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Forming the shapely calf muscle of the Italian leg, Le Marche sits halfway down the country on its eastern side. It squeezes an awful lot of geographical loveliness into one small region. Licked by the sparkling Adriatic, it has an abundance of clean, family-friendly beaches. Step back from the water and the landscape soon buckles into pretty, verdant hills where charming, well-kept old towns and villages crown soft rises in the land. In the west, the wooded Apennines and striking Sibillini Mountains appear, offering superb walking routes and winter skiing fun. Few small areas of the world can offer so much variety.
But it’s not just a richness of geography that makes Le Marche so bewitching. Culturally, it’s firmly a part central Italy. So the region is rural yet prosperous, orderly yet relaxed. Wide open spaces are sprinkled at just the right intervals with attractive settlements, and a good transport infrastructure makes all of it accessible. The population is low, and the sense of community strong. Colourful festivals abound, and the locally-produced food and wine are excellent. With so much contentment on offer, it comes as little surprise that in October 2010 Le Marche was ranked by The Telegraph as one of the ten best places in the world to retire overseas.
Property in Le Marche currently represents good value for money, and makes a safe investment. As a very rough guide to what you might expect to pay for a home here, you should find that small, restored apartments start at around €60,000, and country ruins at around €70,000. A standing house to restore in the countryside might ask between €100,000 and €220,000. Habitable three-bedroom townhouses in popular villages can ask about €180,000 – less if they’re closer to the mountains and more if they’re closer to the coast. And beautifully restored country homes with three or four bedrooms and a pool might ask €350,000-€600,000 depending on their size (not cheap, but almost half the cost of similar properties in central Tuscany). There are particularly good holiday rental prospects in Le Marche, and you could certainly factor rental returns into how you might meet the costs of a home here. [Time of writing this article is 2011.]
Foreign buyers first began discovering Le Marche about fifteen years ago. After property prices had ballooned in Tuscany, then in adjacent Umbria, exploratory buyers naturally had a look at the next region over. Early buyers in Le Marche discovered not only bargain prices but an intensely beautiful and unspoilt part of Italy whose lack of fame seemed completely inexplicable. Soon property articles and television programmes started drawing attention to Le Marche, and it grew from a place not many people had ever heard of into one of the most popular regions for foreign buyers in Italy.
As its fame spread, Le Marche’s property prices naturally rose, but never reached anything like the dizzying heights of central Tuscany. Nor did the region’s character become in any way ‘diluted’ by an abundance of foreign home-owners (as happened in certain bits of Tuscany, where non-Italians outnumbered local residents). When the global financial crisis hit, foreign buyers in Le Marche dwindled considerably. 2008 and 2009 were very slow for property sales. But prices, not having risen too high in the first place, did not fall far – underscoring the safety and stability of Le Marche’s property market.
By all accounts, it seems that the region’s market is moving again now, with foreign buyers beginning to pick up where they left off. Jane Smith of the estate agency Magic Marche believes that “would-be buyers who have kept their heads down for two years, but who have survived the recession financially intact, are now wanting to get on and buy before prices start rising again.” Linda Travella of the Italy-specialist estate agency Casa Travella reported an increase in foreign buyers from mid-2010 onwards, and she isn’t the only one. Jonathan Brewin of Marche-specialists Domo Sum says “We saw a huge increase in enquiries last summer and a marked increase in sales last autumn.” Jane Smith concludes “My feeling is that the property bargains currently on the market will be sold during 2011, and 2012 will see the beginning of a new era of increasing prices.”
Before the recession hit, foreign buyers in Le Marche were especially drawn to restoration projects. The region boasted an exceptional wealth of lovely old uninhabited properties in rural areas which were ripe for conversion into idyllic holiday homes. Vines, olive trees, acres of land, gorgeous vistas, centuries-old farmhouse – the traditional ingredients were available in abundance. But is a property-to-restore still the best type of home to go for in Le Marche? Certainly there are still plenty to choose from, and you shouldn’t worry that everything good has already been snapped up. But there is also a new generation of beautifully-restored homes on the market now, sometimes sold by foreign owners who need to liquidate assets in a hurry and offered at very good prices. What do the agents advise?
Kevin L. Gibney of Marche Homes Direct says “Ruins to restore are very good value today. You can get a great property – good size, views, reusable old materials – for fifteen to twenty percent less than three years ago. Really nice ruins might range from €70,000 to €100,000 today. Buying a ruin allows you to employ what I call the ‘foot in the door strategy’, which can be a good one in the current climate of economic uncertainty. You can buy a great ruin and either get on with the restoration or… do nothing. Hold on and wait until the economic situation settles down, then restore it. In so doing you’ve got your foot in the door with a great property and you don’t need to immediately come up with the capital needed to restore.” If you do plan to restore straight away, Kevin recommends arranging a ‘fixed-price contract’ with your agent and/or restoration team. As the name suggests, this means that the final price for all building work is agreed beforehand and the project cannot go over budget.
Not everyone has the time or patience for a restoration project. What about ready-restored property? Kevin says that these can be another way to get great value in Le Marche today, especially when the vendor is a foreign owner-restorer who just wants to free up cash by selling the house as quickly as possible. Jane Smith of Magic Marche believes that “Without exception, ready restored properties represent the best value at the moment. Many houses came onto the market in 2008–2010 from sellers (Italian and foreign) who needed to sell urgently. When people are under financial pressure they generally just want to get their money back and are not looking for a profit. So one can buy a house which was fully restored five years ago for a no-profit purchase price.”
In the current climate, well-designed new-build properties should also be considered. Jane Smith notes that as the market is still slow, “Many developers are desperate to off-load their developments at advantageous prices. Builders will often discount the asking price by up to 20%.” Jonathan Brewin of Domo Sum particularly recommends unfinished-looking new-builds. He says, “Perhaps houses which are in shell form (‘al grezzo’) represent the best value. Many English buyers are put off by these as they often look like stalled building projects, however in most cases this is not the case, as it was always intended to offer a client a choice of finishes.”
Where might be the best areas to consider buying a property in Le Marche? Remember that the region has three main parts – a long, sandy coast lined with family-friendly resort-towns, a central swathe of hilly countryside, and a mountainous west. Generally, the most established areas for foreign buyers have been the coast, the Sibillini Mountains area, and in or near lovely medieval towns in the central to southern countryside – such as Macerata, Sarnano, Amandola and Ascoli Piceno. Much of the coast is pricy, the Sibillini Mountains and other western areas are still inexpensive, and the medieval towns are generally reasonably-priced. Only you can factor in how much landscape-type and ease-of-access matters to you.
Most agents report that Le Marche’s coastal hinterland (between two and thirty kilometres inland from the Adriatic) weathered the market slowdown better than anywhere else, and represents a very good place to buy. Holiday rental prospects are strong here too. Linda Travella of the agency Casa Travella says “For good value property that is not too far inland and enjoys easy access to the sea, look at Ascoli Piceno and surrounding areas or Spinetoli which is about 10km from the sea at San Benedetto del Tronto. Here you can find a two-bedroom apartment with terrace for only €125,000. Or if you need a spacious property to restore, €160, 000 will buy you a 300m² home with outbuildings and land at Monsampolo.”
Jane Smith of Magic Marche says “In general, once you are more than 15 km (about 20 minutes by car) from the sea, you will get more for your money. Townhouses follow the same rule, and the smaller the hilltop village, the better value you will enjoy.” Note that plenty of agents wax lyrical about the delights of Macerata province. Kevin L. Gibney of Marche Homes Direct says that “Great, well-located farmhouses to restore are the norm in Macerata province, some within walking distance of a town. There are finished properties, standing houses, and ruins. The ambience of the hilltop towns here is unbeatable – panoramic views, quaint restaurants, cobblestone streets.” It seems that when it comes to buying in Le Marche, you might just be spoilt for choice.
www.propertyinitaly.co.uk
www.casatravella.com
Le Marche’s regional capital Urbino is a UNESCO World Heritage Site, a magnificent jumble of medieval and Renaissance buildings nestled together in the midst of attractive countryside. It has a hugely illustrious past – rivalling Florence in terms of cultural significance during the Renaissance. Which means there are delights aplenty here today for the lover of art and architecture. But modern-day Urbino isn’t just a museum piece. It’s a bustling little city with a large student population and no shortage of stylish eateries and buzzy watering holes. Property prices in the city are among the highest in Le Marche, but the holiday rental returns are good and very reliable. A two-bed townhouse might cost you €250,000; a two-bed apartment about €180,000 and bring in €800 a week in the summer. The countryside around Urbino is extremely green, with lots of woods and high hills. It’s a recommended area in which to consider buying, and property prices are quite reasonable. In addition to restoration projects and ready-restored homes, look out for good-value new-builds in traditional style. A new three-bedroom home in brick and stone, with a garden, might ask around €275,000. Northern Le Marche provides easy access to some of the Adriatic’s liveliest beach resorts, situated between Ravenna and Ancona. Le Marche’s short border with Tuscany is up in this northern part, too.
Le Marche enjoys more than a hundred miles of Adriatic coastline, with long stretches of fine sand meeting warm, clean seawater. Despite its manifold charms, and excellent travel links, Le Marche’s seaside remains relatively under-exploited. Resorts tend to be small-sized and family-friendly, but not without vibrant nightlife. Many of the coastal towns have ancient origins and venerable buildings, especially north of Ancona. Italians make up by far the greatest number of holidaymakers, but Le Marche’s seaside has been increasingly visited by Northern Europeans over the last decade. It’s still the most popular part of the region for second-home-owners (mostly Italians), which makes its property prices Le Marche’s highest. Most apartments fall within a range of just under €100,000 to just over €350,000. Prices start dropping at about three miles from the water, and you could pay ten to twenty percent less by putting the sea twenty minutes away. Obviously the best holiday rental returns are found closest to the sand. Ancona is a major port with a lot of industry on its outskirts, and you might prefer a smaller settlement. Pésaro in the north is the largest resort, followed by San Benedetto del Tronto in the south. Between the two, smaller resorts are dotted at regular intervals. Recommended spots in the north include Pésaro, Fano, and Sénigallia. For many visitors the Cónero promontory near the middle of Le Marche’s coastline is its most spectacular part – with steep white cliffs brooding above tiny, picturesque beaches. South of here, the seaside grows humbler and sleepier, offering many pleasant, low-key resorts.
As you move inland from any part of Le Marche’s coast, the landscape quickly buckles into pretty hills. This charming, long central stretch is dominated by small farms and open fields, with unspoilt medieval towns and villages cropping up at regular intervals. It’s here in the rolling green countryside where most Britons have chosen to buy their home in Le Marche. They benefit not only from the attractive landscape and delightful towns, but also from easy access to both beach and mountains. In southern Le Marche especially, many locations offer simultaneous views of blue sea in one direction and high peaks in the other. Property prices have risen considerably in central Le Marche over recent years, but there are still plenty of good-value properties to be had here – both restored and unrestored. Prices are highest if you’re within about fifteen kilometres of the sea, and drop pretty steadily the further you go inland. Between forty and seventy kilometres from the water seems to be an optimum distance in terms of price – although obviously some towns and areas are slightly costlier than others. A rough guide to prices might run thus: Country ruins needing full restoration generally ask €90,000-€150,000; rural houses requiring moderate work €100,000-€250,000; and good-sized, fully-restored homes €350,000-€750,000. If such properties were in central Tuscany, these figures would be more than doubled.
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