Luxury house prices in Italy increased by 2.2% in April 2024 compared to the previous year, surpassing the overall residential market growth of 1.7%. This information comes from a study conducted by idealista, a leading portal for technological development in Italy.
Luxury house prices in Italy
Gorizia is the province with the sharpest increase in luxury house prices (which represent 10% of the housing stock), seeing a 16.5% rise. Other provinces with significant double-digit increases include Pescara (14.7%), Fermo (12.1%), and Brindisi (11.1%). In Milan, the increase was 3.3%, while Rome and Naples saw more modest increases of 0.8% and 1.4% respectively. Only 16 out of 106 monitored provinces saw a decrease in high-end house prices, with Rimini (-6.4%), Terni (-4.8%), and Oristano (-2.5%) experiencing the largest declines.
Compared to the overall market trend, the most expensive houses have outpaced general market growth in 71 out of 106 provinces. Gorizia had the most significant disparity, with the general market declining by 1.4% while the top 10% increased by 16.5%. Other notable provinces include Pescara (general market -2.1%, top 10% +14.5%), Siracusa (general market -5%, top 10% +7.3%), Lecco (general market -5.4%, top 10% +4.8%), and Trapani (general market -0.2%, top 10% +9.8%).
In Milan, the general market fell by 0.3% while the high-end market rose by 3.3%; in Rome, the overall market decreased by 0.5%, but the most expensive houses saw a 0.8% increase.
Conversely, there are 33 markets where luxury house prices have grown more slowly than the general market. In Grosseto, the difference is particularly stark: general house prices rose by 11.1%, while the top 10% saw a slight decrease of 0.3%. Other examples include Terni (general market +4.8%, top 10% -4.8%), Benevento (general market +6.9%, top 10% -1.8%), and Salerno (general market +7.5%, top 10% -0.6%).
House prices in Italian provincial capitals
In the provincial capitals analysed, high-end house prices increased in 65% of cases. Ferrara and Brindisi showed the largest annual increases, at 10.2% and 9.2% respectively, followed by Sassari (8.4%), Bergamo (7.6%), and Catania (7.4%). Among the major markets, Milan saw a modest increase of 2%, while Naples recorded a 4.5% rise. Rome, however, experienced a slight decline of 0.8%. Turin saw the most significant growth in the high-end segment among the main provincial capitals, with an increase of 4.9%.
On the other hand, in 29 provincial capitals, top-tier house prices decreased. The most significant declines were in Perugia (-11%), Bolzano (-7%), and Cuneo (-6.8%).
Regarding the relationship with the overall market, the top segment grew more than the general market in 49 out of 90 monitored cities. The most significant difference was observed in Ragusa, with a 4.6% decline in the general market and a 3.6% increase in the top segment, followed by Salerno (general market -2.4%, top 10% +8.1%) and Messina (general market -1.2%, top 10% +6.8%).
In Milan, where the general market remained stable over the last year, the luxury segment grew by 2%. Conversely, Rome saw a 0.4% increase in the general market but a 0.8% decrease in the top segment.
Additionally, 39 markets have seen the gap between the general market and the luxury segment narrow over the past 12 months. Perugia has the largest differential, with the general market up by 3.3% while the top 10% decreased by 11%. Other notable cases include Barletta, where the general market grew by 14% and the top 10% by 3%, and Asti, with a 7.5% increase in the general market but a 1.2% decrease in the top segment. Finally, in Bolzano, the general market saw a marginal increase of 0.3%, while the top segment fell by 7%.
Methodology
To conduct this study, idealista compared the price per square metre in April 2023 and 2024, using the same sample as for the idealista House Price Index but focusing on the top 10% of each analysed market.
Data for all Italian cities is available here.
Data collected and analysed by idealista/data, idealista's proptech technology that provides information to a professional audience to facilitate strategic decision-making in Spain, Italy, and Portugal. It uses all the parameters from the idealista database in each country, as well as other public and private data sources, to offer valuation, investment, acquisition, and market analysis services.