ESCAPE TO A STONE FARMHOUSE IN VALDICHIANA
THE SEARCH FOR A HIDEAWAY IN THE COUNTRY RANGES FROM LUCIGNANO TO CORTONA, PASSING THROUGH MONTEPULCIANO. BUT WHERE REPRESENTS A GOOD INVESTMENT, THANKS TO THE STATE AID FOR RESTORATIONS SUPERBONUS?
A country getaway in search of more greenery and open space as a result of the coronavirus is something that, by now, seems to be a global phenomenon.
The search for a hideaway in the country ranges from Lucignano to Cortona, passing through Montepulciano. but where represents a good investment, thanks too to the state aid for restorations superbonus?
People who have been locked up at home for months, and who are still at risk of remaining so even longer, are looking for a country getaway. Perhaps in the small Tuscan villages, which are increasingly in the sights of foreign investors and buyers. Europeans in particular: “Dutch and British, especially, who have a spending capacity ranging from 750 thousand to a million euros” says Francesco La Commare, chairman of FIAIP Siena, but also Americans, who have purchased “after having viewed properties virtually thanks to our emotive video service, which allows us to show them each room”, continues Simone Faleri, CEO and broker of the real estate division of the Manini Group (www.maninigroup.it) in Torrita di Siena. In Aretine and Sienese Valdichiana, the dream home is the classic stone farmhouse, or a villa in the countryside. “In a hilltop location, private but not too isolated, 10-15 minutes from a small old town, a maximum of 30 minutes from one of the cities of art, such as Cortona” Luca Giovannelli, manager of Casaitalia International, points out (www.casait.it). On a tour from one village to another, from the province of Arezzo to Siena, this is what Ville&Casali has learned about trends in the second home market.
Farmhouses are the “dream” purchase. “For us, its characteristic shape of a cube divided into four rooms in the upper section, while downstairs, where the barn used to be, generally contains the living area” explains Mario Turchetti of Euro Etrusca in Lucignano
(www.euroetrusca.com). “The Aretine village, not yet been overrun by tourists, sits on a windswept hill at an altitude of 400 metres, does not get snow in the winter, and its property values are still affordable. From 1,500 to 2,000 euros for a farmhouse converted in the 1990s. perhaps in need of modernisation, up to 3 thousand euros per metre for those more recently restored”. The most adaptable types, according to Rinaldo Turchetti and Maneiro Amazzoni of Casetoscane, an agency in the same town (www.casetoscane)
“date back to the 17th and 18th centuries and sometimes have a small tower: generally with an exposed stone facade, or stone and brick. Both Italians and foreigners have bought from us, but the most requested are almost impossible to find: 200 square metres, whereas there is not much problem finding 300-400 square metres”. Some real treasures are to be found in the Aretine city’s old town. Aristocratic homes such as those found in Via Matteotti, for which the in-demand style has one or two bedrooms with a garden, measuring between 70 and 150 metres. Still in Lucignano, finally, Marco Tedeschi of Toscana Immobiliare (www.toscanaimmobiliare. net), has a gem for sale: a leopoldine; a type of farmhouse that is hard to find on the market. Simona Faleri of the Manini Group Montisi says that in, in the district of Montalcino, a community of 100 inhabitants has grown in the last decade by another hundred residents, including British, Americans, and Belgians.
Italian buyers are also on the increase, from Rome, Naples, and Milan, attracted by the possibility of working remotely from the countryside, with prices between 400 and 800 euros. “Rising as high a 1.5 million euros for an high-end farmhouse with a swimming pool, and over two million euros for historic and special properties with excellent finishes” explains Luca Giovannelli of Casaitalia. Gabriele Carratelli, who runs the self-titled company
(www.carratellire.com) specifies that “foreign clients prefer already renovated solutions, whereas Italians are split between those who love to carry out the work themselves, and those who prefer the works already completed”. Our fellow countrymen also seem more interested in the financial benefits, as observed by Francesco La Commare of FIAIP Siena: “With the 110% superbonus, in some homes you can achieve the energy and seismic efficiency of a building at almost zero cost; but there are always other types of bonuses for renovation, with advantages from 50-90%”.
Lorenzo Lucani of Toscana Servizi Immobiliari (www.tsicortona. com) states that “Cortona is an authentic town, still populated by Cortonesi, with its own cobbler, carpenter, and shops that populate it all year round, and its extraordinarily beautiful countryside”. “The local property market has picked up since June - continues Lucani - when foreigners began to return, believing at first that owners of farmhouse were more willing to negotiate; but at the high end of a million of euros, these properties have not suffered any drop in price, also because the belief that construction will pick up again in 2021”. And so the most requested type are farmhouses with terracotta floors, cypress trees and gardens between 250-350 metres, from the 19th century approximately, converted, with exposed beams. Prices fluctuate between 600,000 and 2 million euros. Paolo Alunno, owner of Cortona Real Estate Alunno Immobiliare (http://www.alunnoimmobiliare.
it/) confirms that investors’ attention is focused on villages that are lively and dynamic at least 4 or 5 months of the year. Experts also speak in certain cases of “a 10-15 percent fall in prices, except for farmhouses of a certain level, where the upswing is in effect. There are few requiring renovation, valued between 700800 thousand and 1 million euros if you move away from the old town, rising to 1.5 million for well-converted properties with a swimming pool right in the centre”.
Where is it worth buying a farmhouse in the wine country around the Nobile Montepulciano or the Syrah of Cortona? Stefano Petri, CEO of the Great Estate Group (www.greatestate.
it) replies “They both have so much in common: they share a similar history, culture, countryside, cuisine, and accommodation, as well as their international character. Anyone who buys in one of these two municipalities is investing in a high quality of life and a market that has corrected and will hold its value well in the face of any fluctuations. And excellent agricultural produce such as the Nobile di Montepulciano or the Syrah of Cortona is another reason, improving the quality of life of lucky new buyers”. In fact, in the last 10-15 years, Montepulciano and Cortona have been the most sought after destinations by international clients, Petri concludes.