Athens is sixth most expensive city in Europe for housing: Greeks pay one and a half minimum wages for a monthly rent, a surveu among 21 cities in Europe has shown..
The coverage of housing in Athens, including water, electricity, heating (natural gas, oil), makes it the 6th most expensive city, among the 21 examined.
The purchasing power of Greeks is shrinking every day and more, with one of the main issues of citizens, especially those living in large urban centers, being that of housing.
This is exactly confirmed by the analysis of Euronews Business, in which Athens is ranked among the most expensive cities in Europe for housing, always according to data on the cost of rents in relation to gross minimum wages.
More specifically, it takes at least one and a half gross minimum wages (153% of the salary) to cover the cost of housing in Athens, including water, electricity, heating (natural gas, oil), a percentage that makes it the 6th most expensive city among the 21 examined.
At the same time, according to the most recent Eurostat data, 23.6% of household spending in the EU is directed at housing, water, electricity, natural gas and other fuels, with rents of course taking up a particularly large share in large cities.
At the same time, as shown by an analysis by the European Trade Union Confederation (ETUC), based on EU data, the average cost of renting a two-bedroom apartment in the capitals of the majority of EU countries exceeds the gross minimum wage.
Prague and Lisbon at the “top” of rental costs
In Prague, the average rent is 1,710 euros, while the minimum wage in the country is 924 euros, which means that an amount equal to 185% of the minimum wage is required to rent a two-bedroom apartment.
As for Lisbon, it follows with a percentage of 168%, with the corresponding gross minimum monthly wage (paid in 14 salaries per year) amounting to 1,073 euros, while the average rent in the capital also reaches 1,710 euros.
The percentage of the gross minimum wage required for rent also exceeds 150% in Budapest (159%), Bratislava (158%), Sofia (154%), Athens (153%) and Riga (151%).
This means that minimum wage workers would have to spend their entire salary on rent and still need more than half an additional salary to cover it. [via koutipandoras.gr]
