Καλησπέρα σε όλους,

μόλις ανακάλυψα το r/FIREGreece μέσα από μια συζήτηση που ξεκίνησα στο r/PersonalFinanceGreece σχετικά με το αν υπάρχει πραγματικό ενδιαφέρον για FIRE / Financial Independence στην Ελλάδα.

Η ανταπόκριση ήταν μεγαλύτερη απ’ όσο περίμενα και, αφού υπάρχει ήδη αυτή η κοινότητα, θεωρώ ότι έχει περισσότερο νόημα να προσπαθήσουμε να την κάνουμε πιο ενεργή παρά να δημιουργηθεί κάτι καινούργιο από το μηδέν.

Προσωπικά με ενδιαφέρει περισσότερο το Financial Independence παρά το “Retire Early” με τη στενή έννοια. Δηλαδή να δημιουργηθεί σταδιακά ένα επενδυτικό κεφάλαιο που κάποια στιγμή θα προσφέρει αρκετή οικονομική ελευθερία ώστε η εργασία να είναι περισσότερο επιλογή και λιγότερο ανάγκη.

Θα είχε ενδιαφέρον λοιπόν να γνωριστούμε λίγο καλύτερα ως κοινότητα.

Όσοι ακολουθείτε ήδη κάποιο FI/FIRE πλάνο:

• Ποιος είναι ο βασικός σας στόχος; FI, FIRE, Coast FIRE, Barista FIRE ή κάτι διαφορετικό;
• Ποια assets χρησιμοποιείτε κυρίως; ETFs, ακίνητα, επιχειρήσεις, ομόλογα ή συνδυασμό;
• Έχετε υπολογίσει κάποιο συγκεκριμένο FIRE number;
• Τι withdrawal rate χρησιμοποιείτε στους υπολογισμούς σας;
• Ζείτε και εργάζεστε στην Ελλάδα ή σχεδιάζετε να δημιουργήσετε το κεφάλαιό σας στο εξωτερικό και να επιστρέψετε;
• Ποιο θεωρείτε το μεγαλύτερο εμπόδιο για FIRE στην ελληνική πραγματικότητα;

Δεν χρειάζεται φυσικά κανείς να αναφέρει προσωπικά ποσά αν δεν θέλει. Περισσότερο με ενδιαφέρει να δούμε τι στρατηγικές και τι διαφορετικές διαδρομές ακολουθούν πραγματικοί άνθρωποι προς το FI στην Ελλάδα.

Αν υπάρχει ενδιαφέρον, θα μπορούσαμε μέσα από τέτοιες συζητήσεις να αναπτύξουμε περισσότερο την κοινότητα και αργότερα ίσως να δοκιμάσουμε και κάποια περιοδική online συζήτηση μεταξύ μελών.

Χαίρομαι που βρήκα το sub και περιμένω με ενδιαφέρον να ακούσω τις δικές σας προσεγγίσεις.

Hello. I’m in the process of applying for my FIP visa and I have recently obtained a lawyer that’s located in Greece. He’s contacted the Greek consulate here in Houston where I am and one of the requirements that was in the initial email said that I would need to have $30,000 in savings and €3500 in passive income monthly. I currently make what’s equivalent to €5500 a month and this is from disability. I also have $15,000 in savings.

I’d like to know if anyone had to have the $30,000 in savings. I don’t anyone talking about this and was wondering if it’s an absolute requirement.

A sentence that I should print out to put it in a frame: „The market beats almost everyone“.

Over a 15-year horizon, SPIVA data consistently shows that over 85 to 90 percent of active professional fund managers fail to outperform a simple index like the S&P 500. For retail investors, emotional trading, poor market timing, and excessive fees make results even worse: while a broad market ETF historically delivers around 8 to 10 percent per year, the average individual investor yields roughly 3 to 5 percent according to Dalbar’s Quantitative Analysis of Investor Behavior.
Even high-profile managers and historical geniuses regularly fall short. Cathie Wood’s ARKK fund lags behind the S&P 500 over multi-year periods despite individual hype cycles, Michael Burry’s persistent macro-pessimism causes him to miss massive bull runs, and even Isaac Newton famously lost his fortune during the 1720 South Sea Bubble due to FOMO. In the end, disciplined passive market tracking quietly outperforms almost every active strategy.

Sources & References
SPIVA Scorecards (S&P Dow Jones Indices): spglobal.com/spdji/en/spiva 
Dalbar QAIB (Investor Behavior Study): dalbar.com/QAIB 
ARKK vs. S&P 500 Performance: morningstar.com
Isaac Newton & South Sea Bubble History: theguardian.com/business/2012/dec/28/isaac-newton-south-sea-bubble

Under Greek law, funds that are UCITS-compliant (you will see "UCITS" right in the name of the ETF, like VWCE or VUAA) enjoy a massive tax advantage: 
- 0% Capital Gains Tax when you sell. 
- 0% Dividend Tax (though choosing Accumulating ETFs where dividends are automatically reinvested is highly recommended to avoid any local declaration friction and optimize compound interest).

Note: You still need to declare the purchase and sales in your annual tax return (myAADE) to justify your source of wealth, but the tax rate itself is zero.

The Only Fee: The Greek Financial Transaction Tax (FTT)
While the gains and dividends are tax-free, keep in mind that Greece applies a 0.1% Financial Transaction Tax (sales tax) on the total value when you sell listed shares. This is usually automatically withheld by your broker (like DEGIRO or Interactive Brokers) upon selling, so you don't have to manually calculate it, but it's an important friction point to keep in mind for your long-term calculations. 

Hey everyone, and welcome to the community! 🇬🇷

Whether you stumbled upon this sub by accident or have been actively searching for a Greek financial community, we are thrilled to have you here.

What is FIRE?
For those new to the concept, FIRE stands for Financial Independence, Retire Early.
It is a movement focused on aggressive saving, mindful spending, and smart investing. The goal is to build a robust portfolio that can support your lifestyle indefinitely, giving you complete control over your time and allowing you to retire decades ahead of traditional timelines. It’s not just about stopping work; it’s about having the absolute freedom to choose how you spend your life.

Who is this community for?
This subreddit is dedicated to achieving financial freedom within the unique framework of Greece—but everybody is welcome here! Our journey looks different depending on our backgrounds, and we want to hear all perspectives:
- Born and raised in Greece: Sharing the realities of local salaries, maximizing savings rates, navigating local investing platforms, and building wealth from the ground up.
- Moved to Greece (Expats / Digital Nomads / Repat Greeks): Navigating the transition, optimizing international investments, understanding local tax incentives (like the non-dom regime), and adjusting to the local cost of living.
- Just interested: Anyone from the diaspora or international investors looking at the Greek market or lifestyle.

Share Your Experience!
We want this to be a highly collaborative space. Feel free to open up a discussion, ask questions, or share your milestones:
What does your current investment strategy look like?
How are you optimizing your tax situation or using Greek corporate/real estate structures?
What are your long-term cost-of-living projections for a comfortable early retirement under the Greek sun?

Please remember to keep discussions respectful and, as per our community rules, feel free to post in either English or Greek.

Let’s build a wealthy, free, and independent future together!
Wishing you the best of luck with the launch of the community! If you need any ideas for weekly discussion threads or post flairs to get things organized, just let me know.