I would like to take this opportunity to welcome Charles Joseph to our Forum as the host of the Property section. Charles is a very knowledgeable person with considerable experience in the Italian property market. He knows a great deal about the legal/bureaucratic aspects and also about the pitfalls of buying a property in Italy.

He runs the Magical Marche website which we link to through our cost of living section as he has a great COL breakdown.

So come on folks, now is your chance to ask those questions you have been worried about.

Welcome Charles!!!
Charles I am so glad you joined this pleasant forum; no cry-babies here.

Dear members I have read Charles' postings on another Italian forum, for over a year now and I can tell you from this knowledge, that we are lucky to have him now.

Wonderful! Welcome Charles. Your postings have been informative and accurate. Mille Grazie!

Good to be here and I'll do my best to answer those questions for you.

I am half Italian if you like as my mother is originally from Grottaglie in Puglia and so I do get a bit upset when some people have ago about how bad things are. I have lived worked and studied in both the UK and Italy and understand some of the cultural differences.

Since getting involved on the real estate side of things with some of the family in the Marche, I've focused my energies on understanding the red tape in order to remove some of the esoterism that surrounds the industry.

Most of you who know me from the other Forum will be aware that I like to tell it how it is.

Looking forward to exchaning some views and opinions with you.

Charles

A big welcome from me too! Having met you at La Dolce Vita recently I know this site will be greatly enhanced by your presence.

quote:

Most of you who know me from the other Forum will be aware that I like to tell it how it is.

Sounds good to me! When I ask questions I want somebody telling me how it is and not somebody who's just saying whatever to make me feel good.

Welcome!

Welome, Sir!

How fantastic to have an expert resource for this important and complex topic.

Thank you in advance for the valuable knowledge I plan to reap from your posts.

Jennifer

Hi CJ,

I'll definitely be taking advantage of your expertise. I've been seriously looking at the Italian property market for about a year. In fact, I've made a move to London from Vancouver and now spend half my time here.

I also attended La Dolce Vita in London recently, not sure if we had a chance to meet there..I was the one wandering around with all the brochures. Oh, I guess everyone was wandering around with all the brochures!

Good to have you here.

Charles,

You are one busy guy. Grad school and now this, too? I hope this doesn't mean you will quit shooting!

You can rest assured that I won't quit "shooting"...I enjoy it too much

Welcome Charles, I have just joined the site and my husband and I are looking to take a year out of the UK in Tuscany, we visited recently and particulary liked the area around Bagni di Lucca. We have been looking for a long term rental as in 6months but preferably a year and are finding this task almost impossible. Everything is just holiday rental. We are looking to leave the UK at the end of June 2007. Any advice would be appreciated.
Mary Stevenson

Mary, it doesn't take a real estate person to see that one problem is that you are arriving at high season for tourists in a tourist-heavy area. Most people are booked by now.

Arriving in low season often is tempting to offer a home at a reduced price in order to reap the benefit of a year round rental without advertising or weekly cleaning, repairs, etc. Were you looking in a place with fewer tourists your options would also be wider. I wish you luck, but it won't be easy.

Mary

I just happened to catch your post by chance. I have a very good friend in Tuscany and he is also an estate agent specialising in the area around Bagni di Lucca. He also does rentals so he may be able to help you. The only problem is that he doesn't speak any english at all but if you are interested let me know and I can translate for you.

Polly

Are you attempting to find a place via internet, ie. from the UK? That must be extremely difficult. I´ve found that many places that are advertised on internet sites are either no longer available, only available after October, only available for longterm rentals (ie. 4 years), or else they have no furniture. I tried for three months to find a 6 month to 1 year rental in Liguria, also a tourist region,(asked in person in at least 40 real estate agencies) and found that after March almost everything is booked up until September or October.

I finally found something last week, by expanding my search area and finding a hand-written sign in a community I had never thought about before. I´m quite happy about it in the end, but could not have found it through the internet.

If the situation in Bagni di Lucca area is similar to here you´re best bet is to have somemone who is already there out pounding the pavement for you...looking for signs and asking at all the agencies.

quote:

Originally posted by Mary Stevenson:
Welcome Charles, I have just joined the site and my husband and I are looking to take a year out of the UK in Tuscany, we visited recently and particulary liked the area around Bagni di Lucca. We have been looking for a long term rental as in 6months but preferably a year and are finding this task almost impossible. Everything is just holiday rental. We are looking to leave the UK at the end of June 2007. Any advice would be appreciated.
Mary Stevenson

Mary...

Sorry for late reply. I haven't been on for a while as I have had a personal problem to deal with.

I would agree with the other comments raised here. Try to extend your search area. You have a choice of places such as Barga to the NW or San Marcello Pistoiese to the NE of Bagni.

quote:

Originally posted by CJ:
Good to be here and I'll do my best to answer those questions for you.

I am half Italian if you like as my mother is originally from Grottaglie in Puglia and so I do get a bit upset when some people have ago about how bad things are. I have lived worked and studied in both the UK and Italy and understand some of the cultural differences.

Since getting involved on the real estate side of things with some of the family in the Marche, I've focused my energies on understanding the red tape in order to remove some of the esoterism that surrounds the industry.

Most of you who know me from the other Forum will be aware that I like to tell it how it is.

Looking forward to exchaning some views and opinions with you.

Charles

Hello, Charles,
My name is MaryAnn and my husband is Gordon. We live int he United States,in New York State. WE are visiting Calabria for the first time in July. We have visited Italy 3 other times in other regions in search of the region in which we want to live permanently. Yes, for good. We would like to be there within the next 3 years.
Do you know much of Calabria? I am finding it difficult to meet up in a forum with people who live there; most have holiday homes. It sounds as if many people already know you and are very happy to have your expertise available, so I thank you for joining. Perhaps you can let me know some drawbacks to living there. Maybe there are advantages to one coast over the other. All of my grandparents were born in Sicily; I speak Italian, though, not correctly, yet am understood. I am glad. I have a need to be there, having lost both my parents so close together and being the only child.
So, welcome, thank you.
MaryAnn

quote:

Originally posted by CJ:
Good to be here and I'll do my best to answer those questions for you.

I am half Italian if you like as my mother is originally from Grottaglie in Puglia and so I do get a bit upset when some people have ago about how bad things are. I have lived worked and studied in both the UK and Italy and understand some of the cultural differences.

Since getting involved on the real estate side of things with some of the family in the Marche, I've focused my energies on understanding the red tape in order to remove some of the esoterism that surrounds the industry.

Most of you who know me from the other Forum will be aware that I like to tell it how it is.

Looking forward to exchaning some views and opinions with you.

Charles

Charles, I would like to insert my email link.
thanks. MaryAnngweis60@optonline.net

quote:

Originally posted by Vindleka:
Mary

I just happened to catch your post by chance. I have a very good friend in Tuscany and he is also an estate agent specialising in the area around Bagni di Lucca. He also does rentals so he may be able to help you. The only problem is that he doesn't speak any english at all but if you are interested let me know and I can translate for you.

Polly

Hello, Polly,
My name is MaryAnn and my hubby and i are going to visit Calabria in July to see if it is the place for us to live for good. Any thoughts? We will be there for 2 weeks, first time. Looking for a village with lots of people, near the beach, near a larger city. What do you think of Tropea? I am not looking for the kind of life where you sit on the beach everyday. I love people. Also, can't live way up on a mountain. Tell me, are there opportunities to teach English? I speak Italian, although not perfectly. Relatives born in Sicily. Thank you.
MaryAnn

Dear Mary Ann.

You should start a new thread asking your question as you will get more responses.

Buongiorno Charles,

If you need any assistance in Abruzzo please advise. My name is Giovanna and I'm also Half Canadian and Half Italian. I have been living in Italy for 20 years and am workling as customer care at www.gransassohouse.it in the Abruzzo region in the province of Teramo. We are located in the comune of Isola del Gran Sasso and we specialize in ruins, countryhouses, cottages. If you have time please take a look at our website,.
Buona giornata