Buyers get bargains in Sicily
Foreign buyers are taking advantage of low prices in the Italian island of Sicily, causing an influx of property investment.
Houses in small villages on the island can go for as little as €10,000, ensuring international investors get a bargain.
However, this investment is helping to prop up the housing market as Italy remains in one of its longest-ever recessions. At 20 months, the crisis is the most drawn out since 1993.
Speaking to AFP, Salvatore Sansemi, mayor of Cianciana, near the southern city of Agrigento, said foreign nationals make up a significant proportion of the local populations.
"When you go to the pizzeria now, you often meet more foreigners than Sicilians," he said.
“We have just signed off on 140 sales to British, French, Norwegians and Poles, as well as a few Canadians and Chinese.”
He added that many people from the indigenous population had migrated away from the village to Canada, France and Germany, leaving only around 3,500 locals left.
It follows research from research institute Scenari Immobiliari that shows 60 per cent of foreign nationals buying second homes in Italy originated from Germany, with a significant number of Brits and Russians also investing in Italian property.
However, the Italian property market is still in recession, despite the increased interest from overseas investors.
The number of property sales in 2012 dropped by 27.5 per cent compared to the previous year. This brought total sales to 448,364, the lowest level seen since 1985 when 430,000 homes were sold, according to a report from Italy's inland revenue agency and banking association ABI.
Some 150,000 fewer properties were sold last year compared to 2011, with the value of property sale transactions also falling by €27 billion in the same period.
One of the big names to buy a property in Sicily recently was Ray Winston, who is reported to have bought a home on the island for €50,000 with the intention of transforming it with a budget of €1.3 million.
Houses in small villages on the island can go for as little as €10,000, ensuring international investors get a bargain.
However, this investment is helping to prop up the housing market as Italy remains in one of its longest-ever recessions. At 20 months, the crisis is the most drawn out since 1993.
Speaking to AFP, Salvatore Sansemi, mayor of Cianciana, near the southern city of Agrigento, said foreign nationals make up a significant proportion of the local populations.
"When you go to the pizzeria now, you often meet more foreigners than Sicilians," he said.
“We have just signed off on 140 sales to British, French, Norwegians and Poles, as well as a few Canadians and Chinese.”
He added that many people from the indigenous population had migrated away from the village to Canada, France and Germany, leaving only around 3,500 locals left.
It follows research from research institute Scenari Immobiliari that shows 60 per cent of foreign nationals buying second homes in Italy originated from Germany, with a significant number of Brits and Russians also investing in Italian property.
However, the Italian property market is still in recession, despite the increased interest from overseas investors.
The number of property sales in 2012 dropped by 27.5 per cent compared to the previous year. This brought total sales to 448,364, the lowest level seen since 1985 when 430,000 homes were sold, according to a report from Italy's inland revenue agency and banking association ABI.
Some 150,000 fewer properties were sold last year compared to 2011, with the value of property sale transactions also falling by €27 billion in the same period.
One of the big names to buy a property in Sicily recently was Ray Winston, who is reported to have bought a home on the island for €50,000 with the intention of transforming it with a budget of €1.3 million.
PUBLISHED : 23RD MAY 2013
