BUYING REAL ESTATE IN ITALY
Finding a property is a substantial and momentous step. And there are a lot of diverse criteria that need to be taken into account in order to make the right decision. The Italian real estate market provides a variety of options, regardless of whether you are looking for a place for a long or short term stay, or to purchase, for a property with a vibrant and well-developed city atmosphere, or a villa with a peaceful countryside feel, a compact and economic apartment, or a large and luxurious house – Italy has it all. Making your way through the pool of options, however, can be a challenge, especially for foreign prospective purchasers who may, at times, be unable to travel to Italy as often as they would wish. Making sure that the property is indeed compliant with all regulations from both a technical and legal point of view, is yet another frustration, and much more so for foreigners who are looking into purchasing a real estate unit. All challenging, and potentially hazardous, reasons, which make it vital for a prospective foreign buyer to be able to rely on the trustworthy, reliable help of a local advisor well-acquainted with the perks of the local market, to assist in his/her property search.

Italy: real estate market suggestions and tips
Italian real estate market is huge. As regards the internet, it definitely provides websites with rich databases, whereby a collection of all kinds of properties, available for both rent and purchase, can be found. Such platforms are useful as they provide a large-scale understanding of the market, by offering a variety of distinct options at one place. Some of them may also comprise videos or presentations of the properties in order to make the visualization easier, especially for potential clients who, coming from abroad, might not be able to physically visit the property. In order to ensure a fruitful and efficient search in them, however, you have to narrow down your options by choosing the parameters that correspond to your needs. Most platforms would typically provide the option to select a desired city or region, a given location within that place, type of property, number of rooms, size of the property area, and budget. More specific searches might also involve marking whether or not the property is to be furnished, on which floor shall it be, what is its preferred heating and cooling system, the desired geographical orientation of the property, amenities, etc. Among the most popular such websites are casa.it, tecnocasa.it, idealista.it, immobiliare.it.
Another option is to start your search by looking at a more focused platform, something closer to your needs, from the beginning. This would include choosing a website that specifically lists properties, suitable for a given purpose or target audience, or properties only in one specific region. In that way the search has already been narrowed and there is the possibility that you are looking at properties which are more likely to correspond to your specific needs and are the best for that distinguished category. Examples for such would be platforms, offering properties for short-term stays, such as Airbnb, or looking at rooms and units, suitable for students, such as StudentsVille. In addition, such websites would also typically give you additional information, useful for the given target – for example, tourist rides and experiences on Airbnb, or articles about the university culture and lifestyle on Studentsville.
Finally, if you already know which your dream Italian region is, carrying out your property search on websites focused on that specific region might be a good idea. This way, in fact, you can rely on professionals, who have a very good knowledge of the local market and its perks and trends, and can be helpful throughout your search with their network of contacts and expertise. Proficient in their field the agents can help you though the different phases that follow the finding of the right property – such as drafting of a due diligence report, examination of all required documents, closing of the deal, provision of taxation advice, construction and furnishing. An example of such a website is Apartments in Florence, which offers a great variety of properties in Tuscany Italy, for both purchase and rent in Florence and the Tuscany region. The site’s search engine offers properties, divided by categories, including holiday apartments, student apartments, luxury apartments, long-term stays, apartments with view, Tuscan villas, and family apartments. Man are the real estate opportunities in Tuscany. The search can be furthermore narrowed down to a specific location, budget, number of rooms, required amenities, or keywords. Finally, the site also contains a guestbook of short-term stays, where people who have previously rented this property can provide their comments on it.
Our services
Comprising highly qualified real estate agents, lawyers, accountants, architects and surveyors our expert team guides foreign investors through the whole process of purchasing a real estate asset in Italy smoothly.
In detail we can assist by:
- offering our insight and extensive network to facilitate foreign clients in their research, help them become familiar with the local real estate market, approach a real estate agency, and ultimately find the right property;
- providing due inspection of all preliminary documents, supplying translations to these, informing clients on the content. Documents we can handle include, but are not limited to: land register plans, energy rating certificates, certificates of habitability;
- completing a survey of the seller’s rights and solvency – in the case of a property, owned by a legal entity;
- ascertaining property rights and burdens on the property;
- carrying out on-site visits, studying the property and its plans;
- evaluating the property;
- offering an itemized summary of our findings in a technical and due diligence report;
- drafting a first offer, negotiating and ensuring successful deals in our client’s best interest;
- facilitating construction, renovation or furnishing works as needed/desired by our client;