A Town near Rome Is Selling Old Homes for a $: A Growing Trend across Beautiful Italian Villages

Italy’s continuous clearance sale of 1-euro homes has been perfect for individuals looking to begin a new life in some of the remote corners of the country. Most of these efforts have been done to restore the population.

But, not this one, says the town’s mayor.

For people looking for something that’s somewhat closer to the action, the homes being sold near Rome seem to be a suitable choice.

Namely, the bucolic town of Maenza has become the first town in the Latium region of Rome to sell homes for just over a dollar.

This historic location that’s located high up on the wild Lepini hills south of the capital where shepherds and tribes once lived is offering abandoned stone homes for interested occupants.

You can Buy a Home in Italy for a Dollar?

The Mayor, Claudio Sperduti, says that this is an ambitious goal for a rebirth of his hometown and an initiative that will breathe new life into these silent alleys.

Sperduti’s ambitious goal is to recover the crumbling properties by liaising between old owners and buyers and offering low prices.

With the original owners handing them over the old houses, they put them on the market through public notices on their website to ensure everything is transparent.

The potential buyers are invited to contact the town hall and make property requests and the officials will do their best to match them. The town’s goal is to relive the around 100 neglected properties, some of which have become dangerous for passersby due to their poor condition.

What Will the New Owners Need to Do?

Those who didn’t get to apply until August 28 were reassured by the mayor that more homes will go on the market with the talks underway with the original owners.

Those who buy property need to renovate it within a period of three years and put in a deposit of around 5000 euros which are returned once the work is finished. They also need to provide a detailed plan of the restyling, whether it will become a home, a shop, a restaurant, a B&B, etc.

The taking up of residency isn’t compulsory and families with children and younger couples who want to live in Maenza short-term are also encouraged to apply for a home.

In case several applicants want the same home, the priority goes to the ones who want to settle down and those able to make the quickest renovation.

A Town like no Other, Says the Mayor

According to Sperduti, his town isn’t offering 1-euro homes to halt their reducing population numbers, despite the fact that they’ve barely gone over 3000 in the past two decades.

Rather, it’s a move to block the realtors and speculators from grabbing the homes and profiting from them.

Sperduti explains that there are families and youngsters who leave town to go to bigger cities, but there are also newcomers who take over their place so the balance is somewhat achieved. He emphasizes this isn’t a dying city because there are people living in the old district, although it still needs fresh oxygen.

This long-term revival project will offer the potential buyers a chance to come and see for themselves what Maenza has to offer them!

Sources:

GOOD NEWS NETWORK

CNN