Buying property in Italy in 2021
Buying property in Italy in 2021 / Photo by Sophie Wrixon on Unsplash

The COVID-19 pandemic has had its grip on Italy for over a year now, and during this period, the real estate market in the country has seen new ideas to cope with changing demands, fluctuating prices and reduced demand. When it comes to prices of specific types of properties In Italy, on average, the prices of flats have increased more (+2.6%) than those of villas (-0.1%), although the situation varies greatly depending on the geographical areas. This is revealed by a report by idealista/data, which analysed the market for these 2 types of properties, measuring price changes from January 2020 to January 2021. Let's have a closer look at the price changes of flats and villas for sale in Italy over the past year.

The price of flats in Italy 

As far as flats or apartments in Italy are concerned, over the last year the province that has seen the greatest increase in prices per square metre for this type of property is the province of Milan (+19.6%), with an average asking price of Milan of 2,793 euro/m2 from sellers.

This is followed by 3 provinces, Lucca, Modena and Udine which, from January 2020 to January 2020 have seen a 7.1% increase in asking prices per m2 for flats for sale. What varies, however, is the average price, the highest being recorded in the province of Lucca (among the most expensive in Italy) at 2,630 euros/m2. In Modena and Udine the values stand at 1,620 euros/m2 and 1,552 euros/m2 respectively.

However, the provinces with the most expensive average flat prices are different again. The most expensive flats in Italy are located in Bolzano at 3,759 euros/m2 (+6.2%), followed by Savona at 3,267 euros/m2 (+1%) and Florence at 3,024 euros/m2 (+4.3%).

On the other hand, the Italian province that has seen the greatest fall in apartment prices over the period under review is Isernia (-8.8%), where the average sale price is 840 euros/m2. Pistoia follows, with a fall of 7.1%, bringing the average price to 1,360 euros/m2. The performance of the province of L'Aquila followed suit with price drops of 6.9% and average prices of 1,186 euros/m2.

The price of villas in Italy 

As far as the price trend of villas, specifically detached properties, over the last year is concerned, the performance of prices in the province of Sassari stands out above all others. From January 2020 to January 2021, prices in the province of Sassari rose by 9.1% (to an average of 2,429 euros/m2). There was also a notable leap in the province of Naples (+8.6%), where the average asking price for this type of property rose to 1,961 euros/m2.

Noteworthy increases were also recorded in the province of Reggio Emilia, where sale prices for villas rose by 6.5% to an average of 1,376 euros/m2. The province of Lucca is also among the best performers in terms of villa price trends: +6% in one year and average values at 2,608 euros/m2. The same percentage increase was also recorded in Agrigento, where, however, on average sellers asked for a lower price of 968 euro/m2.

Bolzano is confirmed as the province with the highest prices per m2 for villas, as well as apartments with average prices of 3,148 euros/m2. Next on this list comes Tuscany, which 3 provinces featuring amongst the most expensive for buying a villa: Grosseto (2,733 euros/m2), Lucca (2,608 euros/m2) and Livorno (2,587 euros/m2). The average asking prices for villas for sale in the provinces of Sassari and Imperia are 2,429 euros/m2 and 2,441 euros/m2 respectively.

Moving on to the less brilliant performances, but good news for buyers, the province in which the prices of villas have fallen the most is Caltanissetta (-6.9%), where an average asking price of 622 euros/m2 is seen. Staying in Sicily, Catania also saw values fall by 5.6% (1,064 euros/m2), while Lecco (-6.5%) and Macerata (-5.8%) fared worse, averaging respectively at 1,449 and 1,079 euros/m2.

Property prices in the main Italian cities

Focusing on the main Italian cities, Milan shows the biggest jump in prices for flats (18.8%), while it ranks second in terms of the highest prices per m2 (4,075 euros), Coming next is Venice with an average of 4,500 euro/m2. Venice and Milan saw values for villas rise by 11.2% (3,600 euro/m2) and 11% (3,635 euro/m2) respectively.