Recanati, Macerata, Le Marche, Italy

The poet and philosopher Giacomo Leopardi is considered one of the best of the 19th century. He's recognized as a radical and unconventional thinker. He was from Recanati in Le Marche. His poems and his ideas, especially "L'Infinito", were derived in large part from the landscape that surrounded him, an area of Le Marche with sweeping views including the Adriatic Sea and the Apennine Mountains. His hometown, Recanati, to this day has a reputation for culture and refinement. There's an old Marche farmhouse near Recanati that, once you've restored it, will embody all the heritage of this culturally rich area. We call it CASA LEOPARDIANA...the house in the land of Leopardi.

Casa Leopardiana is the classic restoration candidate. There's lots of potential for special architectural touches. The exterior is classic old local brick. The roof line is elegant. Inside there are elegant arches waiting to be reborn in the restoration. The old floor tiles are the work of a long-ago artisan. There are old beams to recover. The house is easy easy to reach. It's close to one of Le Marche's best towns. It's not far from the beach. You can walk from it to a restaurant and grocery. And its views embody the emotion of L'Infinito, as you see majestic Monte Conero, the Adriatic Sea and the distant mountains, with rolling fields of sunflowers in-between.

Casa Leopardiana is a big enough to deliver any configuration that you need. At 300 sqm. you can easily get to 4 bedrooms and 3-4 bathrooms. The ground floor will be something special. The combination of big arches and vaulted ceilings with old pianella tiles and iron bands is truly unique and a rare find. You'll be able realize open-plan design with a nod to the original materials and heritage of the house. The first floor has sections of 4m high ceilings that will create quite an impression once restored.

The views from Casa Leopardiana are outstanding. The Adriatic Sea, Monte Conero on the coast and the Sibillini Mountains, part of the Apennine chain, and even the Gran Sasso in the distance, all the way south in Abruzzo. Multiple hill-top towns are visible in the view. The plot at Casa Leopardiana is a manageable 2,490 sqm., flat and easy to maintain. It's fully south-facing so the sun cover is perfect, all year long and ideal for siting a pool. There's also an outbuilding of 54 sqm. that you can restore to whatever end-use you'd like. You are also a short walk to a little pizzeria and grocery store.

Some practical considerations to note at Casa Leopardiana...importantly, a local technical team with decades of experience knows the house intimately and could be the perfect choice to oversee your restoration. The house has power and water running right to it, saving thousands in line fees. The house is close enough to town to be on the municipal gas line, affording significant savings on gas supply. The south facing plot means the house is a perfect candidate for "green tech" in the restoration including solar panels for hot water and photo-volt panels for electricity to power underfloor heating and cooling. Another consideration is that the property sits along a paved provincial road. This means that for buyers who want 24hr silence, this is probably not the house for you. For others it's a benefit with super-easy access, zero road maintenance costs, and immediate access to the elegant town of Recanati (4km) and the beaches of Porto Recanati (10km).

Recanati is special. Not only was it home to Leopardi, but also to the famed early 20th century tenor, Beniamino Gigli. It's no wonder, then, that Recanati is an elegant, culturally-rich hill-town, with art, music, poetry and all things cultural still a vibrant part of the town's fabric and daily life. In addition to Recanati and its coastal cousin Porto Recanati close-by are Porto Recanati, Potenza Picena, Montelupone and Loreto. Great places to eat and numerous award-winning vineyards are all nearby. Iconic Monte Conero is 25 minutes away and the Ancona Airport Is 30-35 minutes up the Autostrada.

So, if you're looking for inspiration for your Marche farmhouse restoration, what better place than Casa Leopardiana, the house in the land of Leopardi!