Haileysmom

...in renting a turn of the century (1900) villa which will have 4-5 bedrooms and be renovated to US standards, hopefully with a swimming pool, between Rome and Naples? I am thinking of buying a lovely villa with a noble past that is near Sessa Aurunca, which is due East of Gaeta. It is 90 minutes by car southeast of Rome on the A1 (exit 20 min. away) and 45 minutes northwest of Naples. Those interested in World War II will find Cassino nearby and Anzio would be an easy day trip. There is NOTHING tourist-oriented in the local villages. There are no designer shops, no fancy restaurants, no Michelin starred places AT ALL. This would be for people who wanted to see the REAL rustic Italy, warts and all. Would this interest anyone?

Grasshopper

Hi Mom, I wish I could say yes but I have such a long list of places I want to go and things to see I'm not sure I'd ever get to this one. I would be interested in reading the book about all the challenges and obstacles you meet in taking on this enterprise and how you stoically pushed through and became incredibly successful and happy!

baymtnman

Hi Haileysmom,

Sounds like a fantastic opportunity. I would think the dollar exchange rate really challenges the economic model, but if it goes through and you are looking for some exchange-based labor, let me know.

Sounds like a fun project.

Grinisa

I might consider it but, if staying that general area, would prefer to be nearer the coast. I think that people interested in seeing the area around Naples would think your location is too far, and people interested in Anzio/Nettuno could do that more easily from Rome. Beachgoers would want to be on the beach. So that leaves you with people interested in Cassio and Caserta and I don't know if they would want to rent a villa for a week just for that. You should ask on Slowtalk.com because many of the posters there rent villas for extended periods of time in more unusual spots of Italy. Also, Lazio is getting more attention from the English who are looking to buy property in Italy and are finding Tuscany, Umbria and even Puglia too expensive. They could stay in your villa while searching for property of their own.

rex

In my dreams, there is a place (a "castle", quite a bit older than 1900) in Orvinio (not to be confused with Orvieto), in the Rieti province, and thus, quite a bit closer to Rome (50 minutes to the GRA?) that has a lot in common with your "oggetto dell'aspirazione" - - nothing really "touristic" nearby, scarcely a restaurant in town - - and yet, in my mind, it and the surrounding countryside are what I imagine Tuscany to have been 75 years ago (relying, in a romantic/pseudo-nostalgic way, heavily on scenes from "Tea with Mussolini" and the first 15 minutes of "Life is Beautiful&quot.

Rieti is, perhaps, never destined to follow in Tuscany's footsteps - - if for no other reason than, perhaps mediocre (or even worse) winemaking - - the owner of this place that I want... he treated us to some of his homeamde wine, and it was really bad! (but I guess that's not a fair sampling of the region, huh?)

And there are &quot;sights&quot; that <u>could</u> be developed - - a jack-of-all-trades jeweler in town took us out to see some ruins in the middle of his farm that he claimed to be ninth-eleventh century, and we saw the inside of one of the town's two decrepit upkeep-starved churches, replete with 17th and 18th century frescoes in bad need of restoration.

Of course, transforming anything TOO much would take away (at least a little of) what we liked there.

It's likely never going to happen, in my case. For one thing, I'd like to find a similar town/castle in <i><b>France</b></i> whose price hasn't been driven through the roof by the English who own half of some &quot;hot spots&quot;!

Best wishes,

Rex

buongiorno

Hi Haileysmom

I don't know what you mean by &quot;would this be of interest&quot;. Do you mean to stay there or invest in it or is it something we've all thought about?

I often think about buying a place in Italy as we intend to return there as often as we can. While I dream about the idea of the beautiful villa in the countryside, I am starting to get practical and focus on an apartment in a town we would enjoy. When we're visiting Italy, we enjoy staying in smaller towns that have some restaurants and shops to stroll in the evenings. We would like to be more in a setting to immerse ourselves in the local life.

rex

I interpreted the question to mean... if haileysmom bought it and developed it, would fodorites be interested in coming to stay at such a place - - with low &quot;snazz appeal&quot; - - by the &quot;usual touristic standards&quot;.

My answer had more to do with my being interested in doing the same thing... and my thoughts about what it would entail, as well as how the place might be transformed.

And so, I guess I didn't answer what I perceived to be the actual original question.

My answer <i><b>could</b></i> yes - - but the 75 mile driving radius would also be important to me. No matter what it contains, I think that their &quot;simple pleasures&quot; appeal would need to be promoted.

rex

ttt...

HowardR

Why is no one railing about this being an advertisement? After all, isn't she seeking future customers? And, isn't that a no-no?
There is nothing to indicate that this is a non-profit venture!

Eliza26

Howard,
No one is railing about this posting being an advertisement, because it is NOT an advertisement. Haileysmom is merely solicating the opinions of Fodorites (the purpose of the board) on whether this villa would intrigue them. She is not placing an ad. I think it is a legitimate question--please, chill out. I don't intend to be rude, but I get a little sick of the &quot;board police&quot; when someone asks a revelant question.

Haileysmom, I think you could definitely promote this an option for people with an interest in the real Italy. Having a pool would be a huge draw. That said, due to the state of the dollar, making this venture pay (short-term) is going to be a challenge. Good luck and let us know what happens (Grinisa's right--you're going to get more helpful responses on SlowTalk.com)

tdyls

Buying/maintaining/restoring an Italian villa? Especially when said owners are 5000+ miles away on a different continent?

Unless your name is Frances Mayes, your villa is in Cortona, and you've written three books about your trials and tribulations, I gah-ron-tee that this most certainly WILL be a non-profit venture. ;-)

Be that as it may....where do I sign up?

rex

Isn't the purchase of &quot;fix-it-up&quot; real estate a &quot;non-profit&quot; venture much of the time? - - if you mean from a P&amp;L sheet standpoint. That's why there is different tax treatment for investment properties than &quot;businesses&quot; (now, let me admit that I know nothing about the tax treatment of investment properties in this country nor in other countries).

But from a balance sheet standpoint, it can be quite a different matter. Could be gains, or not. All depends on your savvy, your &quot;sweat equity willingness&quot;, market conditions and how smart you are, come time to sell.

But there could be a lot of legitimate tax-deductible trips over there to work on it.

Haileysmom isn't advertising - - with a hefty stretch of the imagination, maybe she is doing some &quot;market research&quot; on &quot;us&quot;. She'll need more than these handful of replies.

Intrepid1

Assertions that there could be a lot of &quot;tax-deductible buisiness trips over there...&quot; depend on MANY factors.

I know because we own property in Europe...the fabulous currency exchange rate right now might eb a deciding factor in all of this (obviously) but assuming yours is truly a request for opinions, my advice is simple:

do it only if it satisfies <b> your </b> needs, fantasies, dreams, etc.; in the end whether or not anyone else would like it or dislike it is irrelevant IMO because you are the one who should be loving it, whether anyone else does or not. This is a big step for most folks...if it doesn't feel exactly &quot;right&quot; I wouldn't advise it.

Good luck.

NorthShore

I agree with grinisa. Why renovate to US standards if you want a &quot;rustic&quot;
situation?

SuzieC

But a 1900 villa isn't all that rustic. It would have more modern &quot;bones&quot;. I say what a lovely notion and if you can do so gleefully!
In italy, one gets a bit of a tax incentive if one rents out part of their property, doen't one? Open it...they will come.

I'm a we now, and we're thinking of buying a small house in the Cognac area of France...

Haileysmom

I certainly never intended for my query to be construed as an advertisement!!! I was just curious to see if there was any interest in this general area before making the commttment to take on this project!! How anyone could interpret my question as an advertisement really boggles the mind!! Whereas villas in Tuscany, Puglia, and southern Campania etc. are quite common, there seems to be very little between Rome and Naples, and I was just wondering if travellers like yourselves had any interest in discovering this very un-touristed area of a country I love!!! And when I say &quot;renovated to US standards&quot;, I mean it will have plumbing that works!!! I can't imagine renting a villa with outdoor toilets and no hot water would be pleasureable. It is possible to incorporate these &quot;modern&quot; amenities without compromising the character of the building, which, despite being in the hands of a noble family for generations, is what Italians consider to be a &quot;country&quot; house, that's what I meant by &quot;rustic&quot;.

Sannio_Expat

I see this is a very old thread, but one which interests me, as I live and work in the Sannio. Did you buy the property in Sessa Aurunca? This area might be considered second-rate for first time travellers to ITaly, but it is full of sights worth seeing, food worth eating, wines worth tasting and traditions worth appreciating.

Dukey

I don't see anything that is &quot;second rate&quot; about an area that doesn't have designer shops, no Michelin stars, and no &quot;fancy&quot; restaurants.

Of course for those who have this &quot;bella Italia&quot; fantasy about a country with no dirt or garbage it might be a problem.