Used house prices in Italy fell by 0.8% on a quarterly basis to an average price of €1,845 per square metre. However, the situation varies greatly in different areas, whose reality differs significantly from the national average. In which municipalities are house searches concentrated and which ones have the most expensive prices? A report by idealista/data took a close look at which are the most expensive and most sought-after locations in Italy to buy a house in the third quarter of 2023. Let's find out the picture that emerges.
The study, in detail, focused on the announcements published on idealista, Italy's leading real estate portal. The report examined the data available for municipalities that have advertisements with an asking price of more than 875 €/m2 on average and for which there is a stock of more than 975 property advertisements for sale on idealista (and more than 50 for rent).
Thanks to this analysis, it was possible to rank the 100 municipalities that generated the most leads (e-mail contacts and shares) per listing and those where the average final sales price is highest.
The most expensive places to buy a house
The most expensive municipality in Italy for those wishing to buy a house has not changed since the previous quarter and remains Forte dei Marmi, where it takes an average outlay of more than 1.5 million €o to purchase a residential property (a figure slightly lower than the survey of three months ago).
Ranking of houses for sale on idealista in the third quarter of 2023
The rest of the podium ranking of municipalities where the average price of houses for sale is highest also remains identical. Even in Q2 2023, the second and third positions were occupied by Pietrasanta (€650,424) and Alassio (currently the average price in advertisements is €495,260) respectively. The entire podium, as is easy to observe, is occupied by locations with strong tourist appeal and prestige.
Just off the podium, we find one of the main Italian markets. In fourth position, in fact, is Milan. In the capital of Lombardy, the average final price of houses is €485,260, while in fifth place is another Lombardy municipality: Desenzano sul Garda in the province of Brescia (€481,852). The top 10 is completed by other tourist as well as residential locations such as Venice (€461,553), Riccione (€453,759), Camaiore (€435,226), Florence (€419,616) and Lerici (€416,882).
To find Rome you have to scroll down the ranking to 26th place, with an average sale price of €304,658. While the most expensive municipality in southern Italy is Olbia, in thirteenth place, where an average of €367,155 is required to buy a house.
The most popular locations to buy a house
In addition, idealista/data implemented an indicator summarising the pressure of demand on supply in each area of Italy for the segment of houses for sale. The indicator is based on the number of leads (e-mail contacts and shares) received per advertisement.
Ranking of houses for sale on idealista in the third quarter of 2023
According to the idealista/data report, Rome and Milan score a relative demand index of 2.1 and 2 respectively. While the municipality that totals the lowest relative demand index (0.3) is, curiously enough, also the most expensive: Forte dei Marmi, testifying to the exclusivity of the local real estate market. Other locations such as Cervia, Catanzaro, San Benedetto Tronto, Asti, Alassio, Sarzana, Massa do not go beyond an index of 0.5: Cervia, Catanzaro, San Benedetto del Tronto, Asti, Alassio, Sarzana, Massa.
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