After immigrating to Cyprus by purchasing a property, I moved to Paphos, and in the blink of an eye, it has been two years. During this time, I have gained a good understanding of the area, and many friends are interested in buying property here, so they often call to ask me about it. I welcome their inquiries, and in my spare time, I help them look at properties. The more I see, the more I understand, so I decided to write this to help more people from my country come here. This is a tourist destination in Cyprus, attracting approximately 3 million visitors each year. They come for both tourism and vacation, so they rent properties here. An apartment of about 80 square meters rents for 400 euros per month, of course, this is the long-term rental price. For short-term rentals, the daily price is around 100 euros. The rental return is very high.
The local government has regulations stating that buildings cannot exceed four stories. However, how is the fourth story calculated? The top four buttons display the levels as follows: 0, 1, 2, 3. If you exit the elevator from the third floor to the ground, there is a difference compared to domestic standards. You need to press the button for the ground floor. The ground floor is at ground level. Generally, the ground floor is used for parking. It resembles some rural small villas in certain parts of China. The ground floor not only serves as a garage but also provides each household with a storage room. This is, of course, referring to the structure of the apartments. There is another point; if you are accustomed to living in office buildings or large communities in China, you may find the local elevator lobbies quite different. Think about the large elevator lobbies in China, which can have over 20 floors and accommodate around 20 passengers. Here, the elevator lobby has a weight limit of 650 kg, accommodating a maximum of 8 people. Upon reflection, it makes sense because the population density is low, and having such large elevator lobbies is not necessary. This is also a case of adapting to local conditions and promoting energy conservation and environmental protection.
In Paphos, there are many houses, varying in age, location, and style. I helped a friend look at a second-hand duplex with a usable area of about 100 square meters, featuring a small yard, located in a community composed of about ten small buildings, with a modest swimming pool in the center. The owner of the house lived there for about two years before upgrading to a larger property and sold this smaller one at a discounted price to a real estate agent. There is a large gate facing the street, which connects to the small garden and pool within the community. Inside the house, the first floor has a large living room with a bar, and the bathroom and kitchen are also on this level. Climbing the wooden stairs to the second floor, there are two bedrooms and another bathroom. The house does not appear very old, but the community clearly shows signs of maturity, as the flowers and grass indicate they are not newly planted.
It is not difficult to notice a phenomenon here: every house, whether an apartment or a villa, has solar water heaters on the rooftops. The water heaters are quite interesting. Due to the abundant sunshine in Cyprus, every household installs a water heater on their roof, which is generally much larger than typical water heaters in China. In many of the houses we viewed, the bathing facilities include not only showers but also bathtubs. If hot water is insufficient, a family of three cannot take hot baths every day; they would have to schedule baths on alternate days.
The city of Paphos is not as flat as Beijing; some areas have significant elevation changes. Many houses are built on hillsides. Some villas are constructed halfway up the hill, while others are at the top. Most apartments are in clusters, and these villas and apartments may belong to different developers. Some developers have a distinct style, with all the houses featuring a uniform color scheme that is easily recognizable from a distance. This is, of course, a characteristic of large developers. Since this is a tourist destination, it needs to cater to visitors from various parts of the world, including the UK, Russia, Ukraine, Ireland, the Middle East, and so on, resulting in a variety of architectural styles. When Chinese people come, they have their preferences. Generally, mature communities with square-shaped houses and larger areas tend to align more with our tastes. Another type of villa we particularly like is one built halfway up a hill, with a valley behind it for support, and a view of the sea in front, overlooking the various villas of others. At night, as the lights come on, accompanied by the gentle sea breeze, gathering with family and friends to discuss the past and present offers a unique charm.