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ajwathen
  4/17/2017 00:47 EST

It is pretty flat in most places so it is definitely a buyers market. The area I live in has some great value properties, a lot of expats and friendly locals. The crime is low compared to the south and you still get the clean, country feel, with friendly locals, a lot of whom speak English or at least try. I live in the mountainous part of Tuscany which is great for outdoor activities, and is close enough to Pisa to fly anywhere in Europe in a short time. It's still a great region to live in.

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codybrandy
  4/17/2017 04:35 EST

Here in Liguria property moves very slowly...years go by even for nice, clean looking places with what an American would call very reasonable prices. In my (humble) opinion the realtors are not as motivated or dynamic as those in the US and the Italian seller may not be savvy to the 'tricks' of selling...good photos, tidy house, nice paint job, curb appeal and advertise like crazy on the internet. So, wouldn't this be called a buyers market? A buyer ready to see the possibilities and able to negotiate the price with the seller might be able to find a special property for a very good price. Just for instance: Here in our pretty little hill town (20 easy minutes from the 5Terre) there is a lovely little newish cottage for E60K with good land to expand, on the end of a cul-de-sac. As is, it would be a wonderful weekend getaway for a small family...double it's size and it could be a lovely home. P.S. Of course the closer you get to the water...the prices soar. On the coast that cottage would be c. E300K and up. Good luck.

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ajwathen
  4/17/2017 05:02 EST

The market is pretty flat all over Italy from what I've been told. I have had my house listed with several agents and I have to agree with codybrandy, the agents are not very serious about selling or marketing. The glut of sales in the early years made the agents a lot of money. Now the country is on an economic downturn, they seem to have lost interest and direct their energies elsewhere, more so because of Brexit. I don't even think they are marketing to other European countries that much. I took my house off the market to do some work to make it more saleable and have re-listed it with just two agents that seem more active here in Tuscany. The area still attracts a lot of expats as the prices are much lower than they used to be. The mountainous area is less famous but none the less still very beautiful and great to live in. The locals are very friendly and make an effort to get to know you, especially if you make the effort to learn the language. I have moved to the States because of work needs, otherwise I would still be there in a heartbeat.

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ajwathen
  4/17/2017 05:09 EST

I agree with you about the agents. I had my house listed with many of the local agents but took it off because of the lack of interest or push by them. They could learn a thing or several from agents here in the States about marketing and networking. They seem to treat it as a sideline or hobby rather than a career. I have recently relisted it with a couple of better, more motivated parties. Hopefully that will work.

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rsetzer99
  4/17/2017 05:33 EST

As everywhere, it is location, location, location. Some areas will always be quite pricy, and others, such as my Abruzzo region, continue to offer bargains.

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codybrandy
  4/17/2017 06:02 EST

Also...good for day dreaming is: http://www.gate-away.com. They have a weekly newsletter and a pretty good idea of price to area.

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equitraveler
  4/17/2017 12:26 EST

We live in the Alessandria province of Piemonte, in a small hilltop town (700 people and we in our 60s brought down the average age). To my knowledge the only house for sale is a place we share a wall with. 3 stories, one room wide, 2 rooms deep, bad roof, super steep stairs, squat toilet - so in need of full remodel. Owner wants 40k euro, but according to our geometra it is worth at most 20k. Been for sale for 3 years. Conversely, 8 km s in Acqui Terme, the real estate market is busy, and prices are high compared to what I have read on this thread - houses with yards going for 350K to 900k, apartments of 180 m2 at 200k. I think that much of Piemonte is more expensive than further south.

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lindanoto
  4/17/2017 14:14 EST

Location is still key. Our part of southeast Sicily has been having a lot of activity but you have to be in the right spot, sea views.
I love when people comment about the crime in the "south". South of where ,I don't know but apart from parts of Catania we are in one of the lowest crime areas in all of Italy . Crime against stranieri is almost unheard of

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codybrandy
  4/17/2017 14:23 EST

But you have Montalbano on scene! Kidding aside Sicily is lovely and few people realize it's magic. We live in the north but can't wait to visit again...subito, subito.

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lindanoto
  4/18/2017 04:53 EST

Maybe too many. I live on a dead end ,private road and ended up slowly picking up the abutting properties just to be able to have no future possibility of neighbors.

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Sergios
  4/18/2017 11:13 EST

I don't find crime in Palermo any better or worse than any place else in Italy. I do find the police to be a hell of a lot friendlier than in the states.
Also, understand that Italy is a different society than the USA. In America people move often so the market is much more active. In Italy, family homes tend to stay in the family. This is slowly changing buf not fully yet.

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gongi
  4/25/2017 11:04 EST

From a buyer point of view, I've been looking for an apartment in the last 6 months or so, northern of Rome, steel amazed with the Italian agents, on average I get a response on every third request, even then they won't follow it, will wait for you to re-apply, I really can't understand it, seems to me a matter of mentality..

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codybrandy
  4/25/2017 17:14 EST

Dear gongi, How far north of Rome...2 agencies I used years ago handle lower Liguria and northern Tuscany. They are www.larchitrave.com in Liciana Nardi and www.lunigiana2000.com in Aulla. Both were energetic and very helpful. They have stunning webites and both traveled all over with me showing me homes....I originally wrote to them from the US and then made appointments with them with lists of houses from their sites to visit. I was impressed...you are right tho...many Italian realtors are not the kind we are so used to in the states. Good luck

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guestuser
  4/25/2017 23:18 EST

The other thing to be aware of is the differences in fees (real estate agent, notaio, etc.) I just talked to an agent about an apartment and the subject of fees came up (without taking a mortgage); he said about 10%. I asked an Italian friend who just bought an apartment and she said that is double what she paid in fees when she bought an apartment just two months ago and suggested that he was trying to overcharge me. I recommend that folks find their own reputable notaio (not just use the one the agent recommends unless that person is known to be reputable) and a good agent, again one that is reputable. Compare fees and be sure to understand exactly what those fees cover.

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gongi
  4/26/2017 03:21 EST

Thanks Codi,
We are looking in northern Lazio, mainly in Viterbo province..
The agencies you mentioned really have nice sites, though not the area we are looking in..
One thing that bothers me a lot is that most of the apartments I see on sites are literally empty, some of it without the kitchen..
I don't have a time to select & install a kitchen, the apartment intended to be for holiday, we want to come there 2-3 times a year.
The same thing for furniture, only few contains it..

Thanks,
Gongi

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maluza86
  4/26/2017 03:34 EST

Gongi,

Unlike in the US (or other countries), most apartments, even rentals, do not come with kitchens in Italy. It's also not unusual for someone to take their kitchen with them when they leave. We recently purchased a brand new apartment and the kitchen was not included in the price...we put it in separately.

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guestuser
  4/26/2017 03:41 EST

I agree. I have a friend who is looking to rent an unfurnished apartment in the city center here and every one she has looked at has no kitchen, although some did have a free-standing sink unit in place. In Italy, I believe kitchen cabinets are considered part of the owner's "furniture." It's interesting when renting apartments because the owners might have decided to leave their old kitchen in place when they moved, but it often explains why some layouts are a bit odd; the kitchen they brought with them didn't quite fit the space since no two kitchens have the same dimensions.

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Umbertomar
  4/26/2017 03:56 EST

There are different fee/tax structures for real estate transactions for residents and non residents, as well as buying and /or improving one's first house in Italy. On the purchase side,, for a first house in Italy, the transaction costs are below 2%. Realtors fees are a different story- 4% is what I know. In addition, some lawyers help to buy without realtor's fees.
The lawyer can also help in the reseach of an apartment or villa avoiding the real estate agents fee (3-4%); it’s also possible to buy from the Court Auctions, saving up to 60-70% compared to the market value.

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JMN57
  8/31/2018 14:38 EST

This reply is a little tardy (relative to original date) and also someone implies this below but, for future reference, people should know that the taxes and fees one would pay depend a lot on whether you are residing in Italy or not and whether the home is primary or not. Depending on those the fees can be very low or 10%. In my opinion, an Italian who is not in the real estate business may not realize this and therefore would interpret the fees quote cynically when they are real.

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foxwhite1
  9/1/2018 09:16 EST

I know the original post was made more than a year ago, but I suspect the market may be just as stagnant in some areas of Italy as it was over a year ago. Which brings me to the observation that if one is looking to immigrate to Italy would it not be wise to rent for a year or two instead of buying a property that one may not be able to sell for years?

All the research in the world is not as good as living in a community for a good period as a resident, not a vacationer? So that all the pros and cons of that area - your neighbors, the weather or any other 'thing' that may make you question your decision would be revealed. That bucolic mountain locale that is so pleasant in the summer may seem like a prison in the winter, or that beachside apt may be jammed packed with tourists all summer long....just a thought.

As much as we have thought about buying, we have decided to not commit to an area until we are absolutely sure it is where we want to be and can feel truly at home, so will rent for a few years.

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Sergios
  9/1/2018 09:48 EST

We came to Italy with no intention of buying a house. Besides what Foxwhite1 said, which I emphatically agree with, part of the concept of retiring for me was to break the shackles. A house is the biggest one there is. What if we decide that the area that we moved to was not for us, what then? That is what happened. Palermo is a great city in many respects and has some very friendly warm people too. But, but, but July and August are spent sitting in one's underwear in front of a fan. The beach, which is 5 minutes walk, is covered, literally, with tourists and Palermitani. Forget taking the car out, parking spaces are like hens teeth. I am also unhappy about the tyranny of tradition. Food here is traditional. Good luck finding stuff that does not fit that description. For this and other reasons, we are leaving Sicily, in fact Italy, and moving to Brittany. I'm sure there are going to be things that we find objectionable and if there are too many, we will go someplace else. After all, we are not buying a house there either, unless we find it to be perfect.

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Umbertomar
  9/1/2018 13:10 EST

From my point of view, this makes perfect sense. We rented for 3 years in three different locations (not far apart.)
We finally knew where we wanted to be, having lived in the town for a year and near by for two. We waited for an apartment that met our requirements to go up for sale and bought it. We knew some of our neighbors before the purchase

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Grintosa
  9/4/2018 16:20 EST

How is it possible to list with 2 agents at the same time? How does that work? I can see why an agent would not invest in nice photography etc. if another agent could get the commission.

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PMBLEX
  9/19/2018 13:11 EST

I am a lawyer, and I am Ligurian …..

but…….

https://www.angloitalianlaw.com/blog/how-to-buy-a-house-in-italy-liguria-and-pray-st-george-or-st-edmund/

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