Paul Hudson is our director responsible for property search and acquisitions in Italy. Below are a selection of articles and features he has appeared in, commenting and giving opinion on the Italian property market.
Buy quality in locations with historic appeal; the days when buying an estate in Tuscany for pocket money are long gone, but what Italy does have are quality locations which may not offer the short term return of a castle in the remotest nook of eastern Europe, but they do have great long term appeal and hence stability in terms of value. These are the type of locations that... are only going to become more valuable as time goes on; they form part of Italy’s heritage and are limited in number.
Country Life
Oltrepo is genuinely undiscovered by non-Italian tourists or buyers. Unspoilt and exceptionally tranquil, especially further south towards the mountains. No one I have dealt with in the Oltrepo property industry attempts to speak in English and the whole thing works on a pretty ad hoc basis, mainly by word of mouth. In more visited parts of Italy they have been forced to gear up to foreign buyers’ expectations to some extent but not so here yet.
An Undiscovered Countryside - The Financial Times
While Lombardy 'is too frequently overlooked in favour of Tuscany, it is an area worth considering, particularly now that San Pellegrino's fortunes are on the up. As well as the stunning lakes and snow-capped Alps, the region is home to a handful of beautiful historic towns such as Mantova, Como and the medieval walled town of Bergamo. Prices increased by 30-40 per cent in the past year and once the new developments take shape, values should rise further.
San Pellegrino Terme - The Daily Mail
Pinocchio came unstuck of course because although he had a bag of gold coins, once the cat and the fox had had a chat, he was convinced he could become truly rich investing in their hole in the ground. Do not buy in Italy using the same rationale. As detailed above, the market, historically, doesn't lose hugely, in fact pre-crisis, it had a healthy habit of going up, but not spectacularly. Buy in Italy because you actually want to enjoy visiting/living in the country.
Stability in the Italian market - Country Life
If you buy a Tuscan property, or invest around the northern lakes and Venice, you’ll stay stable throughout a crisis. However. this is not a speculative market: you won’t lose money and you’ll make a small return over the years. But you need to buy the house because you want to enjoy it. A good rule of thumb is: buy where the Italians buy.
Buying into Stability with a well-priced Tuscan property - CityAm
Venice ticks all the boxes for property ownership: a perennially sought-after location offering solid capital appreciation, good rental opportunity and a lovely place to live....there has been a trend over recent years to buy a large palazzo and split it into flats but cautions anyone intending to do this that the restrictions on building work can be very stringent.
Buying Venice Property Becomes Easier - Homes Overseas
The Italian property market has not behaved as a mirror image of the UK or Spain. There hasn't been a wholesale collapse and no one was predicting one in 2008, nor are they doing so now.
Buying Property Abroad - The Guardian
The second or holiday-home market has, at least in some areas, performed even better than the first house or prima casa market.
Italian property market favours buyers - HiFx News
