From the Gate-away.com annual report 2023 has emerged how attractive Italy is to international investors, especially Americans, Germans and British, who want to buy a second home in the country.

“The peak in searches from overseas for Italian properties for sale through Gate-away.com was registered in April and August, although the period that goes from February to March also experienced an intense activity – comments Simone Rossi, co-founder of Gate-away.com – The average value for the requested properties in Italy is around 530,000 euros, but we have recorded an increase in enquiries for properties up to 100,000 euros, accounting for 40.78% of total requests. This confirms our idea that foreign investment in Italy real estate is not only attractive but also increasingly well distributed”

International buyers in Italy in 2023: age and nationalities

One of the main novelties concerns the age of those using Gate-away.com to find their dream home in Italy, which could open up new and interesting scenarios.

As a matter of fact, the majority of its 1.8 million unique visitors are 45 to 54 years old. This means that their average age has dropped compared to the previous years when they were 55 to 64 years old.

Another very interesting statistic to focus on is the segment of potential buyers who are between 25 and 44 years old which represents a growing slice of the market of international buyers in Italy that can totally change the scenario of the reasons why overseas investors look for a home in Italy. In fact, while before the majority of people were looking for a property where to spend their retirement years, now more and more people are also looking for a place from where they can work remotely. This is a completely new trend.

In terms of nationalities, Americans at the top of the list (28.82%) of those who sent the major number of requests. They are followed by the Germans (11.53%) and the British (9.05%).

The ranking of the top ten of the most active countries also includes Italy because many sent enquiries while they were in the peninsula. Then there are the following countries:

  1. Canada
  2. France
  3. Netherlands
  4. Switzerland
  5. Belgium
  6. Sweden

Worthy of attention is the growth of Israel also in 2023 (+39.62%) in spite of the events in the Middle East. Also Australia (+10.4%) and Ireland (+11.34%) registered an increase in the number of enquiries they sent with respect to 2022.

The most requested locations of Italy by overseas house hunters

Ostuni in Puglia, Chianni in Tuscany and Scalea in Campania were the most requested towns in 2023 according to Gate-away.com annual report, with Chianni that registered +143.42% compared to 2022.

Then there are the following towns:

  1. Fivizzano (Tuscany)
  2. Lucca (Tuscany)
  3. Carovigno (Puglia)
  4. Nizza Monferrato (Piedmont)
  5. Noto (Sicily)
  6. Todi (Umbria)
  7. Tropea (Calabria)

For the provinces, Como (4.75%) in Lombardy has been the most requested one. Perugia (4.46%) in Umbria and Lucca (4.37%) are respectively in second and third position.

Then there are the following provinces:

  1. Brindisi in Puglia (3.86% on the total number of requests for all Italian provinces)
  2. Sassari (3.82%)
  3. Imperia (3.43%)
  4. Cosenza (3.39%)
  5. Massa Carrara (3.18%)
  6. Chieti (2.94%)
  7. Pisa (2.87%)

The top three regions are Tuscany (18.52%), Lombardy (9.28%) and Liguria (8.42%). So it remained unchanged if compared to 2022.

The rest of the top 10 is composed as follows:

  1. Sicily (8.16%)
  2. Piedmont (7.74%)
  3. Apulia (7.68%)
  4. Abruzzo (6.63%)
  5. Umbria (5.94%)
  6. Sardinia (5.68%)
  7. Calabria (5.48%)

“Sicily, Abruzzo, Sardinia, Calabria and Molise deserve a special mention – comments Simone Rossi – As a matter of fact, in 2023 these regions recorded a substantial growth in interest compared to the previous year. Moreover, while Lake Como ranks first among the most requested areas, followed by Salento in Puglia, Lunigiana in Tuscany and Itria Valley in Puglia, the highest percentages of growth are for the Maremma area (+ 6.53%) of Tuscany but above all for the Alps, which reached +67.07%.”

Most popular properties for sale in Italy

74.65% of enquiries on the Gate-away.com portal are for detached houses even if we also recorded a growth for flats (+7.48%). The majority of requests are for fully restored and already habitable properties (63.84%), although enquiries for properties to be restored increased in 2023 (+16% compared to 2022).

40.78% of requests were for properties up to € 100,000. 24.78% for properties for sale in the € 100,000 to € 250,000 bracket. 16.79% is for € 250,000 to € 500,000 homes while 9.65% is for € 500,000 to 1 million euros homes and 8% for those for sale for over 1 million euros.