Cliffside houses overlooking the Ligurian coastline.
Real estate agent in Vicenza
Licensed realtor in northern Italy
Do's and Don'ts
Do
- decide your budget and make sure to include closing costs (about 10% of the total purchase price)
- make a list of your criteria — type (apartment, house, duplex), size, bedrooms, bathrooms, yard, garage, condition, energy rating etc.
- look online for listings that match your criteria and your budget — do you find any?
- be as flexible as possible, the more flexible you are, the more options you have
- know your dealbreakers—what you absolutely cannot live without
- know your priorities — which criteria are most important and which are least?
- identify the areas in Italy where you want to buy property as specifically as possible. Eg., good--the Veneto, better--Verona, best--downtown Verona
- know your timeframe—six months?, one year? longer?
- get your codice fiscale (Italian taxpayer ID code) before you begin your search
- do think about buying property in Italy like you're buying a used car—do your own due diligence
- contact me!
Don't
- rely solely on social media for your research—visit Italy as much as possible to do your research in person and talk with people who have bought property here
- believe everything you see or read on social media about buying property in Italy
- assume that everything works the same way in Italy as it does in your country, chances are that it doesn’t
- be as flexible as possible, the more flexible you are, the more options you have
- expect to see properties without signing a touring sheet or a buyer’s agent agreement beforehand
- rely on sellers to disclose all of their property’s issues—they won’t tell you what you need to know
- be afraid to ask questions about the condition of the property and the property’s records
- forget to consider your everyday needs like transportation and medical care when deciding on a geographic location
- focus only on the property itself — consider the surrounding neighbourhood
