What’s the best time to buy a property in Italy?

And what’s the best moment to search the web?

The best moment to buy a property in Italy goes between September & November. Yes, it may look like a way-too-straightforward answer, but let’s delve deeper into the main reasons behind it, which are three:

1# Owners go back to their lives

The owner of a holiday property, after spending the summertime in their holiday home with their family, will return to his usual life in September. As a result, the property will fall into disuse. Most potential sellers wait until the end of the high season to take the plunge and put their secondary property up for sale.

#2 Availability for viewings

Often, during the high season, most of the holiday properties are rented to tourists visiting Italy. This means that many potentially buyable places will not be viewable because guests are still enjoying their holidays. The owner won’t be able to show the property to any potential buyer.

Instead, during the low season, you can check almost 100% of the properties on the market.

3# Avoid recurring taxes during a no-incomes period

Do not forget the purely fiscal reasons. The Property Tax (IMU) is to be paid in from the second half of the year in two instalments: the first one in June and the second one in December.

Apart from property tax, in the 2nd half of the year, freelance and entrepreneurs will pay their Income Tax from July to December. So, the average family will get a heavy tax burden during the last 6 months of the year.

More advantages of buying a property in Italy from September to November

Many try to sell their holiday houses during summertime, perhaps enticed by the high season prices, to get a higher return. After not receiving calls from potential buyers for months, they usually lower the prices at the end of the high season.

A house has a not inconsiderable economic weight, especially if it is neither rented nor exploited. So, as a potential buyer, you can now take advantage of more motivated sellers.

“Thanks” to a high fiscal pressure to face, and without rental incomes, owners will be way keener to sell their properties for a lower & more convenient price (for you) during September, October and November.

So, no matter seller’s geographical position, there are many advantages to searching the web for property in Italy from September to November.

Do you need more reasons to search from September to November?

1# Flights are cheaper than during summertime, so the average cost for viewing a property in Bel Paese decreases significantly.

#2 During the low season there’s the chance to live the REAL Italy. You can evaluate the routine of the place where you are making such a big step as buying a property.

When I moved from chaotic Milan to Tuscany with my family, I organized my viewing trips during the low season to take a look at the public infrastructure and the services offered during the winter.

Are shops and grocery stores open also during the cold seasons? Will I like the place in the wintertime too? You can only have the right answer to these questions by visiting the area where you intend to buy your property during a calm moment of the year.

Mind the climate

If you aren’t much aware of the Italian climate, be aware that summer and spring (March-September) are the hottest moments when we host most of our tourists.

If you check a house in autumn, you can verify how strong is the roof, if there are cases of water infiltrations, and other details you would surely overlook during summertime.

In Italy, we have to admit, that all houses look beautiful during summertime. Our nature, our coasts, and the whole environment would make a studio-flat look like a villa. Some critical issues only emerge by experiencing the place during the winter months.

If you visit a country house that lies on a hill during the warm seasons, it will look outstanding even if is just reachable only from a dirty road. You better try to reach it during the rainy season to check if you can actually get there without having to buy a 4×4.

One more advantage is that real estate agents are more available during the low season. Many companies (like ours) deal with touristic rentals. It means in the summertime we are busy looking after check-in & out, customer requests and so on.

Professionals like architects and engineers are used to going on holiday in August. From September onwards, you will have more chances to reach these professionals.

Also, offices are more likely to be open in September, as public employees go on holiday during the high season, in July & August.

In such months, getting game-changing documents like building permits and notarial deeds becomes close to impossible.

To summarize:

All these infos aim to allow you to make a wise, rational and unemotional purchase.

We know that buying a house is an exciting time, but such a big step needs to be clearly planned. In your search, consider the best time to buy a property in Italy in order to avoid surprises.

What we recommend to our clients (often during a consultation via video call) interested in buying a house in Italy is to look for it between September and November, and to visit our beautiful country even during the periods when it is not so popular to do so.

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