Jos Deuling,  Thursday, 3 October 2013

House-hunting in Italy, regions with low house prices.

This article is part of a series of 8 articles about buying property in Italy. The other articles in the series cover the following topics:

Property Buying Guide
Finding a Good Estate Agent and their Role
Buying Process
Documents needed
Costs
Taxes and Charges
Practical tips for applying for an Italian mortgage

, and are popular Italian regions for buying a house or second home. On the map of Italy, they lie in the middle. A house in Tuscany is quite pricey. In Umbria and Marche houses also are not cheap. Experts say that is an upcoming region. For me, Apulia is not a region where I would go on vacation but acquaintances of mine have been there twice last year.

Regions, which are further from the center, are less popular than Tuscany and Umbria. Examples include the , , , , and and . However, these regions are particularly attractive for foreigners who want to buy a holiday home :

1. These are disadvantaged regions with little industrialization, pollution and tourism.
2. Local government focuses on protecting the environment. It focuses on small-scale tourism and promoting local products.
3. Traditions of architecture, cuisine, folk customs and dialects have been preserved. They are real, authentic Italian regions.
4. There is a rich variety of local building styles and materials.
5. Of many cities and towns, the old town center survived. Much has been restored. These restorations are partially funded by the European Union.
6. It welcomes the arrival of foreigners. People think it is beneficial for the local economy.
7. Houses and land are still cheap.

Price Fighters like and have unlocked these regions with cheap airfares and many regional destinations. RyanAir, for example, flies to Pescara (Abruzzo, Molise) Turin (Aosta Valley), Trieste (Friuli-Venice Giulia) and Lamezia (Calabria, Basilicata).

House prices by region

The prices in Abruzzo are 30 to 70% lower than in Tuscany. Inland a farm or village house with 3 bedrooms will cost around 100,000 euro (plus 100,000 euro in renovation costs). Homes closer to the coast are 2 or 3 times as expensive.

Molise is extraordinarily cheap. There is hardly any tourism. Interesting for buyers seeking the authentic Italy. O You can own a beautiful and comfortable village house for around 100,000 euro. A farm with sea view and olive trees cost around 200,000 euro.

The Aosta Valley is attractive for people who want an apartment in the Alps. The region borders the premier ski resorts in France (Chamonix) and Switzerland (Verbier). Compared with France and Switzerland, house prices are low. A basic flat is for sale from 150,000 euro. The ski season runs from November to April. Just an up and down weekend for skiing is no problem. Fly to Turin with Rynair and from Turin, a one hour drive to your destination.

In Friuli-Venice Giulia, the houses are fairly cheap. Many Italians from the Veneto region buy a second home here. There are more and more foreign buyers from Germany, Austria, Croatia and Russia. They buy mainly apartments with air conditioning, balcony and close to the beach. These apartments cost around 120,000 euro. Friuli-Venice Giulia faces competition from nearby Slovenia, where prices are much lower.

Basilicata is in southern Italy located just above Calabria. It is a sparsely populated region famous for its cave dwellings in Sassi di Matera. The local government provides 50% subsidy on a renovation of a cave home in late Sassi di Matera. The houses in Basilicata are also cheap. A renovation object in the interior costs as little as 50,000 euro.

In Calabria, there has been an increase in prices in recent years. There is a strong demand for holiday apartments on the coast with air conditioning. Quite a lot of tourist complexes have been built in the last couple of years. An apartment complex in a complex costs between 100,000 euro and 200,000 euro. It is said that you have recouped your purchase within 10 years if you rent your apartment in high season. In the mountains, you can still get a bungalow or cottage from 70,000 euro, but it can also be quite cold up there.

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Landscape with old farm near Siena in Tuscany