Despite the fact that some experts consider Italian real estate market the worst in the world, the country offers good prospects for investors. Property prices in Italy have dropped by 5.1% over the last year, which is one of the worst performances out of 55 countries surveyed by Knight Frank. But this only plays intobuyers’ hands, because every fall is always followed by a period of growth, when it will be profitable to sell or rent out property.
Over the period from the third quarter of 2012 to the third quarter of 2013 the Italian market performedpoorly with only Hungarian (-5.6%), Cyprian (-5.9%), Greek (-9.1%), Spanish (12%) and Croatian (-19.7%) markets being in even worse state.
However, Italy has not lost its appeal. According to the Eurostat report, in a year 2012, 370 thousand people moved to Italy making it the second most attractive behind Germany. As soon as the next year the population of Italy may exceed an important psychological level of 60 million people.
For comparison, people leave countries where real estate becomes cheaper, such as Spain and Greece. As a result of migration processes in 2012 Spain lost 162 thousand people, Greece - 44 thousand people, Croatia - 4 thousand people, and Cyprus lost 0.6 thousand people.
Sardinia
Demand for Italianluxury real estate also remains high. The country has been and is a symbol of fashion, style, respectability and a great holiday destination.
In Savills’ global resort rating 2013 Italy is represented by three regions. Costa Smeralda (Emerald Coast) located on the north of Italian Sardinia holds the second place in the list of "elitest of elite" resorts in the world. Costa Smeralda lost only to the French Riviera in the rating. Como Lake in northern Italy took 10th place, and Venice occupiedthe 17th. Savills experts have calculated that if a 5 bedroom villa on the Cote d'Azur costs €20.7 million, in Sardinia, the second most popular resort of the world, a similar property will be only €8.4 million.
This autumn portal ee24.com has published several articles on real estate in Italy. We found out where arethe most prestigious apartments in Rome; what Sardinian resorts are the most popular among the rich; how prices in Venice depend on the district; what to buy in Liguria, Lombardy, and Piedmont. In addition, ee24.com materials can give information about the benefits of ski resorts in the Italian Alps.
Breakdown of articles on Italy by regions was really necessary because, unlike some other countries, property prices and life quality varies greatly from region to region. Obviously, the industrial northclosely tied with neighboring Switzerland, Austria and France is a much more developed place than the agrarian south, which can offer leisurely life and beach holidays.
When looking at the Italian real estate prices map, first of all you’ll notice striking expensiveness ofcoastal regions in the north-west washed by the Ligurian and Tyrrhenian Sea. From the other hand, real estate priceson the east coast of Italy washed by the Adriatic Sea are moderate.The cheapest property in Italy is situated in the south, Molise, Puglia (the heel of the boot), Calabria (the toe of the boot) and on the island of Sicily.
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So, the most expensive real estate is in Liguria (€3,473 per sq.m). This coast is often referred to as the Italian Riviera. Besides the capital and Genoa (€2,346 per sq.m), Liguria is famous for such resorts of San Remo (€3,764 per sq.m), Portovenere (€4,397 per sq.m), and Portofino (a godsend for those who want to emphasize their status, €16,492 per sq.m).
Portofino
The second place doesn’t go to Rome or Venice regions; it goes to Valle d'Aosta, a smallautonomous region in the north-west of the country. Firstly, it is on the border with France, so people speak both Italian and French. Secondly, Valle d'Aosta is a home for huge number of top-class ski resorts. Mont Blanc, the highest mountain in Western Europe, is located here. No wonder that real estate in this region of Italy costs an average of €3,298 per square meter, and in the commune of Courmayeur at the foot of Mont Blanc it goes up to €6,741 per sq.m.
The third most expensive region of Italy is the capital region of Lazio (€3,069 per sq.m). Real estate in the province of Rome isusually €3,276 per sqmwhereas houses and apartments in Rome itself cost €3,833 per sq.m. To find out, which area of Rome is the best to buy an apartment in, and which is the cheapest, read the article at ee24.com.
Rome
High prices can also be found in such Alpine areas asTrentino - Alto Adige,Tuscany, and Sardinia. But what about people who don’t have a bunch of money but still really want to move to Italy?
Affordable housing in Italy can be found in a southern region, Calabria (€1,223 per sq.m).Communication with major cities and neighboring countries will be somewhat hampered, but summer and winterin the south of Italy is much warmer, so, the beach season lasts longer too.In the province of Reggio Calabria, that is on the very tip of the peninsula, near Sicily, housing can be sold at as low as €1,106 per sq.m.
Calabria
By the way, a house or apartment on Sicily itself can be purchased for €1,595 per sq.m. However, this applies tosmall towns and rural areas; the island's capital Palermo square meter is worth €1,908.
Another region with inexpensive real estate in Italy is Molise. A square meter costs €1,408, and €1,569 in the regional capital of Campobasso.
Average prices for apartments in the regions of Italy are practically identical to overall real estate prices. In some places they are slightly lower, in other - a little higher. For example, housing in Lazio costs €3,069 per sq.m and apartments cost €3,300 per sq.m. In Liguria, where villas on the coast carry the price, the situation is opposite: housing in general costs €3,473 per sq.m and apartments cost €3,350 per sq.m.
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Summing up we should note again the heterogeneity of Italy. Attractive Liguria, Tuscany and Lazio clearly outperform the southern regions. Prices in the most "expensive" region are nearly three times as high as in the "cheapest" Italian region.
Text: Alexander Fetyukov, ee24.com