What should I know before I buy a house in Italy?
Tuscany and Chianti Edition
Buying a house in Tuscany is the dream of many
In particular, Tuscany best represent romantic Italian lifestyle scenario: a slow rhythm of life, walking among Valdorcia’s golden fields, Crete Senesi’s olive groves, woods and green vineyards in Chianti.
What more one could ask?
In fact there are a few questions that should come up to your mind before finding yourself wondering ‘under the Tuscan sun’ desperately looking for the house of your dreams…
LANDSCAPES
First of all, you should consider that Tuscany has many different landscapes.()
What would you like to see first time in the morning, when you open your windows?
SERVICES
Also, it is vital to make sure you make a wise choice on how far main services should be, based on your lifestyle: how far should you be from the shopping streets of Florence or Siena’s historic city centre?
TYPE OF PROPERTY
Once you understand which is your preferred area, it is good to start making up your mind on the type of property you would like to purchase. Would you rather live in a classic Tuscan Podere, in a Renaissance Villa nearby Florence or in a modernly restored historic luxury property?
It is good to start having a better understanding on property style in Tuscany by reading our guides, however all this questions are easy to answer if you have been spending quite a bit of time in Tuscany over the years, otherwise it may be quite a challenge to choose an area and the right type of property.
A good Realtor will be happy to guide you from the beginning in the search of your property. You should contact a Real Estate Agency, as Chianti Heritage, 6 to 4 months before your planned trip to Italy.
An experienced international Realtor will assist you concerning any bureaucracy issue on purchase and documentation, and will be able to give you any few more information on fiscal issues based on your personal/business needs.
Here some information and tips that you will need to buy a house in Tuscany.
1. Do not improvise!
Your Realtor will be able to select few right properties that best match your taste and needs, so you will not lose precious time looking at houses that are just not made for you.
The agent will organize viewings and will illustrate you both pro and cons of every property, in order to give you all the facts to make the best choice.
Also, the agent will be able to get you in contact with a specialist (Geometra, Architect, Engineer, etc) that can clarify any specific technical enquire, if needed.
You will be given information concerning Italian legislation, which changes frequently, in order to proceed with the purchase in the smoothest way.
2. You just found your dream home! How should you proceed?
The next step is to sign a written irrevocable proposal to purchase a property.
To do so, you will need to apply for Codice Fiscale (Tax Code). Chianti Heritage will help you taking care of this process. The agency will write the offer for you, mentioning the offered price, the kind of payment (do you need a mortgage?) and every other needed detail.
The offer will then be presented to the seller. If the seller accepts and sign it as well, both parties are committed to conclude the deal. The purchase proposal is usually valid for a maximum of 7 days, after which, if not signed by the seller, it lapses and it will not produce any legal obligation.
To guarantee the commitment to complete the purchase and acceptance of the proposal by the owner, the buyer pays to the seller’s account an amount of at least 20% of the proposed purchase price, as a deposit.
3. Once it is signed the purchase offer becomes preliminary sale agreement,
that will be registered by the agency for you at Agenzia delle Entrate (Revenue Agency) within 20 days from the acceptance.
The cost of the registration competes to the buyer:
- The registration tax for an amount equal to 0.5% of the confirmation deposit paid; if advance payments are provided (and the seller is not subject to VAT) a 3% calculated on the amount of advance payments should be added;
- The registration tax has a fixed amount of € 200.00;
- Revenue stamps: a revenue stamp of €16,00 every 4 pages for each registered copy (a stamp duty of € 1.00 must be applied to each graphic attachment, as plans).
4. Last but not least: The Notary Deed.
It is the fulfillment of the preliminary sale agreement.
Your Realtor will make sure that Notary has all the necessary documents to write the Deed.
In case you are not confident enough with your Italian, an official translator will be needed on final deed. Chianti Heritage will provide free translation service to english for the purchase sale proposal. However, the notary will instruct an authorized professional for the translation of the final deed. The cost will be paid by the buyer for an average of 500 Euro + VAT.
By signing the notary deed, property ownership and possession are transferred and, as a consequence, the obligation to pay will take over.
The payment takes place at the moment of the notary deed either by non-transferable bank cheque on Seller’s name or bank transfer.
The notary will then transcribe the deed within 20 days from the signing date.
Both parties will receive a certified copy of notarial deed once it has successfully been registered.
5. You are finally the proud owner of a Tuscan property!
Just a few more things to do before being able to fully enjoy your new lifestyle: setting up your bills may not be the most relaxing thing to do by yourself.
Chianti heritage will be happy to refer you to our partner, which will set all your bills up, a free service that we are happy to provide for you.
Tuscany: our Land
Entrust us with your property search or sale, become part of Coldwell Banker Chianti Heritage family. We are interested in prestigious properties, with exceptional objective qualities located in extraordinary places.
