Greece to sell off commercial property for debt relief

When the Greek government swapped land with a Byzantine monastery on a mountainous northern peninsula, the furor in 2008 over the price contributed to the defeat of Prime Minister Kostas Karamanlis a year later.

Finance Minister George Papaconstantinou aims to do a better job raising funds from state-owned properties with an estimated value of as much as 300 billion euros ($408 billion), equivalent to the national debt. First, he'll need to figure out what assets are in government hands, before competing with other debt-laden European countries for investors.

"The supply and demand dynamic for Greece isn't good right now," said Frances Hudson, who helps oversee about $242 billion as an equity strategist at Standard Life Investments in Edinburgh. Hudson would rather buy commercial real estate in Paris or Stockholm that would offer more predictable returns.

The European Union and International Monetary Fund, as well as German politicians who oppose bailing out Greece and local lawmakers, have urged the country to sell or lease Casinos, golf courses, airports and even islands to pay down debt and avoid a default. The EU, which led a 110 billion-euro rescue of the country in May, said in a December report that "sizable" proceeds could be generated this way.