Three questions decide whether anything else matters: can you own it, does the register hold, and is your deposit protected. Here are the answers for Italy, each with the law or source it rests on. The answers are written for EU and EEA citizens; where rules differ for other nationals, the ownership answer says so. As of September 2026.
The core answers
Can you buy property here as an EU citizen?
Full ownership without restriction.
Legal basis: Codice Civile; Conservatoria dei Registri Immobiliari
Is your deposit protected by law?
D.Lgs. 122/2005: mandatory bank guarantee for all deposits plus a 10-year policy; since 2019 the contract is void without it, the notary checks
Source: parlamento.it · 2005
Residence
EU freedom of movement: an Austrian has full residence without any link to property (Directive 2004/38/EC)
Source: eur-lex.europa.eu
First thing to check
- Whether the existing building is legal under building law. Unlegalised parts cannot be transferred, and the notary checks this.
All 24 dimensions
Scale 0 to 100, higher is better. Each value shows where it comes from: tied to a published index, own research with a source on file, or approximated from comparable countries.
Law and register
| Dimension | Score | Origin |
|---|---|---|
| Property rights | 74 | Index |
| Register | 78 | Approximation |
| Deposit protection | 85 | Research |
| Rule of law | 63 | Index |
| Freedom from corruption | 54 | Index |
| Political stability | 69 | Index |
Money and market
| Dimension | Score | Origin |
|---|---|---|
| Purchase costs | 5 | Index |
| Tax burden | 5 | Index |
| Entry price | 55 | Index |
| Rental yield | 55 | Research |
| Short-term rental | 55 | Research |
| Price development | 36 | Index |
| Demand pipeline | 16 | Index |
Residence and access
| Dimension | Score | Origin |
|---|---|---|
| Residence | 100 | Research |
| Exit | 88 | Index |
| Currency | 73 | Index |
| Accessibility | 92 | Research |
Place and building stock
| Dimension | Score | Origin |
|---|---|---|
| Climate | 82 | Index |
| Natural hazards | 25 | Index |
| Utilities | 68 | Index |
| Build quality | 69 | Research |
| Construction cost | 44 | Research |
| Quality of life | 66 | Index |
| Healthcare | 57 | Index |
Researched individually
These entries do not come from an index but from research for this country. The source is given with each.
Residence
EU freedom of movement: an Austrian has full residence rights with no property connection (Directive 2004/38/EC).
Source: eur-lex.europa.eu · 2004
Deposit protection
D.Lgs. 122/2005 (Legislative Decree): mandatory bank guarantee for all instalments plus a 10-year insurance policy; nullity since 2019, checked by the notary.
Source: parlamento.it · 2005
Accessibility
698 km great-circle distance from Munich
Source: Grosskreisentfernung Muenchen-Hauptstadt · 2026
Build quality
BQCI 11/15 (WB Doing Business 2020) + WGI Government Effectiveness 66,75 (2024), Gewicht 35/65
Source: archive.doingbusiness.org · 2019
Place and building materials
What to check in Italy
Derived from the four weakest dimensions of this country - statistically, that is where buyers lose money.
- Purchase costs. The actual purchase costs including transfer tax, notary, registration and agent's commission.
- Tax burden. The ongoing tax burden on ownership and rental income, and whether a double taxation treaty applies.
- Demand pipeline. Whether there is real demand behind it: migration, employment, household formation.
- Natural hazards. Exposure to earthquake, storm, flood and wildfire at the specific site, not the national average.
Developers and projects in Italy
The developer index records 42 projects and 27 developers in Italy without rating them, each entry with source and retrieval date. An excerpt:
| Project | Place | Developer | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| Verde Adriatico | Alba Adriatica | Stradeco Immobiliare s.r.l. | under construction |
| Sol Marina | Andora | Impresa Costruttrice Fiorini | under construction |
| Auer Garden Park | Auer | Frommer Immobilien GmbH | completed |
| Auer-Heide Park | Auer | Frommer Immobilien GmbH | completed |
| Borgo Bosco Verde | Bari | Alta Costruzioni srl | under construction |
| Am Musberg | Brixen | Krapf Günther Bau GmbH | sold out |
| Das Johan | Bruneck | Wierer Bau GmbH | under construction |
| Celletta Santa Veneranda | Fano | Edilgruppo srl | under construction |
| Sassonia | Fano | Edilgruppo srl | completed |
| LeVille | Fiesole | Costruzioni Spagnoli S.p.A. | planned |
| Francavilla One | Francavilla al Mare | Buiva S.r.l. | planned |
| Wohnanlage Turmblick | Gargazon | Frommer Immobilien GmbH | completed |
Individual project pages are currently in German; they contain the recorded data, the source and the retrieval date.
All 42 projects and 27 developers in Italy
What the guide cannot do
A country can look good in all three columns and the specific property can still be a total loss. The reverse is also true: in a country with a weak register, a cleanly titled plot can be entirely unproblematic. The guide tells you what the environment looks like. Whether this one property holds up is decided by the review.