feature. It is a moat. It is something a private buyer on the same street, in the same postcode, cannot replicate at any price while the freeze stands.

What the owner gets

Included in the Programme

Bookings

Distribution and pricing

Listed and priced across the channels the operation uses, including the OTAs.

Housekeeping

Cleaning, linen, turnover

Between every stay, to a hotel standard, without you arranging anything.

Maintenance

Repairs and upkeep

The building’s team handles faults and wear, in the apartment and the shared spaces.

Front of house

Reception and guest handling

Check-in, check-out, guest issues. Somebody is there; it is not a lockbox.

Compliance

Licensing and reporting

Operating under the building’s tourist-accommodation licence, with the reporting that requires.

Reporting

Statements

You see what the apartment earned and what it cost. Ask us for a sample statement.

Read this twice

“Guaranteed” vs Projected — Say Which You Mean

The phrase guaranteed rent gets used loosely in property marketing, and the difference between the two things it can mean is the difference between an investment and a disappointment.

A guaranteed return means the operator contractually pays you a fixed sum regardless of whether the apartment is occupied. The operator carries the vacancy risk. That certainty is paid for — a guaranteed figure is always lower than the upside of a good year, because you are buying insurance against a bad one.
A projected return is a forecast based on rates, occupancy and costs. It is not a promise. In a strong year you earn more than a guarantee would have paid. In a weak one, less.

We will not publish a headline yield on this page. Any number quoted without the specific unit, floor, season, operating model and cost base attached is marketing, not analysis — and this site has carried enough of that. Ask us for the actual figures on the actual apartment you are considering, and ask us plainly which of the two structures is on offer. If we cannot answer that in one sentence, you should not sign.

For the market context behind any figure — occupancy, running costs, the tax position — see our investment and returns page.

The numbers you should ask about

Costs, Fees and What Comes Off the Top

Gross rental income is not what lands in your account. Before you model anything, get these in writing:

The management fee — the operator’s share, and whether it is charged on gross or net.
Building service charges — your contribution to the shared facilities. The rooftop pool, the gym, the concierge and the 24/7 security are part of what makes the apartment rentable; they also cost money to run.
Utilities and consumables — who pays, and on what basis.
ENFIA — Greece’s annual property tax, typically between €2 and €16.20 per square metre depending on zone, floor, age and surface. It exists, whatever anyone tells you.
Income tax — Greek rental income is taxed on a progressive scale; certain costs may be deductible. Your home country may tax it too, though Greece has double-taxation treaties with more than fifty countries.
The term and the exit — how long you are committed for, what notice applies, and what happens if you want to occupy the apartment yourself or sell it.

None of this is unusual and none of it is prohibitive. It is simply worth knowing before you sign rather than after.

Questions

Managed Rental — FAQ

Can I just buy an apartment and put it on Airbnb myself?

In this part of Athens, currently, no. New AMA short-term-rental registrations are frozen in the 1st, 2nd and 3rd municipal districts — which include Omonia and Metaxourgeio — until 31 December 2026. A private owner who bought an ordinary apartment here today generally could not obtain a registration, and letting without one carries penalties starting at €20,000. Urban City 44 operates under a tourist-accommodation licence instead, which is a different instrument and unaffected by the freeze.

Is the income guaranteed?

Ask us, and make us answer precisely. A guaranteed return means a fixed sum paid whether or not the apartment is occupied — the operator carries the vacancy risk, and you pay for that certainty with a lower ceiling. A projected return is a forecast, not a promise. They are different products. We will tell you which one is on the table for your unit.

What returns should I expect?

We are not going to put a number on a web page. It depends on the unit type, the floor, the season, the operating model and the cost base, and any figure quoted without those attached is marketing rather than analysis. Ask us for the projections on the specific apartment you are considering. Yields are never guaranteed and property values can fall as well as rise.

Can I stay in my own apartment?

Ask us how the arrangement handles owner use. Many owners occupy their apartment when they are in Athens and return it to the programme when they are not, but the terms — how much notice, how many nights, in which seasons — are exactly the sort of detail that should be in the contract rather than in a conversation.

Do I have to join the programme?

Ask us. Understand, though, that outside the building’s licensed operation your short-term letting options in this postcode are currently very limited by the AMA freeze. Long-term letting — a conventional tenancy — is unaffected and remains available to any owner.

Can a foreign buyer take part?

Yes. There is no general restriction on foreign ownership of Greek property. You will need a Greek tax number (AFM) and a Greek bank account, and the purchase is executed before a notary. Much of the process can be handled remotely through a power of attorney. Our step-by-step guide sets out the process.

Next

To see what you would be buying, the apartments page covers the eight unit types. If the serviced-apartment model itself is new to you, our guide to serviced apartments in Athens explains how it works and why the category has grown. For the market numbers behind any projection, see investment and returns. For the street and the neighbourhood — honestly — see the location page. And the FAQ answers what our sales team gets asked most.

Reflects the position in July 2026. General information only — not legal, tax or investment advice. Rental income and yields are not guaranteed. Property values can fall as well as rise. Regulations governing short-term letting in Athens have changed repeatedly and may change again. Seek independent Greek legal and tax advice before investing.