This has been a program for awhile now, so I guess it’s just being marketed in a new way.
The upside is that you get a free house. The downside is that it’s basically an abandoned structure in an isolated village. The repairs will be (generally speaking) beyond the DIY capabilities of most North Americans. Drywall? That’s easy. Stone and plaster? Not so much.
Plumbing? FML - I’m going to try to say this nicely, but I’ve found that most post-war era Italian plumbing can be described as “non-standard,” “inventive,” or “surprising.” Sorpresa, bitches.
The repairs are the initial problem. The lifestyle may be another. These homes are in rural, isolated villages. It may seen charming, but not many amenities nearby. And because most young people have left these villages, you may not be able to communicate with your neighbors. And because you don’t understand the local language, customs, and norms, they may actively dislike you.
Yeah, I feel like this is one of those “too good to be true” situations. If they can’t find anyone on earth who wants to pay more than $1 for this house, there is probably a strong reason for it.
A 2 hour 175km drive to Cagliari for everything “big-city”… good luck. Not to mention Sardinian Italian is different enough that learning cosmopolitan Italian isn’t enough to communicate with your neighbors and laborers (because you’ll need to hire people for repairs if you’re not already skilled in construction)
This has been a program for awhile now, so I guess it’s just being marketed in a new way.
The upside is that you get a free house. The downside is that it’s basically an abandoned structure in an isolated village. The repairs will be (generally speaking) beyond the DIY capabilities of most North Americans. Drywall? That’s easy. Stone and plaster? Not so much.
Plumbing? FML - I’m going to try to say this nicely, but I’ve found that most post-war era Italian plumbing can be described as “non-standard,” “inventive,” or “surprising.” Sorpresa, bitches.
The repairs are the initial problem. The lifestyle may be another. These homes are in rural, isolated villages. It may seen charming, but not many amenities nearby. And because most young people have left these villages, you may not be able to communicate with your neighbors. And because you don’t understand the local language, customs, and norms, they may actively dislike you.
Yeah, I feel like this is one of those “too good to be true” situations. If they can’t find anyone on earth who wants to pay more than $1 for this house, there is probably a strong reason for it.
You just need some of that real American spirit! There were no amenities in the frontier either. You build it and they will come.
A 2 hour 175km drive to Cagliari for everything “big-city”… good luck. Not to mention Sardinian Italian is different enough that learning cosmopolitan Italian isn’t enough to communicate with your neighbors and laborers (because you’ll need to hire people for repairs if you’re not already skilled in construction)