In order to avoid loss of view, Terje Rød-Larsen in 2019 secured a large plot in front of the luxury villa that had just been completed on the island of Paxos. The purchase was paid from a Greek bank account. The price is “remarkably high”, according to local sources.
It is Dagens Næringsliv that has revealed the hitherto unknown land purchase on the Greek island of Paxos. The plot measures six decares and cost 490,000 euro, with an additional eight per cent in tax and fees.
The price is, according to DN’s local sources on Paxos, “remarkably high”.
The purchase of the neighbouring plot in front of the property secured Rød-Larsen and Juul against unsightly construction in front of the two swimming pools. (Photo: Paxos Retreats/private)
The year before, the two former diplomats, with the assistance of Jeffrey Epstein as intermediary, had secured the purchase of shipping owner Morits Skaugen’s fashionable apartment in Oslo for 14 million kroner. That transaction is now under investigation by Økokrim.
Paid in instalments from Greek bank
The additional plot on Paxos lies directly in front of the villa and slopes steeply down towards the sea.
According to documents to which DN has gained access, the purchase was paid from Rød-Larsen’s account in the Greek bank Piraeus Bank. The payment took place in several instalments: two transfers of 50,000 euro each in December 2019, followed by ten payments of between 25,000 and 45,000 euro throughout 2020.
The property on which the villa was erected has not been mortgaged or pledged as security for loans.
It is the property from the shoreline and upwards that it has now been revealed that Rød-Larsen and Juul purchased at an unusually high price in 2019. (Photo: Paxos Retreats/private)
Rød-Larsen’s lawyer, John Christian Elden, informs DN that the property in Greece has been financed with his own funds, and that both the property and the rental income are taxed in the usual manner.
According to an article in Financial Times, building on the island is four times more expensive than on the mainland, because all materials and machinery must be transported out by boat.
Extreme rental price
The 230-square-metre stone villa with two infinity pools in the garden, which is called Villa Pax, is now offered for rent through the rental company Paxos Retreats. The price is set at a minimum of 25,000 kroner per day. It is the highest price in the rental company’s portfolio.
While most of the villas cost a few hundred euro per night, the most expensive are rented out for well under half of Rød-Larsen’s villa.
“Villa Pax”, as it is promoted for rental on the Greek property agent’s website. (Screenshot from Paxosretreats.com)
In recent years, Paxos has attracted wealthy European buyers. In 2022, Financial Times described the island as a place where the super-rich pay ever higher prices for holiday properties and where conflicts have arisen over scarce resources such as water and electricity.
Both Rød-Larsen and Juul have previously maintained that they have not committed any criminal offence.
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