The following excerpt appears in the September/October issue of Dot Property Magazine
Ever want to own a castle? Well, Italy is one of the very few places it is actually possible. This isn’t to say that you will find these medieval dwellings on every street corner with a for sale sign posted on it, but once in a while a castle hits the market and can be purchased like any other house.
“Buying a castle is the same, from a bureaucratic point of view, as buying any other property,” Carolyn Delli Santi, a bilingual real estate broker at Rome-based Nexu Real Estate, states. “Since a castle is a historical building, any type of renovation and restoration would most likely be severely regulated and will need approval of the Architectural and Cultural Heritage Department (Sovrintendenza dei Beni Architettonici e Culturali).”
A quick search of the Nexu Real Estate website turns up some historic and magnificent Italian real estate. The lovely Villa la Rondinaia, situated along with pristine Amalfi Coast due south of Mount Vesuvius, has hosted a who’s who of guests including Greta Garbo, Humphrey Bogart, Mick Jagger, Jacqueline Kennedy and Bill and Hillary Clinton. American author Gore Vidal once owned this castle-like estate that has been carved into a cliff face overlooking the Bay of Salerno.
Other properties available include a 12th century medieval tower located in the Tuscan town of San Gimignano that has been completely renovated to suit modern lifestyles. There is also the La Tenuta estate in Viterbo that Delli Santi notes has been a vacation home of European royalty and Hollywood stars like Julia Roberts and Sarah Jessica Parker. Owned by the same family for more than 300 years, the property features an 18th century villa, farmhouse, private chapel, swimming pool and olive groves.
About Nexu Real Estate
Nexu Real Estate is an international, luxury real estate agency specialising in Italian real estate. Carolyn Delli Santi is a Certified International Property Specialist with the National Association of Realtors and is trained to assist foreign buyers in complex international transactions.
For more information, please visit: www.nexurealestate.com
