Regardless of where you buy property, there are a number of factors to consider from the outset. They apply to all countries and include such things as access, sussing out the neighbourhood and getting a trustworthy estate agent and lawyer.

 

But there are some things that you just can’t make provision for. Things like a brand new low cost airline that starts up at an airport near you – a real stroke of luck and something that is likely to push up the price of your property considerably. And then there’s ‘The Clooney Effect’!

What’s that, do I hear you ask? Well, you have to presuppose that you have a bob or two and that you have spent quite a bit on your property – and then George Clooney moves in next door.

Rumours have been doing the rounds that he was about to sell his $8 million villa, situated at the waterside in the Italian village of Laglio for a cool $30 million – in fact some even had the price going as high as $45 million! Accordingly prices in the neighbourhood soared and lo and behold – neighbours could literally multiply the price of their home by about five!

Prices in the Lake Como area had hit a low, with some properties down by as much as 10 per cent after the recent economic crisis – but now that’s all in the past. The fact of the matter is that Clooney has given the area the ‘Hollywood Legend’ cachet that is practically beyond price and the Lake Como area will bask in its warmth for a long time to come.

To understand the full step-by-step process to buying a property in Italy, collect The Overseas Guides Company’s ‘Italy Property Buying Guide’