I would disagree - though it depends where you are planning to buy. In the auctions that I have participated on behalf of clients I have been a) warned off b) had the auction declared null because of mistakes by the acting judge and c) almost been sold a completely different property to that i was bidding for. Unless you are fluent in Itlaian, and understand where and what your are buying, leave auctions to others - they can end up bringing more trouble - and you will need siginificant time to complete a purchase if its with incanto - sometimes it can take 2 years or more to get to the point of selling. Undoubtedly there are some people who have got bargains at auction, but you need to know what you are doing. in a small town, buying the house of someone who has been thrown out by the repossessing bank isnt going to make you friends either!
Of course builders merchant will deal with the public - the professionals wont like it, as they usuallyget a kick back, but I doubt you will negotiate a huge discount - profit margins in Italy are not that high on building supplies.
None are great choices. MOst are definitely not cycle friendly as they are very hilly. Southern town are not pedestrian friendly either. Transport in the south is pretty dire - bus services are good but trains much less so. The only real transport hub is Naples - which is great or terrible depending on your point of view. Potenza is cold in the winter - its very high, Benevento isnt much better.
Tax on agricutlural land is 11% of the price paid. You will then have paid the registration costs for the atto (repertorio) which are about 250 euros. You will also have paid two tax stamps of 50 euros each. The imposta ipotecaria is not to do with mortgages, but a serach and registration fee. I dont understand why you would have paid for a relazione al mutuo, as you didnt ask for one, it may be that the owner did however, and they thought they could pass it on to you without you noticing. If the notaio who did the atto charged you 275 for his fees and the registration then you got a bargain. This depends if it is agricultural land, or if it is land with a building concession already granted, in which case it is buildable land and subject to other taxes. If you want send me your fattura then PM me, and tell me the price you paid for the land, Ill be able to tell you if its accurate.
Decide what is important to you and then cancel out the areas which do not meet your criteria. Italy is big (not like Australia) and very varied from place to place. The weather varies hugely as do work possibilities, and lifestyles. Peopl will jump in and offer suggestions, but if you want a metropolitan city lifestyle then Abruzzo is not for you. Make a list and read alot - you will arrive at your own itinerary.
Conveyancing as such does not exist in the Italian property market. Assuming you are buying privately there are checks and balances that must be done, and which your notaio must do by law. So, for instance, you can be sure that the property will not have debts on it, and that it is legally built. Everything else is your problem, frankly. If you buy through an agent, they have a legal responsibility to sort out paperwork and are liable if they muck up. In Italy it is buyer beware - you buy a property as seen, though disclosure of certain facts is a legal prerequisite. If you are no fluent in Italian you must have a translator for the legal stuff otherwsie you purchase is null. Whether you need a lawyer or not depends - if you are planning a complicated purchase through offshore funds etc, then it may help - for a straightforward buying of a house it really isnt necessary as they will only duplicate what the others involved will do. If you let us know where you are planning to buy in Sicily, I may be able to send you some names of English speaking lawyers.
You basically have to have what you can get - some places will not get fixed line coverage, in which case you are dependent on mobile or wimax or sat. if you have a fixed line you will have problems with the billing system - even if its not an Italian card they will want they call 'domiciliazione' of your card, which requires an Itlaian card... one of the classic catch 22 Italian conundrums. You do not need Italian ID. You could try Fastweb if that is available or Vodafone fixed adsl which tend to be more flexible than Telecom. in some parts of the norht there is even BT. Plump for a data only unlimited deal which will not allow voice calls and has no cap. Then you are paying a fixed fee every month with no surprises.
Once you open a bank account, you can transfer money direct from teh States - until then there are problems with the IRS letting you export money. You can bring up to 10000 euros each in cash when you come into ITaly.
Comments posted
I would disagree - though it depends where you are planning to buy. In the auctions that I have participated on behalf of clients I have been a) warned off b) had the auction declared null because of mistakes by the acting judge and c) almost been sold a completely different property to that i was bidding for. Unless you are fluent in Itlaian, and understand where and what your are buying, leave auctions to others - they can end up bringing more trouble - and you will need siginificant time to complete a purchase if its with incanto - sometimes it can take 2 years or more to get to the point of selling. Undoubtedly there are some people who have got bargains at auction, but you need to know what you are doing. in a small town, buying the house of someone who has been thrown out by the repossessing bank isnt going to make you friends either!
Of course builders merchant will deal with the public - the professionals wont like it, as they usuallyget a kick back, but I doubt you will negotiate a huge discount - profit margins in Italy are not that high on building supplies.
None are great choices. MOst are definitely not cycle friendly as they are very hilly. Southern town are not pedestrian friendly either. Transport in the south is pretty dire - bus services are good but trains much less so. The only real transport hub is Naples - which is great or terrible depending on your point of view. Potenza is cold in the winter - its very high, Benevento isnt much better.
Itll work, but youll get italian telly.
Yes, sorry - it seems that feature has disappeared - you can email me at modicasa.com. Before the at sign comes info.
Tax on agricutlural land is 11% of the price paid. You will then have paid the registration costs for the atto (repertorio) which are about 250 euros. You will also have paid two tax stamps of 50 euros each. The imposta ipotecaria is not to do with mortgages, but a serach and registration fee. I dont understand why you would have paid for a relazione al mutuo, as you didnt ask for one, it may be that the owner did however, and they thought they could pass it on to you without you noticing. If the notaio who did the atto charged you 275 for his fees and the registration then you got a bargain. This depends if it is agricultural land, or if it is land with a building concession already granted, in which case it is buildable land and subject to other taxes. If you want send me your fattura then PM me, and tell me the price you paid for the land, Ill be able to tell you if its accurate.
Decide what is important to you and then cancel out the areas which do not meet your criteria. Italy is big (not like Australia) and very varied from place to place. The weather varies hugely as do work possibilities, and lifestyles. Peopl will jump in and offer suggestions, but if you want a metropolitan city lifestyle then Abruzzo is not for you. Make a list and read alot - you will arrive at your own itinerary.
Conveyancing as such does not exist in the Italian property market. Assuming you are buying privately there are checks and balances that must be done, and which your notaio must do by law. So, for instance, you can be sure that the property will not have debts on it, and that it is legally built. Everything else is your problem, frankly. If you buy through an agent, they have a legal responsibility to sort out paperwork and are liable if they muck up. In Italy it is buyer beware - you buy a property as seen, though disclosure of certain facts is a legal prerequisite. If you are no fluent in Italian you must have a translator for the legal stuff otherwsie you purchase is null. Whether you need a lawyer or not depends - if you are planning a complicated purchase through offshore funds etc, then it may help - for a straightforward buying of a house it really isnt necessary as they will only duplicate what the others involved will do. If you let us know where you are planning to buy in Sicily, I may be able to send you some names of English speaking lawyers.
You basically have to have what you can get - some places will not get fixed line coverage, in which case you are dependent on mobile or wimax or sat. if you have a fixed line you will have problems with the billing system - even if its not an Italian card they will want they call 'domiciliazione' of your card, which requires an Itlaian card... one of the classic catch 22 Italian conundrums. You do not need Italian ID. You could try Fastweb if that is available or Vodafone fixed adsl which tend to be more flexible than Telecom. in some parts of the norht there is even BT. Plump for a data only unlimited deal which will not allow voice calls and has no cap. Then you are paying a fixed fee every month with no surprises.
Once you open a bank account, you can transfer money direct from teh States - until then there are problems with the IRS letting you export money. You can bring up to 10000 euros each in cash when you come into ITaly.