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by ontheotherhand 29.12.19 13:46You can still buy $1 homes all over Italy
While most good things get more expensive, one dream got ridiculously cheap in 2019 thanks to the rise of the €1 home in Italy.
CNN Travel broke the news 12 months ago that the village of Sambuca in southern Italy was selling off abandoned, dilapidated homes for just over a dollar as it tried to reverse a trend of rural depopulation.
The story quickly went viral, drawing global interest, particularly as other towns and villages from the northern Alps to sunny Sicily were attempting the same thing.
Soon, some of these towns found themselves besieged by buyers. Mayors fielded thousands of requests, websites crashed, sleepy villages were invaded and locals freaked out.
The silence of narrow alleys was broken by foreign voices and loud reporters. Dusty cobwebbed doors were unlocked for the first time in decades as people lined up early in the morning to secure an Italian casa dolce casa (home sweet home).
As CNN reported in November, some of the first buyers have already moved in and, for once, an offer that seemed too good to be true actually appears to have been worth it.
Below, we've rounded up the destinations still offering deals for anyone willing to commit to refurbishing a crumbling Italian home.
And if you're wondering how you get a slice of the action, here are a few pointers:
For starters, unless you know someone who's already on board and can advise, it's worth checking out the towns' official websites for listings of available properties and application form downloads.
Visiting the area to see what you're actually signing up for before closing the deal is a good move, though many buyers have grabbed their houses sight unseen.
If your application and documents are approved, the town will contact you regarding the next steps.
But remember the catch: buyers must pay a security deposit varying between €2,000 and €5,000 and commit to refurbishing the property within three years. Once it's complete and the purchase deed is made, the deposit is refunded.
Here's a round-up of destinations to help choose the right plac
A year later, has it all died down? Have all the bargain homes been snapped up?
Not quite. It's still possible to get in on the action.
While most good things get more expensive, one dream got ridiculously cheap in 2019 thanks to the rise of the €1 home in Italy.
CNN Travel broke the news 12 months ago that the village of Sambuca in southern Italy was selling off abandoned, dilapidated homes for just over a dollar as it tried to reverse a trend of rural depopulation.
The story quickly went viral, drawing global interest, particularly as other towns and villages from the northern Alps to sunny Sicily were attempting the same thing.
Soon, some of these towns found themselves besieged by buyers. Mayors fielded thousands of requests, websites crashed, sleepy villages were invaded and locals freaked out.
The silence of narrow alleys was broken by foreign voices and loud reporters. Dusty cobwebbed doors were unlocked for the first time in decades as people lined up early in the morning to secure an Italian casa dolce casa (home sweet home).
As CNN reported in November, some of the first buyers have already moved in and, for once, an offer that seemed too good to be true actually appears to have been worth it.
Below, we've rounded up the destinations still offering deals for anyone willing to commit to refurbishing a crumbling Italian home.
And if you're wondering how you get a slice of the action, here are a few pointers:
For starters, unless you know someone who's already on board and can advise, it's worth checking out the towns' official websites for listings of available properties and application form downloads.
Visiting the area to see what you're actually signing up for before closing the deal is a good move, though many buyers have grabbed their houses sight unseen.
If your application and documents are approved, the town will contact you regarding the next steps.
But remember the catch: buyers must pay a security deposit varying between €2,000 and €5,000 and commit to refurbishing the property within three years. Once it's complete and the purchase deed is made, the deposit is refunded.
Here's a round-up of destinations to help choose the right plac
A year later, has it all died down? Have all the bargain homes been snapped up?
Not quite. It's still possible to get in on the action.
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