Buying and renovating a house in Italy is something a lot of people dream about. But actually doing it is a completely different experience.
First comes the property search. Then, you have to figure out how to buy the one once you’ve found it, followed by understanding how renovations really work in Italy. It’s a process with bureaucracy, surprises (both amazing and not so fun), and a million decisions you don’t even realize you’ll have to make.
This page is the complete, firsthand story of buying and renovating a house in Italy, based on our real experience restoring a countryside house in the Piemonte region of northern Italy. You’ll find both our personal journey and all the (many!) practical lessons we learned along the way from searching for and buying the right property to managing and surviving a full, top-to-bottom renovation.
Our Italy House Story
I guess you could say we were always in love with the idea of living abroad and being in a place that gave us the type of lifestyle that allowed for easier travel to different countries.
It wasn’t until during the pandemic, though, that I started trolling Italian real estate websites…as one does with time on their hands! We’d been to Italy for our honeymoon and loved it. We were also in Torino for the winter Olympics and had traveled to the south with my husband’s parents who were born and mostly raised in Puglia.
After a long meandering “search” trying to figure out which part of Italy to look (because at this point I wasn’t sure if this was just something to pass the time in lockdown or something we were really going to do), I stumbled on the region of Piemonte and the area of Monferrato, specifically.
Using Google Maps street view, I started “touring” villages from my sofa and searching for houses online across Monferrato. Once the spreadsheet was made to track favorite houses, we realized we were really doing this…or at least going to give it a serious try.
Things snowballed from making appointments for virtual showings to finding THE ONE. As the world got back to normal and countries re-opened to visitors, I went to see the house in person as soon as it was possible.
It was definitely a mix of surreal excitement and a “how did I end up here in this little village” kind of moment. The owners gave me a tour and then let me spend some time on my own exploring the house…which probably was the smartest thing they could have done. Alone with the house, there was a connection and feeling that it was meant to be.
Back home (and after almost losing the house to another American family!), my husband and I talked everything over together and with my sister and her husband who wanted to be our partners on this. We made an offer that was accepted and it was official.
The actual buying process with the sellers and the notaio (the real estate law expert in Italy who does closings) was straightforward and smooth. But once we had the keys, the real work started.
The house needed a full renovation. Before that could happen, we had to hire a geometra and engineer, make our renovation plans, compare “Computo Metrico” or price quotations, hire tradesmen, and clear out the house from top to bottom before any work could start.
All in, this process took about a year. But finally we had our permits and the renovation began and we were excited and nervous for the road ahead.
The renovation came with many ups and some very challenging downs, especially because we were trying to keep our renovation costs per square meter in a specific range. But looking back as everything is nearing completion, we had just the right amount of cluelessness, calm, and perseverance (along with some incredible community support) to transform our house into a place of our dreams.
So, if you’re someone who’s dreaming of buying and renovating a house in Italy or just fascinated by life in Italy, old houses, or personal transformation through epic life adventures, I hope you’ll dig into our complete step-by-step story to follow along and see the many lessons we learned along the way.
You can even watch this video for a quick glimpse at our story.
How This Italy House Story is Organized
From this page, you can follow our entire story from searching and buying to renovating and the reveal. When available, I’ve also included related video footage so you can actually watch along with me.
Maybe you’ve landed here to start or perhaps you clicked through to this page after already seeing some parts of our renovation. Either way, it’s up to you whether you want to follow chronologically or jump around to what interests you most.
It’s an epic true-life tale with many parts, so I’ve tried to organize everything as simply as possible with each part of our journey broken down.
Our Renovation Updates
From here, you can follow our house renovation from day one to today. I add more parts as new progress is made.
You’ll see how we prepped the house for the work, the house demolition, the highs and lows we experienced along the way, and all the before and after highlights as they are ready.
This is perfect for you if you want a behind-the-scenes look at our real life renovation story.
Follow our Italy house renovation journey.
Buying a House in Italy
If you’re thinking of buying a house in Italy or have already started to look, this section will show you what it looked like from our firsthand experience.
You’ll see how we found our house, the steps required to buy property in Italy, and everything we learned from going through the process.
Buying a house in Italy: our firsthand experience
Renovating in Italy
In this section, you’ll find the MANY lessons learned from our renovation process. I share what you should know before renovating, my own mistakes made during the renovating, what I wish I had known earlier, planning tips, and much more.
A lot of people focus on the buying process, but there’s a lot to understand and prepare for when you’re thinking of renovating a house in Italy. You’ll find all of that here.
What you need to know before renovating a house in Italy
Bottom Line
I hope our Italy house story fascinates and possibly even inspires you to start your own journey in Italy.
Yes, there’s bureaucracy and the renovation will take longer than you think. There will be surprises and moments that will make you wonder how you got yourself into this. But it’s SO worth it.
It’s a one-of-a-kind adventure that transforms an old house and everyone along for the ride.
