More international buyers inquired about and purchased high-end homes in Italy in the first quarter of 2018, despite the country’s less-than-stable political and economic landscape, according to a Knight Frank report Wednesday.
"We are seeing much of the return of ultra-high-net-worth individuals to Italy at a level previously unseen," said Amy Redfern, senior negotiator at Knight Frank Italian desk and author of the report.
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Super-prime sales, defined as those at or above €10 million (US$12.38 million), have increased significantly in the last three months. In terms of inquiries, Knight Frank saw a 133% increase year-over-year, suggesting that the political or economic uncertainties in Italy, including the general election, banking crisis and the U.K.’s Brexit negotiations, didn’t have a big impact on buyers’ decision-making, the report said.
The report didn’t offer the exact number of sales and inquiries.
Among inquiries for Italian homes— whether they’re about a stone-built Tuscan farmhouse with vineyards, a house with direct canal or lake frontage, or a three-bedroom apartment in a city like Florence, Rome or Lucca—the largest foreign group is from the U.K., accounting for 44.8%.
| Top 10 nationalities viewing Italian homes | |
| Nationalities | % of inquiries |
| U.K. | 44.8% |
| Italy | 15.1% |
| Others | 12% |
| U.S. | 11.3% |
| Australia | 3.6% |
| Germany | 2.6% |
| Canada | 2.4% |
| Switzerland | 2.3% |
| Denmark | 2.2% |
| Netherlands | 1.9% |
| France | 1.8% |
| Source: Knight Frank Research | |
Potential U.S. buyers made up 11.3% of inquiries received by Knight Frank in the last three months, compared to 6% in the same period of 2011, when Knight Frank began tracking prime residential market in Italy.
"The love affair with all things Italian, history, culture and art, continues for many Americans," Ms. Redfern said. "They’re generally heavily involved in properties of historic nature and of architectural merit."
Another trend in Italy’s prime market is the significant uptick in interest from Australian buyers, who accounted for 3.6% of Knight Frank inquiries, compared to a statistically insignificant number seven years ago.
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"From what I have dealt with, most Australian buyers are semi-retired, aged 50 years and older, who look to purchase Italian homes as their base in Europe," she said, adding that many of the interested buyers have children or family members who work in European financial hubs.
Home prices in most of Italy’s prime locations either went down or had zero growth in 2017, except Western Liguria, Chianti and Milan, according to the report.