From the North of Italy to the south, history dating back to Imperial Rome is all around you. It is from the age of the Roman Empire when the network of towns and roads were mainly formed and later the Italian Renaissance period that gives Italy its timeless character. Western civilization owes a great deal to the contribution of Rome and the Renaissance and Italy is still very influential on the worldwide stage in the areas of fashion and design. Particularly in the north of Italy, livings standards are very high and rival standards found anywhere in Europe. It is very cosmopolitan and you will hear a number of different languages spoken there. In the south of Italy values are a little different where honour, behaviour and family loyalties are held in high regard. Despite these differences it is the history, the culture the arts and the heritage that makes Italy what it is today, with contributions from the Greeks, the Arabs and a number of others throughout its history.

The landscape of Italy is spectacular and diverse. In the very north you have the Alpine scenery along the French, Swiss and Austrian borders, popular for the superb ski slopes. This is also where you will find the lakes Maggiore, Como, Iseo and Garda. Traveling south you come to the great northern plain that widens out towards the Adriatic in the east. From the north western Mediterranean coast the backbone of Italy, the Apenine mountain range reaches out down the centre of Italy all the way to the southern tip where the climate is considerably warmer than in the north. Also when traveling south through Italy the trees change from pines in the north to poplars and then to oak, then cypress and further south olives and later almonds and citrus trees. There are also two island regions of Sicily where customs and loyalty values are possibly the strongest and Sardinia which is isolated and fiercely traditional

Italy is now one of the UK’s top European destinations for relocating to or for buying a property to rent. If you do decide that Italy is the place you want to buy then we would advise any prospective purchasers to seek out the services of a reputable local lawyer to guide you through the buying process and could save many problems at a later stage. Once you have found a property that you like and an offer is made your offer is legally binding for a set number of days giving the vendor time to accept or refuse your offer. If the offer is accepted a 10% deposit has to be paid. After that a preliminary contract of sale is drawn up and signed and a further payment of around 25% has to be paid. The final stage for completion is when the title to the property is passed from the vendor to the purchaser where a registration document is signed in front of a Notary with the balance then being paid, together with all the fees and taxes due.