You can buy a house for less than £1 in a coronavirus-free Italian town

Monday, 15th June 2020, 11:29 am
Updated Monday, 15th June 2020, 11:30 am
Would you be interested in buying one? (Photo: Shutterstock)

Getting on the property ladder is an expensive business that normally requires years and years of savings.

But one town in Italy is selling houses for less than £1 - and the area is completely coronavirus free.

Why is it so cheap?

The town of Cinquefrondi is situated in the southern region of Calabria, and the community has not had any reported cases of coronavirus, according to its mayor, Michele Conia.

Cinquefrondi sits just a 15 minute car ride from the beach and has plenty of houses that are in need of a bit of renovation.

Prospective buyers are wanted to renovate the properties in the town, and can snap them up for a mere €1 (90p). The initial cost will be followed by a further €250 (£224) insurance policy every year until the property has been renovated. Buyers who don’t complete their renovations within three years could be liable for a €20,000 (£18,000) fine.

Speaking about the renovation project, Mayor Conia told CNN, “Finding new owners for the many abandoned houses we have is a key part of the Operation Beauty [mission] that I have launched to recover degraded, lost parts of town.

"Too many people have fled from here over the decades, leaving behind empty houses. We can't succumb to resignation.

"We rise between the refreshing hills and two warm seas, a pristine river runs nearby, and the beaches are just 15 minutes away by car.

"But a whole district of my town lies abandoned, with empty houses that are also unstable and risky."

"We're just asking for some kind of certainty once a new buyer commits to the project."

How do I buy a house?

The houses that are available for just 90p each are roughly 40 to 50 square metres wide, and are located in the historic part of Cinquefrondi, with some benefitting from their own balcony.

The houses once belonged to farmers, shepherds, artisans and tanners, and there are currently around a dozen available.

However, there are potentially more than 50 empty properties that the town plans to offer to new owners.

And while the homes are in need of some renovation work, the town itself has recently undergone some improvements to its infrastructure, with roads, piazzas, fountains, parks and a church having been restored and painted in rainbow colours.

If you are interested in taking on the project and want to find out more about the homes on offer, simply email [email protected] for more information.