SEE: You can buy a house in Italy for only R21!
Attention: this is not a scam!
Have a look at the Italian town of Maenza:
Beautiful, right?
Right!
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And after watching enough rom-coms, how many of us can say that we've never dreamt of moving to a foreign country like Italy, where we would live in a very aesthetically pleasing villa and 'Eat, Pray, Love' our lives?
Doesn't that sound absolutely dreamy?
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Well, even if you are looking for a serious investment and not just a dream home, we've got some good news for you.
The little town of Maenza is situated just 70km outside of Italy's capital, Rome, and is in the country's Latium region. It is the latest to join Italy's €1 Houses project.
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Yes, that is exactly what it looks like.
This new project was launched by the Italian government and municipality in 2020 and aims to help restore villages and towns that are suffering from a dwindling or ageing population.
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There are many different branches to the project and many regions of Italy have already been included, but Maenza is the first town in the Latium region.
And, honestly, it sounds incredible!
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The town is situated on the Lepini hills and has dozens of now abandoned stone houses just waiting for new owners. Hopefully this will help the town achieve the "rebirth" they're hoping for.
Claudio Sperduti, the town's mayor, spoke to CNN about the project:
We're taking it one step at a time. As original families get in touch and hand over to us their old houses, we place these on the market through specific public notices on our website to make it all very transparent.
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While this might all seem too good to be true, there are a few rules and regulations that new homeowners need to abide by if they want to purchase a home for only R21.
But it's nothing too bad if you consider the location and some of the other benefits, like owning a house that will cost you less than a 2l milk.
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Here is a list of musts for your new home:
- Buyers make a commitment to renovating the property. Nothing too extravagant, just make sure everything is in working order and functioning as it should.
- The renovations have to be completed within three years of purchase.
- Buyers need to pay a deposit guarantee of €5,000 (around R89,300) that will be returned once the renovations are done.
- Buyers get to choose what they want the property to become - a home, B&B, hotel, restaurant, etc., with detailed plans submitted to the town for approval.
- It is not mandatory for buyers to live in the home they buy and renovate.
The first batch of buildings are officially listed and up on the market. Sperduti says that there are still many on their way to becoming listed.
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Prospective buyers need to apply to local officials who will match them to their property requests, but hurry, because applications close on the 28th of August!
If you need us, we'll be daydreaming about our fabulous Italian villa...
Don't forget to listen to the #Unshaken exclusive and uncensored round-table podcast featuring East Coast Radio's Carol Ofori, Keri Miller, Stacey Norman, and Minnie Ntuli:
Main image courtesy of iStock