Posts Tagged ‘Italy’

Anyone seeking a heavenly Italy property investment may want to consider renovating an old church, it has been claimed.

Churches are in high demand by those seeking Italy property, according to estate agents GK Italian Property, with the finest examples often hidden away in lesser-know rural communities, making them ripe for investment.

The firm’s Gemma Knowles tells the Telegraph: "Even the tiniest hamlets have a chapel […] In Tuscany, the most expensive area, unrenovated stand-alone churches cost from £450,000 while those that are part of an estate or another property will cost from £1 million.

"[However], in regions such as Puglia or Abruzzo it’s possible to find unrenovated churches from as little as £130,000."

She adds that providing a church has been deconsecrated, Italy property hunters will have little difficulty securing the planning permission needed to begin performing their religious conversion.

Puglia is located on the southern ‘heel’ of Italy and is famous for providing the majority of the country’s olive oil, wine and pasta.

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People seeking Italy property as a holiday investment may be interested to know that British employers are reportedly becoming more accommodating over holiday dates.

As new research revealsthat many employees choosing an Italy property for their holiday this year will take their work with them, John Lewis and Waitrose claimed the culture change had resulted in increased holiday flexibility from employers.

James Furse, John Lewis and Waitrose director of card services, said: "I think now people are a lot more flexible in how they choose to work and live their lives.

"There is much more mobility in when people take holidays. People don’t just take the summer holiday as two weeks in the summer - it could be two weeks in December."

A recently-published study from Hotels.com found that British employees on holiday will spend up to a billion hours of their vacation time each year working.

Meanwhile, 55 per cent of those on holiday in Italy properties this year will find it impossible not to check in with the office at least once, according to the figures.

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Italy property at the higher end of the price spectrum can yield excellent returns for investors, it has been claimed.

Linda Travella, of Italy property estate agent Casa Travella, states that a competitive property market and continued tourist interest in the country mean that holiday rental investments in popular areas are a safe investment for Italy property buyers.

Ms Travella told easier.com: "If you purchase in an area that is sought after by holiday makers […] you can […] rent out the property when you are not using it yourself.

"A two bedroom apartment close to the lakes can realise as much as 800 euros per week in high season based on a property that has cost you in the region of 280,000 euros."

Further benefits of investing in Italy property include a short flight time from the UK, effective infrastructure and the excellent standard of food and wine, according to the website.

The popular Calabria coastal region was recently recommended for beach lovers seeking southern Italy property by write-about-propety.com.

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The popular Calabria region has been recommended as a perfect location for anyone seeking an Italy property on the coast.

The region is particularly recommended to those who would prefer to purchase Italy property out-with the country’s main cities and is cited as having the potential to prove a very profitable investment for house buyers, write-about-propety.com states.

Calabria is situated on the ‘heel’ of Italy’s southern region and is bordered on three sides by a steeply upward-sloping coastline, providing impressive panoramic views of the ocean.

A further appeal of the region for anyone seeking Italy property is the relatively low asking prices for houses in the region, according to the website.

It claims anyone buying Italy property in the Calabria locale will also benefit from the area’s increasing popularity with tourists and capital appreciation, which is estimated to rise by between 15 and 20 per cent in the next few years.

An increasing number of Brits are choosing to rent out Italy property while holidaying at home themselves in order to benefit from the extra income, according to Domegos.co.uk.

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The number of Brits electing to holiday at home during the recession is leading to bargain rentals for those wishing to trial Italy property, it has been claimed.

Recent statistics from Domegos.co.uk have shown a 157 per cent increase in holiday homes entering the rental market, meaning those wishing to experience life in an Italy property may be spoiled for choice.

Co-founder and director of Domegos.co.uk Dennis Klett commented: "Many people have a house abroad […] [and] they have more incentive to rent it out, to make some money, to cover the costs.

"Europe has been a huge market for a long time. [In] countries like Denmark or Germany, renting out a holiday home is a common thing […] our strongest market is UK, Germany and Italy currently, and Spain."

The company’s research fits with recent statistics published by Travelodge, which showed that only 27 per cent of Brits are planning to holiday abroad this year.

Visit Rightmove Overseas for the best selection of Italy property. Stop dreaming, start searching!

Italy property hunters may like to consider a home in one of Italy’s "hidden treasures".

The Guardian reports Ferrara is as history-rich as the neighbouring city of Florence, yet has none of the coach parties that can overwhelm the popular tourist hot spot.

House hunters will find themselves inside "a well-nigh perfectly preserved medieval and Renaissance city, with barely a car or a tourist to be seen" just an hour-and-a-half bus ride from Florence.

Other local areas of historical beauty include Mantua, Verona and Padua.

Ferrara is host to several churches, cloisters and convents which add a spiritual air to the town.

Author Sarah Dunant was visiting the town and in particular the convents to research her new novel.

She recommended visiting the 17 elderly nuns of Corpus Domini to be guided through the inner workings of the convent and listen to them sing public vespers.

In 1995, Ferrara was added to the UNESCO world heritage list.

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Northern Tuscany is place which is "impossible" to visit without searching for an Italian property.

Author Roma Tearne wrote an article for the Times enthusing about the delights of the Italian region following her recent travels with her husband there.

He was interested in experiencing a part of Italy that is off the beaten track and away from the main horde of tourists.

Roma said: "After two days of hill walking…and noticing the extraordinarily iridescent wild orchids, we began to feel our hectic life in England disappear."

She was on the hunt for a new home for the pair of them.

Several adventures through the rough and authentic Italian towns and villages of Tuscany finally brought the pair to a small village on the Passo della Cisa where they spotted an empty, neglected house cluttered with roses, wild thyme and a garden of fig trees.

The Times states that Roma now owns an Italian property in Northern Tuscany.

Some of the art spots which may draw Brits to relocate to Italy in the region include Florence, Lucca, Pisa and Siena.

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A British expat living in Tuscany, Italy has been telling the Telegraph how to enjoy the simple things in life.

Emma Williams told the newspaper that a recent visit to Italy from her parents had made her wake up and appreciate what she had.

She said: I noticed simple things that made me smile - the things that made me move to this part of Italy in the first place."

Things such as the reflection of the sun bouncing off the river, the way people in her village smile and wave when they recognise her and the sight of a woman embroidering on her doorstep.

However, the good comes with bad, which has made Emma even happier about the good. The fact sarcasm is not understood by Italians and that the post comes only once a week only contribute to her experience of living in Tuscany.

Tuscany is located in central Italy and has the famous city of Florence as its capital.

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Italy property seekers can pick up bargains in inland areas of Liguria, which itself offers less expensive homes than the nearby Azur across the border in France, it has been stated.

The region is popular with Italians and is well suited for British buyers due to "regular flights into Genoa and Nice," Luca Catalano of estate agency RealItalia told the Independent.

Prices in this area - so far largely undiscovered by UK investors - can include £259,000 for a one-bedroom villa but are cheaper a little way inland, Italian property specialist Gemma Knowles stated.

She told the paper: "Nice apartments in towns can cost from around £215,000 while inland you can find homes in charming hilltop villages or farmhouses from around £130,000."

Such a prospect may be of interest to UK buyers looking for Italy property outside the traditional heartlands such as Umbria or Tuscany.

Real estate portal Mondinion.com recently reported that Italy is its most searched-for destination, with site founder Zoltan Baranyai stating that Toscana and Siciliana were the most popular places in the country.

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The Italy property market is seeing extra interest from British buyers thanks to the recent rise in the value of sterling, it has been stated.

Speaking to write-about-property.com, Tam Stanley of Calabrian-Property.com remarked that the region has seen a lot of pent-up demand being unleashed following the recent recovery of sterling.

He said that while this currency process has been going on since April, "it’s really only in the last three weeks that enquiries have started to increase and we are seeing a lot more people taking us up on inspection visits to Calabria".

Mr Stanley explained that the area has remained "stable" during the recent market downturn, due to prices never being overinflated and the government refusing to allow the area to become overdeveloped.

Sicily is another part of the Italy property scene that is increasingly popular with Britons, Country Life recently reported.

The magazine noted that the island has seen a large number of UK buyers investing there in the past two years, principally on the east side.

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