AngloBanglo

Hello all,

I'm planning to visit Tuscany in August and view some properties I've been researching.

I know very little about the practicalities of buying there and of getting electricity and water hooked up, a septic tank installed, and so on.

The agent has offered to take of care of such things for a fee but I wanted to get my own head around them anyway.

Any links would be much appreciated and if anyone is free in August to meet up and let me buy them lunch or supper while I ask my questions that would be great.

A little about myself. I'm looking to move to Italy or spend the bulk of my time there. I'm a budding novelist, my first just sold to publishers, and I want a quiet place to write. I have always loved Italy.

I think that's it.

superman2

Hello I moved to Italy 2 yrs ago full time, and like you would love to be a writer, I have written a couple of books, one of which is about my adventures in moving to Italy, It didn't really go to plan with the L'Aquilla earthquake happening two days before we purchased. I am in Abruzzo but travel all over Italy to make a living, please pm me and maybe we can meet up I'll swap some practical advice for some publishing advice.
Duncan

AngloBanglo

Duncan, Thanks for the reply. I'd be delighted to offer whatever little advice I can. I'm a relative newbie to this writing gig. For one thing, I wrote the book start to finish before selling it, and, for another, I'm not someone plugged into the writing world. That said, I'd be happy to share and, if you have something to show, I can hook you up with my agents, although I always make it clear to people that I have zero pull with my agents since, apart from the fact that they're fiercely independent, little old me is a debut novelist in their stock of luminaries. Enough about that. We'll discuss in person if we meet.

My question is: Have you renovated your property at all? Did you have services already hooked up?

Petra R

Welcome AngloBanglo, I am new here as well, and after trying a couple of other forums and legging it out of there again swiftly I love it here so far!!!

I am "a writer" (in that I have one published book out) too and one of the reasons I want to move to Italy is to work on my next book.

I can't help with any of the practicalities as I haven't made the move yet myself, but one thing that I was advised previously was to rent for a while before buying, just to get a better feel of the area and to give oneself the chance to look around rather than having to rely on an agent. They (quite rightly) charge for their service and I have found the same properties advertised aimed at the Italian and the Foreign market at two VASTLY different prices....

superman2

[My question is: Have you renovated your property at all? Did you have services already hooked up?[/QUOTE]

Hello, Well,, it is still on going but we live here now and have for two yeears There is no real problem with services if you have them, it's a trip to the office to change the names etc no big deal.
I wouldn't consider buying a house if it didn't already have water and electric, not so worried about gas as it is very expensive here and the telephone was easy to get connected, it did take three months which I am told is quick for Italy.
Electric is different here then the UK it is sold by the usage rate and so most property's have the lowest 3.3kw. an electric kettle takes about 2kw a hous e in the UK is a standard 32kw so two kettles here will trip the power. You can get it increased but it costs and the unit rate is higher, so we have learn't to live without so much electric stuff like kettles and toasters.
Love to chat over writing
All the best Duncan

Engliano

Welcome Aboard good ship Italia !

Cant offer any writing advice as i'm not a writer, At all. but i can say a little about Tuscany, Theres a ton of places, anything near the region of Siena is beautiful, also there's the mountains in the region "Apennine" pronounced "A-paninna", very peaceful place and if you get high up in the villages they tends to be a bit cooler in summer, nice cool breezes etc, boy don't you need them in summer as its bloody roasting ! Also you tend to get locally produced farm foods which are just fabulous ! The foods and wines of Toscana are some of the very finest of what Italy has to offer IMO. Also if you fancy trying a touch of skiiing theres a couple ski villages in the area.

Buona Fortuna !

AngloBanglo

Thank you Petra R and welcome back right at ya. That's sound advice, scoping out Italy with one's feet on the ground. But if I may be a little contrarian I have my heart set on buying a cheap rural property and doing it up while working on the next book. I've found a couple I'm interested in and they're priced at a point that it's hard to imagine them being much lower locally--the costs appear to be in the renovation, in materials and in labour. The labour is the thing I love.

What am I doing now? I think I'm trying to justify something that my better self is telling me to approach with caution. But my better self is getting shouted down by the dreamer who took something into his head and all the rest of it.

Anyhow. I see from your own thread that you're German. Woher aus Deutschland? Which is about the last of my German from years ago when I lived there, in Munich. W.G. Sebald, even after living in the UK for thirty years, continued to write in German. On the other hand, people like Brodsky and Nabakov forsook their native tongues to claim their hosts'. Do you write in German?

AngloBanglo

Duncan, This is the sort of detail that's enormously helpful. It makes you realise how much you take for granted. If you don't mind, I might fire off questions to you as they arise, although I know that none of us are fonts of all knowledge. Thanks.

Lorna at Vicenza

One kettle and one washing machine or one kettle and one dishwasher will trip the electric switch here.


Welcome to the forum and if you have any questions, fire away.

HADENOUGHPIZZA

[QUOTE=Lorna at Vicenza;10183635]One kettle and one washing machine or one kettle and one dishwasher will trip the electric switch here.


QUOTE] This may well explain why electric kettles were quite rare until recently and I'm still the only person I know who has one ....

Lorna at Vicenza

Apart from a Brit girlfriend I don't know anybody who has one here.

If my OH is starving and desperate for some quick cook pasta like tortellini, he'll boil the kettle to fill the pan rather than wait for water to boil in the pan on the cooker.

37100

We have a 4.5kw meter and apart from the installation cost and and couple more euros a month standing charge, it doesn't cost anymore than our 3kw in Turin. If you go over the lower tariff allowance on a smaller meter you have to pay the higher tariff on all the consumption. That said, I still don't use the electric kettle.

Twinkle Canelli

[QUOTE=AngloBanglo;10183545] I have my heart set on buying a cheap rural property and doing it up while working on the next book. I've found a couple I'm interested in and they're priced at a point that it's hard to imagine them being much lower locally--the costs appear to be in the renovation, in materials and in labour. The labour is the thing I love.

Welcome Anglo Bango

I really admire your dream and hate to bring you back down to earth, but it's still wise to live here for a bit before you dive in with both feet and buy somewhere. The reason these beautiful little ruins are for sale at such cheap prices is that most Italians wouldn't touch them because they know the cost of the renovations.

There are strict rules and regulations about who can do the work, and you may find it takes years and years to gain the right paperwork in order to be allowed to do the work yourself. We currently have two ruins on two separate pieces of land - neither will be renovated as it's just not cost effective, but instead we are having a new build and will have one of the ruins demolished. I had hoped to Project Manage the new build to save money, but even that isn't allowed here and instead we have had to employ our architect who is qualified to project manage for us. And things don't happen quickly here in Italy.... it's been eight years since we bought the land, and the roof structure is only just going on - beaureacracy and paperwork goes on forever!!!

Engliano

[QUOTE=Twinkle Canelli;10183699] Unless you know the local politicians that is

A personal friend of mine (who just happens to be great mates with the local mayor) bought a house that was falling to bits only two years ago, he's been allowed to do all the work himself and he now has a beautiful converted barn with 5 bedrooms swimming pool the works. IN ITALY the saying its not what you know its WHO, counts more than anywhere ive ever come across by not a mile but a bloody hundred, GOLDEN RULE NUMBER 1 of life in Italy.

Petra R

I believe there are also rules / laws that some delapidated rural properties can only be legally turned into houses if they have a minimum of land with them. A lot of those ruins do not have the required acreage, or no longer have it as it may have been sold off piecemeal to neighbouring landowners. That seems to be a trap that a lot of foreigners fall into. They buy those places, lovingly do them up at a cost that always turns out much higher than they anticipated, and then find they own an illegal property which they can not sell (at best) and have to move out of / demolish at worst.

It's something I stumbled cross when researching something totally different....

The locals know this, and that's why such properties can often be picked up for next to nothing - but obviously nobody tells the foreign buyers anything of the sort....