House hunting in Italy

Over budget

Can be a challenge and you need to know what you are looking for. However you not always know what you look for before the house is there in front of you or after a few days or weeks you admit that one special property cover most of your wishes you did not all know when you started your viewing.

Nice view  

 

My wife and I have looked for a place to retire. For how long? I guess it started already with our first visit to Lucca 5,5 years ago. The search got more serious the last two years and since last summer we have viewed 40-50 properties in total. The reason to have viewed all these has been to verify and get the inspiration to what we want and tie down the location.

Maybe a roof terrace

 

We will get older. Just have to understand how we need the property to be when this happens. So location ended up as very important, including layout of the house and the whole property. End of the day we have found what we was looking for so hopefully by the end of the year we have signed a contract and received the keys for our new home for the future.

150m2 covered outdoor space…nice

 

 

The Tuscan feeling is up in the mountain with a great view and your own wine stock, olive and fruit growing along with your kitchen garden. But are you a city person like us and want to participate in the larger community and embrace the culture a city have it will be a tradeoff. For us we chose the “city” life, our friends in Lucca, to see them more often, visit their restaurants, arrange “parties” with our friends in our garden. Not to forget all the visitors from our native country, family and friends. A place they can learn about an interesting country and enjoy the short distances to the coast as to the hills. Summer as winter the city have a track record of cultural events that we will dig into. That is our chosen track for the future.

Your own wine ???

 

For it will be a home we purchase, other will have a holiday home and wish list can be different. In Italy the charges also are different when you purchase a home or a holyday home. If it is your home charges will be 3% of purchased price compared to 10% on holiday home. Than we also have all the other charges that the real estate company add on or other taxes from the local authorities. Our expectations are 10% total on purchased price so if it was a holiday home it would be 17%.

Closer to the city, with pool and house for visitors?

 

To us this has been a journey and we see the shore not too far away. We appreciate the effort the guys at the different real estate companies in Lucca in assisting us, for one the work is not yet over. For us it is not over either, will keep you updated as we either move in or need to do changes to our life situation in close the contract and sign.