We bought a house for less than £1, it’s a bargain, everyone is always jealous but it’s not as simple as you think
SIGNING the final paperwork on their house purchase, Sara Bertagnolli, 37 and her husband Luca Sguazzini, 36 can barely contain their glee.
As Sara slides the final signatured documents across the table Luca pulls out €1, the equivalent of 86p
It's not a tip for their lawyer or some bizarre good luck charm, it's the cost of their three-bedroom terraced house in a picturesque village in Motta D'Affermo, Sicily 50 miles east of Palermo, Italy.
“It’s not a joke, we bought a house for less than a quid,” says former fashion designer PA turned influencer Sara.
“It’s one thousand years old and our dream home. We can’t believe our luck.
“Our €1 home would have cost £400,000 in London or €300,000 in Rome.
“We got it for less than the price of a packet of jammy dodgers or two packets of chewing gum.
“People think there must be a catch or that we’re lying but we’re not, it’s the best decision we ever made.”
Sara and husband Luca, a former model, who are proud parents to two-year-old daughter Luce are now completing the renovations of their bargain basement home.
Pipe dreams come true
The couple admit they never thought they'd be able to afford to get onto the home ownership ladder for so little money.
Sara was born in Merano, Italy, worked as a personal assistant before meeting Luca who is from Lisbon in Portugal at a Milan fashion show in 2015.
The couple bought a campervan for £1500 in 2017 and converted it before travelling all over the world and documenting their adventure on social media.
“While we were travelling in Italy in 2020 we heard rumours about €1 homes,” Luca says.
“Initially we didn't think such a thing existed but after some research we discovered it wasn't an urban myth but in fact reality.”
Four years ago the ‘One Euro Home’ trend started being shared on social media.
According to Luca and Sara it is part of a campaign by groups of counties or municipalities in rural Italy to stop the exodus of people to the city and the death of villages all over the country.
The formal €1 home scheme began in 2018 and now 25 municipalities in rural areas are part of the programme.
Maurizio Berti who runs an advisory website, Case A 1 Euro says there are around two million abandon private houses which can be sold for the symbolic price of €1, with buyers often obligated to restore the properties and encouraged to relocate to Italy
More than 1,000 of those homes have already been sold for the symbolic price of €1, with buyers obligated to restore the properties, meet local government guidelines which dictate that they must relocate to those homes within the year.
In Sicily, Sara and Luca discovered there were ten municipalities offering people a chance to buy houses for a euro.
“The traditional rural Italian village is dying. Young people are leaving for jobs in the city and the rural population is dwindling,” Sara explains.
“That has meant across Italy there are thousands of cottages, homes and apartments which are derelict or abandoned, many hundreds of years old.
“In Italy if you own a property you still have to pay local tax on it every year even if it’s considered worthless.”
Luca adds, “In Sicily one local mayor bought up a range of derelict farms and homes and started the €1 house program.
“It spread due to it’s success across many parts of the country.
“Those programs have strict controls. You need to move your family to Italy and be resident for a certain period of time and meet strict renovation requirements.
“Dozens of British people have taken advantage of that scheme, many renovating their homes after buying them for less than a pound and selling them for up to £250,000 which is a staggering return on investment.
“We looked at some homes on the scheme and applied. We wanted to be in with a chance.”
Village life
Then the couple travelled to Motta D'Affermo in Sicily.
It is a tiny village with 800 residents and has a 12th century castle and churches dating back to the 13th century.
“We spent a month getting to know the village living in our campervan,” Sara says.
“We met the locals and told them we wanted to buy a property.”
The couple soon learnt many property owners who didn't have money to renovate old homes or the extended family had moved away wanted to sell houses and farms privately and cheaply for a euro as well.
“The taxes can be high and many owners just want to get rid of their properties,” Luca explains.
“Some didn't have the cash to renovate them and some wanted to move away themselves.”
In 2021 a local villager who knew the couple told them about a 1000 year old house which had been derelict for 20 years with the owner desperate to get rid of it.
The three-bedroom terrace house was in an older part of the village and had no running-water or electricity and decades worth of dust and bird droppings throughout.
The property has a 100 sq metre top floor featuring a large entryway, a laundry room, kitchen , bathrooms and three bedrooms.
The basement is also 100 sq metre boasting five metre high ceilings having been used centuries ago to store food and grain.
“We saw it and fell in love. The owner wanted €1 for it and we said yes, “ the couple explained.
Major catch
However, buying a home in Italy isn't as simple as handing over the money and signing paperwork.
“The property was so old it had no proper deeds or paperwork because it had been in one family for centuries,” Sara explains.
Sara and Luca agreed to pay the €2,000 (£1,600) for the property searches, inspections and deed recreation.
“That’s the only real catch,” Sara says.
“It took six months but in December last year we became the official owners of our 86 pence home.”
Using our cheap as chips home is the answer to the cost of living crisis
Sara Bertagnolli
The couple instantly began cleaning the decades of dirt which had accumulated in the derelict home.
They discovered traditional blue and white flooring tiles common in the region were intact.
To buy these tiles today would cost thousands of pounds as they are antique.
The couple, assisted by local tradesmen repaired the roof, plastered the walls, repainted, reconnected the power and water and began basic repair work.
Cleaning up
“We have a strict budget of €20,000 (£17,000),” says Sara.
“We have made so many friends in the village. Many people come and help for free.”
Other villagers have donated tables and chairs and other furniture after learning the new home owners were dedicated to upcycling and restoring the home to its former glory.
“The locals love the fact we don't want to turn it into a stainless steel, all glass modern building,” the couple say.
“We want to stay true to the village feel and the home's history.”
The couple have been living in their campervan and are moving into their new village home in next week.
“Our daughter loves the house with its ancient tiled floors, cavernous basement and fairy tale feel,” Sara says.
“We’re learning new skills daily. We’re so grateful to the villagers for taking us in and helping us find our dream home.”
Since the family have shared their cut-price property on social media a British family and a family from the United States have followed suit, moving to the village to renovate their own bargain homes.
“One family got their home for £2,500, which buys a lot compared to 86p,” Sara says.
“We’re just glad more people are moving to the village and giving it a second chance to thrive.”
Once their renovation and refurbishment is complete Luca and Sara plan to spend time living and working in their home.
“The view from our one euro balcony is worth a million pounds. You can sea the sea and Aeolian Islands, off the coast. north of Sicily
“We have become €1 home influencers and we are lucky to be able to work and earn money from our home,” Sara says.
“We also plan to do more van life travelling.
“We will rent our property out as a holiday home and help generate not only extra income for us but for the village and local shops.
“Using our cheap as chips home is the answer to the cost of living crisis.
“It takes hard work and isn't for everyone but for us it’s the perfect solution to a housing crisis.
“It’s a case of us being ‘In for a penny, in for a pound’.”
