Fun Facts from an Italian Realtor
In mid-February, while everyone in the U.S. was getting ready for the Super Bowl, I was in Rome, Italy. I had the pleasure of speaking with a long-time friend of the Resources Real Estate brokerage, Diletta Giorgolo, who is the Head of Residential at Italy's Sotheby's International Realty. I learned some very interesting facts about Real Estate in Italy that I thought you might enjoy learning too.
First, Italy has one of highest rates of homeownership in all of Europe, and much higher than the ownership rates that we experience in the U.S. Over 75% of the population in Italy owns their own home, compared to only 65% of the U.S. population who are homeowners.
Secondly, property taxes in Italy are quite low compared to the U.S. and the U.K., making Italy a top-spot for second homes among foreigners. The property tax rate is less than one-percent at 0.62% of the assessed value of the property. Diletta explained that the tax assessed value of residential real estate is much lower than the "fair market" value, which makes a home purchase in Italy a solid financial decision for many high-end homeowners. According to Diletta, a great majority of the homebuyers in the Tuscany region were foreigners. Most of the foreign people purchasing homes in Italy are paying cash for the property.
I have been curious about the "Buy a House in Italy for 1 Euro" or "This Italian Town will Pay you to Buy a House"articles that I have seen floating around the Internet for the last few years, so I decided to discuss it with Diletta. She explained that these articles and offers are true, but there is a catch. Most of the properties that are for sale with these schemes are in very remote areas with desperately low populations. As a result, she has heard several successful stories where groups of friends have purchased houses at the same time in these remote areas, so that they can all vacation together in their new homes each year. In addition, the home purchase plans require that buyers complete all necessary repairs and renovations within two calendar years from the purchase date. Italian building codes are very strict, according to Diletta, so foreign buyers need to rely heavily on real estate agents and special State-approved attorneys for recommendations on the builders and other home-service professionals to hire for the project.
Reception Rome at Sotheby’s Rome
I, myself, have a "bucket-list" dream to buy a property in Italy one day so I also asked Diletta about any restrictions on short-term rentals. She said that typically there are no restrictions on short-term rentals of at least one month, even in condominium buildings in cities. However, the AirBnB style rentals may be restricted. Diletta also mentioned that quite a few foreign homebuyers rent out their properties when they are not using them. There are specialized property management firms who manage short term rentals for foreign landlords.
I was so happy to have the opportunity to vacation in Italy, this winter. Rome, in particular, was a lovely 60 degrees and sunny, without crowds of other tourists like there are in the summer. It was also cool to learn about the Italian Real Estate market, and to see that my dream of owning a home there one day may actually be possible.
