Ah, Tuscany! Italy’s best-known and most romanticized region. The magical name instantly conjures visions of burnished hills topped with the exclamation marks of cypress trees. Chianti vineyards arcing their green corduroy over gentle slopes. Stout farmhouses in honeyed stone. Perfect cathedrals towering above terracotta rooftops. Museums full of entrancing canvases. It’s heady stuff. No wonder a third of all visitors to Italy heads straight to Tuscany. This small region famously holds more UNESCO-recognized treasures of art and architecture than any other country in the world. Add that to its exquisite countryside, and Tuscany’s popularity is easy to understand.

        But it’s not all vineyards and paintings, of course. Tuscany has its downsides too. Crucially, its most popular locales can be horribly crowded in the summer. Florence, for example, becomes an exhausting scrum in July and August. And there are plenty of rural spots where foreign visitors or homeowners far outnumber the indigenous Italian population. But for all this, Tuscany can still offer an unbeatable sense of country idyll. Especially to us Brits (for whom it’s like the Cotwolds but with better weather!). Tuscany remains Italy’s premier region, and having a country home here is generally regarded as the highest pinnacle of Italian holiday-home aspiration.

So what of the market? As you might imagine, this isn’t the cheapest part of Italy in which to buy your dream house. The modern foreign-buyer phenomenon all began in Tuscany, about forty years ago, and a long popularity means a lot of time for prices to rise. Still, not every part of Tuscany is expensive, and there remains considerable scope to find a reasonably-priced home here. Crucially, this is a region unlikely to fade in popularity in the future, so property in Tuscany remains a particularly sound investment. Whether you’re looking to spend less than €150,000, or more than €1 million, there are wise buys in Tuscany to suit you. [Time of writing is 2010.]

RECENT EVENTS
Naturally the property market in Tuscany slowed considerably following the advent of the recent recession. Global financial woes saw would-be buyers tighten their lips and close their purses. And the strong euro particularly deterred Brits and Americans – two of the biggest Tuscaphile groups and traditionally the most common buyers here. Prices in Tuscany didn’t really drop much during this anxious time, but they stopped rising, and properties remained on the market for much longer. However, as we swing merrily through 2010, agents everywhere are reporting signs of recovery in Tuscany.
        “The market has now picked up a bit, particularly for properties below €150,000,” notes Benito Casci of Houses in Tuscany – an agency specializing in the low-priced Garfagnana area to the north. “We’ve noticed that the number of Italians looking for holiday homes in this area is rising too. We’ve put this down to the very low interest rates offered by the banks and lack of other investment opportunities.”

Linda Travella, whose long-running agency Casa Travella deals with properties all over Tuscany as well as elsewhere in Italy, sees good deals available now in Tuscany’s most popular and pricy areas as well as on the region’s fringes. “Tuscany seems to be where the most bargains can be found,” she says, “although ‘bargains’ don’t necessarily mean ‘cheap’. You can find a property reduced from €2,500,000 to €1,500,000! If you have cash to invest Tuscany is an excellent area to put it in; why would you put it in the bank? Buy at the bottom end of the market and watch your investment grow.”

THE ITALIAN JOB
As we have often discussed in these articles, Italy’s property market has been much less badly affected by the global financial crisis that the markets of most other Western countries. Unlike many British people, Italians regard property as a home, not a cash cow. Prices certainly rose in Italy over the last decade, but not in the dangerous, unsustainable way they did in Britain and elsewhere. Having never inflated to ridiculous levels, prices in Italy couldn’t burst with anything like the bang we’ve heard here in the UK
        Neither were mortgages recklessly granted in Italy, like they were in the US. Italian banks were (and are) very prudent in lending money to homebuyers, with the end result of fewer bad debts, and thus fewer repossessed homes entering the market and driving down prices. Then there’s the simple fact that Italians have kept very sensible restraints on building and development – safeguarding not just the character of their country but ultimately the value of its homes. There are no rows and rows of unsold, mass-produced holiday homes here as there are in southern Spain.
        With all these things, Italy has shown itself to have a remarkable stable and trustworthy housing market. When it comes to property, this is a safe and reliable country that will not lose it head. It won’t overbuild to make a fast profit. It won’t give out risky mortgages that might end in foreclosure. And it won’t gleefully over-inflate prices without a thought for the future, failing to imagine an inevitable burst.

UNDER THE TUSCAN SUN
So, bearing in mind that Italy has an especially reliable property market, it’s fair to add that Tuscany is one of Italy’s most reliable regions. Popular for decades, with an undimmed reputation, Tuscany is sure to continue exerting its special magnetism on visitors and homebuyers during the coming years. A thoroughly tried and tested region, Tuscany is a ‘safe bet’ kind of place where people will continue to put their money – both in holidays and in home-buying. Buy here, and you’ll enjoy great rental prospects as well as a strong final re-sale value.
      You should feel reassured that Tuscany is well safeguarded against change. People are going to want to keep coming to Tuscany because it is going to stay like Tuscany. Diana Levins Moore of Tuscany Inside Out points out that “One of the great advantages to Tuscany is the knowledge that our very strict building regulations do not permit new construction in most of our countryside. This guarantees a continued growth in property prices, because there is always a limited supply. And there is no possibility that anyone is going to construct a shopping centre at your gates!”
        Tuscany is also a good place to buy an Italian home because of the long experience and expertise of many agents operating here. They’ve had a long time to get things right, and with so much competition from other agents, are keen to offer a conspicuously good service. A particularly laudable development in the Tuscan market right now is the rise of ‘green building’, or restoration projects which incorporate environmentally-friendly techniques and energy-saving devices in addition to the traditional materials and building styles that make Tuscan homes so attractive. Solar-energy capture, for example, makes eminent sense in a climate like this one. And with utilities costing up to three times as much in Italy as they do in Britain, you’d be doubly mad not to think green.
        Paolo Buti of Fondelli Costruzioni, a.k.a.GreenBuilding, is typical of the new breed of agent-restorer. He describes his company’s aim to provide buyers with “an integrated offer of high quality properties in terms of the materials and technologies used and durability over time; a high level of living comfort, exclusive location, containment of energy consumption, maximum respect for the environment, together with a series of services aimed at buyers from other communities both in the period leading up to the purchase and the period of use after the property has been purchased.”

WHERE TO BUY
All well and good, but where can you find prices to suit you in Tuscany these days? Unless your budget is sizeable, it’s probably best to avoid the (in)famous ‘Chiantishire’ area – lovely wine-growing hills north of Siena dotted with picturesque little towns in honeyed stone. You’d be extremely lucky to get a farmhouse round here for less than €500,000, and there are plenty on sale for over €1 million. Also expensive is Renaissance gem Florence, although this is one of the few places in Tuscany where prices have gone down by any considerable amount since the onset of the credit crunch – so perhaps now might be the time to nab an apartment (expect to pay €300,000 for a central two-bed). Holiday rental prospects in Chiantishire and Florence remain excellent. And for buyers who can afford either locale, there is money to be made.
        Other areas are to be recommended for different reasons. As we stated earlier, Tuscany’s leafy, high-altitude northern extremes are among the region’s least expensive areas. Look into Garfagnana and Lunigiana for homes at or below the €150,000 mark. Similarly priced is Tuscany’s rugged far south, which shows especial promise at the moment since international flights started arriving into Grosseto, and since Viterbo – just across the border in Lazio – has been earmarked as the new budget-airlines hub for Rome. Southern Tuscany has a good coastline, and is well-situated for access to beautiful Lake Bolsena in northern Lazio.
        Many agents recommend lovely Lucca and its rural environs as a great place to buy. This small, walled city enjoys a great location not far from Florence, Pisa or the coast; its prices are reasonable, and rental prospects are pretty good too. Expect to pay around €200,000 for a two-bedroom apartment here, or a similar price for a nearby country home. Volterra is another area that comes recommended for good-value property, as are Cortona and Arezzo. Obviously, it’s most important to find an area that appeals to you personally. Nothing beats spending some time travelling around Tuscany to experience its considerable variety and discover the places where you might like to have a home. If you’ve always assumed that Tuscany must be beyond your budget, you’re likely to find some surprises. And if you’re looking to make a good investment, you’re likely to be spoilt for choice.

www.Tuscanyrealestate.co.uk
www.propertyinitaly.co.uk

www.italianproperty.eu.com

www.casatravella.com

www.italianpropertygallery.com

www.livingintuscany.eu

www.extravirginproperties.com

www.abode.it
www.prestigeproperty.co.uk
www.fondellicostruzioni.it
www.tuscany-inside-out.com
www.toscanarestoration.com
www.housesintuscany.net

[All quoted prices accurate in 2010]

Florence

Full of exquisite paintings, sculptures and churches, Tuscany’s capital city is a magnet for lovers of art and architecture. Long adored by the British, Firenze has no shortage of British home-owners and full-time residents. Traffic-choked, crowded in summer, and hemmed in by industrial outskirts it may be, but there’s no denying Florence’s charm and beauty. Many ex-pats from various Western countries have succumbed and joined the city’s half a million inhabitants. Many others have recognised the potential profit in owning a second home here and renting it to holidaymakers. Visitors come to Florence almost year-round, and city-centre apartments are constantly in demand. Central one-bedroom apartments start at about €200,000, and two-beds at about €350,000. Prices drop as you move out of the centre, but so do holiday rental rates. You might expect as much as €1,000 per bedroom per week on a very central flat.

The north

The lovely little city of Lucca and its surrounding countryside first came to the attention of foreign buyers about eight years ago. Since that time, property prices in the area have generally doubled. Yet despite this increase, homes round here are still good value. A two-bed property in Lucca itself might ask €250,000. North of Lucca, the low, leafy mountains of the Garfagnana and Lunigiana areas offer very good deals for property-hunters. You might find an unrestored farmhouse for as little as €50,000 and a restored home in one of the area’s many attractive villages for just €125,000. But these are starter prices. Note that the extreme north of Tuscany is within easy daytripping distance of Liguria’s coastal delights and the sophisticated charms of Emilia-Romagnan cities such as Parma.

The coast

Except for its modestly-priced southern stretch, Tuscany’s seaside is one of the region’s most costly areas. Whether the northern beaches are more attractive is a matter of taste, but they are certainly more populous. Viareggio is the biggest resort – a teeming place of faded grandeur where property costs are very high. North of Viareggio the resort towns are backed by pretty mountains, and south of Viareggio by pinewoods. South of Livorno, the coast grows a bit scrubby and characterless, with lots of campsites dotted around. The southernmost third of Tuscany’s coast, meanwhile, is definitely worth more attention than it receives. This is a wild and unspoilt area with a distinct charm. And property here is certainly good value. Much costlier, and undeniably gorgeous, are the offshoots from Tuscany’s coast – the islands of Elba and Giglio, and the leafy peninsula of Monte Argentario.

The centre and Chiantishire

Central Tuscany sees the rolling hills, arcing vineyards and zigzagging lines of cypress trees that form the popular British idea of Tuscany – indeed of Italy as a whole. The landscape is like the background of a Renaissance painting – and strict, sensible restrictions on building keep it looking that way. The triangle formed with Siena, San Gimignano and the Chianti hills at its three corners outlines the most popular area for foreign buyers in Tuscany. This includes the fabled ‘Chiantishire’, where large numbers of well-heeled foreign buyers have bought properties over the last forty years. Officially, this area has the world’s highest priced rural property. An old farmhouse needing restoration would set you back by at least €500,000, and a ready-restored one is likely to ask more than a million. If you can afford it, and you enjoy the company of fellow ex-pats as well as Italians, by all means buy here. The area is exquisitely beautiful. Demand for properties is still high in central Tuscany. The holiday rental prospects on a home here are very strong.

The east

While certain stretches of Tuscany’s east are now fairly familiar to foreign buyers, other parts are only now being discovered and currently offer very good value for money. Many estate agents single out the Arezzo area as a good place to buy. The prosperous and lively city itself has reasonable prices, with two-bed apartments in and around town starting at about €150,000. Out in the surrounding countryside, meanwhile, you can pick up restored and unrestored homes from €100,000. Charming nearby Cortona and Montepulciano, both built on high and giving stunning views, are rather pricier – with central two-bedroom apartments asking about €300,000. This eastern stretch of Tuscany has an extremely attractive landscape, with stripy vineyards and so on. It has the added bonus of easy access to lovely Lake Trasimeno and, further east, the enchanting hilltowns of Umbria.

The south

Tuscany grows increasingly wild and rugged as it inches south towards Lazio. The landscape isn’t strictly mountainous, but muscular and expansive. The population drops, and the geography throws up striking features like bald tufa outcrops, isolated high hills, sulphur springs and the drained coastal marshes of The Maremma. The south is probably Tuscany’s least-known stretch, and the property prices down here are among the lowest in the region. That’s likely to change, of course, now that nearby Viterbo – in Lazio – has been approved as the third tourist airport for Rome. Of towns in Tuscany’s south, rock-perched Pitigliano and spring-riddled Saturnia see a respectable number of visitors, Sorano and Sovana have notable Etruscan relics, and many other settlements simply offer a peaceful, handsome little place to settle down. Southern Tuscan roads are small, uncrowded, and few – perfect for a quiet life. The sea is never far way, nor is the delightful, crystal-clear Lake Bolsena just over the border in Lazio.

OUR HOME IN TUSCANY
Sussex-based Susan Miller-Jones owns a four-bedroom farmhouse in southern Tuscany, set amidst twelve acres of grassland and olive groves ten minutes from the coast. She and her husband enjoy frequent visits, and rent the property to holidaymakers when they’re not there.
        The couple didn’t really choose Tuscany, Tuscany chose them. “We’d been looking for a holiday home abroad for years,” Susan explains, “and we knew that one day the right place was going to speak to us. We had looked in France and not found anything we either liked or could afford. And then friends of ours bought a place in southern Tuscany, and we took some time out to discover the area. We were seduced!”
        They bought their home in 2001. “It was habitable,” Susan says, “but arranged in the normal Italian farmhouse style – for families to live upstairs and animals to live downstairs. We converted it to the British idea of normal, with bedrooms upstairs. And we put in a pool. We never bought with the intention of renting it out. But we realized we probably didn’t want to use it in July and August. Houses work much better if they’re used all the time, so we thought we’d rent it out in high summer, and that was how it started. We haven’t had any problem with the rentals. We fill about ten weeks every year and we don’t want more than that. I think southern Tuscany appeals to visitors because it’s a bit novel, a bit different. It’s a little less expensive than some of the more classic areas of Tuscany. And it’s close to the sea.”
        What does Susan most enjoy about having a home in Italy? “The Italian people,” she says immediately. “They are much more generous with their patience when we try to speak their language than the French ever would be! They’re extremely kind and helpful. Because southern Tuscany is not particularly fashionable, the people are very pleased to see us everywhere we go. They’re interested to know where we’re from, and delighted that we’re English. It’s more relaxed here than the south of France, too. Much more informal. The generosity of the people here is wonderful. And of course it’s a lot less expensive as well.”
        Any advice for others thinking of buying a home in Tuscany? “To make life easier, you do need to learn some Italian,” Susan says. “I suppose in the more fashionable Chiantishire area it’s not such an issue, because more Italians there speak English. But certainly down where we are there are very few English-speakers. Also, learn to relax! This isn’t England, things go at a different pace. Which is a big reason for coming here!”
www.podere-dei-venti.com

OUR TUSCAN COUNTRY HOME
Michael and Eleanor Eddershaw, based in south Wales, own an idyllic eight-bedroom villa in wine-country near Montalcino. They rent the place to holidaymakers throughout the warmer months, and enjoy visits there in spring and autumn.
      Michael fell in love with the area fifty years ago during his student days. “I was walking the length of Italy, accepting lifts now and again. I went all the way from the Alps down to Sicily,” he explains. “In the southern half of Tuscany I remember walking down the Val d’Arbia and being struck by how beautiful it was. The flowing countryside was like waves in the sea, a green sea with little cypress trees sticking up now and again.” Twenty-five years later, when Michael and Eleanor began thinking of buying a home abroad, Michael’s thoughts returned to southern Tuscany.
      “We only wanted a little cottage!” he laughs. “But back then all the homes scattered around southern Tuscany were huge abandoned farmhouses. An architect and old university friend who had settled in San Gimignano, Michael Goodall, knew lots of houses and showed me a photo of Montelandi. It was completely overgrown, and when we finally found it we had to use machetes to reach it! It had been deserted a generation earlier. The local gentry family had simply left, and gone to Livorno. The house was perfect for us. People in the village had been calling it ‘Villa Lila’ because there were lilacs all around it. It was buried in them.”
      Restoring Montelandi to its former glory was a major undertaking. “First we had to raise the huge roof beams back into place because they were all on the ground,” Michael recalls. “I took half the Llanelli rugby team out there with me, because I needed eight big strapping lads to lift them!” Work continued at a leisurely pace over the next decade, and now the property is stunning. “It’s a big place,” Michael says. “Several families can get together there. It can sleep about eighteen, so it’s perfect for house parties. There’s a big apartment down below; there’s a pool, an orchard, a vegetable garden, and fourteen acres of woodland. The front terrace looks across at the little wine town of Montalcino, and we’re within the Brunello wine territory.”     
      Michael and Eleanor have many annually returning guests, but Michael notes a few have skipped a year this year because of financial concerns. Paying guests have certainly been a bonus, but making money from the property was never the couple’s chief motivation. “The place costs a lot to run, and to pay all the staff,” Michael says, “but to us it’s a family home rather than an investment. We love it, we love the Italian way of life, and we love the local people.”   
www.montelandi.com

OUR HOME IN TUSCANY
Chichester-based Kay Mowlam and her husband David bought and restored a farmhouse in the wilds of southern Tuscany in 2001. They enjoy regular visits, and also rent the property to holidaymakers.
      Why did they choose to buy in Italy? “David was in the navy and we were posted to Italy for six and a half years, and obviously fell in love with the place,” Kay explains. “Also, I’ve always worked in the art world and I’m hooked on Italian art and architecture. We kept saying ‘we won’t buy a house in Tuscany,’ but in the end we did.”

      The farmhouse, ‘La Casetta del Brinco’, was derelict when the couple bought it. Kay says “We restored it with the help of a wonderful builder called Claudio Rossi, who sees it as his lifetime’s work to restore these old houses. He doesn’t mind that it is stranieri [foreigners] who’ve bought them; he’s just happy to see them brought back to life and used again. His team’s craftsmanship is superb. I couldn’t have asked for more. In England, we had building work done to a 17th-century Tudor townhouse which had been an antiques shop and storehouse for forty years. It made a stark comparison – dealing with English builders, and then the joy of dealing with Claudio. We found him through our excellent estate agent, Diana Levins Moore from Tuscany Inside Out.

      “We’ve not had many problems finding rental clients. Half are friends, and I also advertise in a few places. This year we went out for ten days in June; the house was then let straight through to October when we visited again. We usually have New Year and Easter there. I love the place in the wintertime – the colours and the afternoon light. And there are far fewer tourists then in wonderful nearby places like Siena and Orvieto.

      “We were quite flexible on location. I grew up in northern Canada, so I quite like empty spaces. The uncultivated terrain and the crete of southern Tuscany appeal, as does knowing that there is probably still virgin woodland within our view. The landscape is wonderful, constantly changing with the seasons. I love its ‘unkempt’ wildness and the fact that the land hasn’t been continuously worked for centuries, like the major part of Tuscany.

      “Our area is called Località le Vigne, and has been famous since Etruscans times for the quality of the air, the water and the wine. It’s extraordinary – you can almost taste the air, it’s so clean and clear. And the lack of light pollution gives a glorious night sky. The locals have been very friendly and helpful; I’m known as ‘The English Signora’. They’ve just made us feel so welcome.”

www.casettadelbrinco.co.uk