The Municipality of Cammarata, in Sicily, joined the €1 houses initiative as early as 2015, approving regulations for the redevelopment and reuse of abandoned properties in the historic centre through their free transfer to third parties for tourism, hospitality, commercial or residential purposes.
The €1 houses project in Cammarata, however, has a distinctive feature: here, the municipality works alongside an association of young professionals who have committed themselves to safeguarding the historic centre.
The €1 house scheme in Cammarata
Interest in the €1 houses in Cammarata surged after a CNN report gave the initiative international exposure. “After that interview, requests arrived from all over the world, and many people came to visit in person. The lockdown slowed things down somewhat, but operations are now resuming,” the Municipality commented.
The initiative was launched to protect the historic heritage of Cammarata’s old town. “Ours is an ancient village; the first settlements date back to before the year 1000. It faces entirely eastwards and, when the sky is clear, we wake up to a view of Mount Etna from our windows, even though it is 200 kilometres away,” municipal sources explained.
€1 houses in Cammarata: the collaboration with Street to
To further develop the €1 houses in Cammarata project, the Municipality signed a memorandum of understanding with the association Street to to promote the initiative. This is a group of young locals, including architects, designers, accountants, lawyers and photographers, some of whom have moved abroad but continue to combine their expertise in support of a shared goal: saving Cammarata’s historic centre from decline.
One of the project coordinators, Martina Giracello, explained: “Through our work, we want to act as a showcase to bring the properties for sale in Cammarata’s historic centre to the attention of as many people as possible, not just the €1 houses.”
Street to began working alongside the Municipality in February, effectively taking on management of the project, and has since expanded the range of properties available.
“We realised last year,” architect Martina Giracello said, “that when we showed people the €1 houses for sale, many asked whether there were others in better condition, even at a higher but still reasonable price.”
This led Street to to seek out other owners interested in selling, even if not at a symbolic price. The key requirement is that the property must be located in the historic centre of the village and in need of restoration work. As Giracello emphasised, “Our mission is to save the centre from decay and the risk posed by abandoned buildings falling into ruin.”
Properties available for purchase in Cammarata
In addition to the €1 houses in Cammarata, other properties listed on the association’s website range between €5,000 and €25,000, depending on their condition and the extent of renovation work required.
“Ninety-nine per cent of buyers are foreigners. Of these, around 80 per cent are people looking to change their lives, while the remaining 20 per cent are mainly individuals living in South America who want to return to the places their families left many years ago.”
All proposals are considered for both residential and commercial use. Often, as Martina Giracello points out, the two go hand in hand, with part of a property used as a home and the rest for hospitality, catering or artisan activities.
At present, the Street to website is available in English, though the team is working on Italian and Spanish versions.
Another feature of the €1 house initiative in Cammarata is that the young professionals of Street to support buyers from the initial contact through to the renovation works, including assistance with bureaucracy. “Our group includes lawyers, designers, linguists, photographers and accountants,” Giracello explains. “We make an effort to answer questions that might not strictly fall within our remit, such as those concerning permits and visas, and we provide practical help with renovation works for anyone wishing to start a business in the village.”
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