Real Estate Opportunities in the World’s Most Romantic City
November 21, 2009 by David
Venice in Italy is one of the world’s most enchanting cities thanks to the almost fairytale allure of landmarks such as St Mark’s Basilica and Square, the Palazzo Ducale, the Grand Canal and the Bridge of Sighs.
This is understandably one of the most desirable places in which to own a property in Italy. Yet with prices of apartments in St Mark’s Square, for instance, routinely changing hands for US$9.75million, many investors have shied away from buying real estate in Venice. As have many locals, in truth, and since the 1950s the city’s population has shrunk by two-thirds to its present 60,000.
Yet there are highly affordable and profitable investment opportunities to be snapped up here – if you look in the right parts of the city. One such area is Dorsoduro, one of Venice’s six sestieri (districts) and a short vaporetto boat ride from St Mark’s Square. Here, just US$360,000 can buy a small, well-appointed apartment. Dorsoduro lacks nothing in upmarket chic as it is home to the Accademia art gallery, the Peggy Guggenheim Museum and a recently opened Punta della Dogana Museum, a major collection of contemporary art on the site of an old 17th century customs house.
Yet it is also a lively, vibrant area – the Ca’ Foscari University is here – and after dark Dorsoduro’s bars and cafés form the centre of Venice’s nightlife. To get more bang for your investment buck, head for the even more affordable Castello, Venice’s largest district, which lies just to the east of St Mark’s Square but is slightly off the well-trodden tourist trail. Here, expect to pay around US$415,000 for a two-bedroom apartment of around 75-80sq m.
The rental yield of property in Venice remains huge. Some 20 million visitors a year beat a path to the city, for its historic architectural splendour as well as popular events such as the carnival in February/March; the Biennale arts festival in summer and autumn; and the Venice Film Festival in August/September. It means there is demand for rental properties almost all year round. In high season, a one-bedroom apartment can fetch from US$1,700 a week, a two-bedroom property around US$2,600 and the most prestigious properties US$8,000-plus.
Alternatively, look farther afield to the outlying isles among the 118 that make up the Venetian archipelago. In Burano, six miles outside the city centre, US$625,000 can secure a house rather than just an apartment. The nearby islands of Tellestrina Chioggia and Torcello are also worth a look. Bear in mind that rental yield will fall the further away from the centre of Venice in which you are.
Another popular option is to look beyond Venice and to the historic towns and cities within the Veneto region, some 45 minutes away by train. They include Verona, one of Veneto’s principal tourist and cultural destinations; Vicenza, a Unesco World Heritage Site; Padova, a lively, attractive and historic university city; and Treviso, renowned for its wine and cuisine. In Treviso and Vicenza, expect to pay around US$350,000 for a two-bedroom town centre apartment.
Padova is possibly the priciest of these towns and an 80sq m two-bedroom apartment will frequently come with a price tag of around US$550,000. Obviously the price falls considerably if you are prepared to take on a restoration project. Explore the surrounding countryside, where in places such as the spa resort of Abano Terme US$350,000 can stretch to a spacious three-bedroom home.
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AUTHOR BIO
Adriana Giglioli works for Homes and Villas Abroad.com, which showcases 2,500 properties for sale in Italy. Her specialist area is property in Calabria.
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hi,
wow! your post sounds too good to be true! who wouldn’t want to grab this investment or personal use opportunity? i mean, this is italy!
I agree with you I would love to own property there, maybe one day I will!
Italy has such a romantic draw to it. The history, the culture, the architecture…who wouldn’t want to own a little piece of it.
Venice is great, but I’ve always dreamt of owning a villa in Tuscany.
Venice is a dream..But I’m not ready to pay above $400 000 a two-bedroom.
Very good opportunities now in Romania .Huge apartment need
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Italy is really a wonderful place to live..
especially in Veneto region..
But the rates seems to be too high and obviously a great place for real estate..
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Venice really deserves the title “world’s most romantic city”,i think that investors should focus on the rental yield of property in Venice because Venice attracts round about 20 million visitors every year,a good reason in invest in real estate here.
It sounds absolutely wonderful. I just finshed a book about Marco Polo’s life and in it of course were descriptions of Venice 1n the 1200’s. It sounded interesting then – it wounds interesting now.
I don’t imagine that my wife and I would ever invest there but we certainly plan to travel there – perhaps a vacation rental?
hi
italy is a great place to invest .But now a days people are also moving to dubai
Italy is the romantic place in the world because of its places that was nice to visit. But owning a property in that country will be expensive but in return the profit was good.
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Italy is awsome place to invest, and so is Costa Rica there are some realy great real estate bargains to be had right now allo over this tropical paradise
it’s a nice article on the topic of Real Estate,
Italy is romantic country so people make invest in property,
also Florida is nice city, people like to invest in Fort Lauderdale real estate in Florida.
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Ok. First off. Anytime there’s hype about some great escape that you should be investing – it is already too late for you.
Just like when you find out about a sale on a dvd players at wal-mart (for you cheap guys). By the time you get there, they are all gone.
It is nice to hear about great exotic and wonderful places to invest, true. It is also true that these places that are highly desirable to BUY are also HIGHLY desirable to SELL.
The buyers pay for the great location and all the sweet publicity and news about their lil’ hide-away and the sellers are happy as a lark that there is some sucker that read that article.
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Interesting article. Where is the best place to get tickets?
Venice is a great place for a real estate business. Many couples want to live there and have a romantic life. Real estate business is really amazing..
-David
Good post. Thanks for this information. The post seems to be very informative one. Real estate business is booming up well now a days. It gives a good profit. I learned more about the real estate business from the http://www.commercialprofitblueprint.com. They give a good training with video. Wonderful tricks and tips and secrets.
Wow I might want to look into that area a little further. Thanks for the info!
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Venice is an amazing city!!! The city is so unique, with all of the water canals and architecture. It is defiantly one of the most romantic cities in the world.
Paris and San Diego are also romantic cities! Especially the beach in San Deigo, it’s once in a life time experience
When it comes to romancity, i would highly recommend Prag after Venice… The old and peaceful city, that charms.
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To have a property in such a romantic part of the world is a dream. Thanks for providing useful info to make that dream a bit closer to reality
Venice is such a great place. In all the nooks there’s bound to be a deal on real estate.
How I like to stay in Venice, but I think before you can do that you will need big money.
Scott@Financially Free Landlord
I would love to live in Italy! it would be a very wise investment but only for those who are willing to spend a lot.
I agree, Venice is wonderful and romantic. However there are endless places in Italy that can be described like that. Florence is amazing, not to mention Tuscany and if you love the water what about the Amalfi Coast? I would love to own a place in any of these locations and would use it to swap with others around the world. Brewer Caldwell
Venice in Italy is one of the world’s most enchanting cities?
New york, Miami, Paris, Madrid and Barcelona for me are the most enchanting cities, but this is a great post about Venice
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I’ll have to look into this…what about the economy in Italy? Is tourism enough to keep it going.
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Venice is much better than Rome only went to Venice as a day trip but didn’t want to leave and go back to Rome (dirty place) water didn’t bother me as it smells as sea and canel water should. dont take a map as getting lost in the alleys was the funnest part will defoo go back.
Italy is really a romantic place. however, as i know about Venice, this place going to get more and more in flood. Do you think that it will be fine for us to settle in that place?
One of these days I’ll get to visit and check it out!
Thanks for the information. Investing abroad is something that should be a part of a well diverse portfolio.
interesting article and I will do some research to learn more – keepp the good work
Mike
Wow, great article. I never imagined that there was so much opportunity for rental income in Venice. It certainly looks like a place worth doing some research into. I’ve never visited the city but looking on a tourist information site it seems there is so much in the area to atract tourists besides the canals and the main square.
Interesting article. Rental income in Venice? That’s great.
Venice is number one of my home dream.
Your articles are brilliant and informative, thanks a ton.
This article is good though the market uncertainty has made it difficult for the investors to concentrate even on the main attractive markets.
Italy is nice, but given the economic downturn only Bill Gates could afford some of the properties. I think it would benefit the citizens in the US to focus on stimulating the American economy before spending millions offshore.
Italy is truly one of the most romantic cities in the world. We have recently sold a Yacht for over 20 million near Italy. We also have a lot of luxury villas for sale in Italy. You can also visit our blog at http://www.evcaliforniablog.com .
This was an interesting article. It will be interesting to see where it ends up. http://www.self-storage-lockers.com/
I would advise you Milano for an ideal living in Italy.
I will go to Venice this summer, It always attracts lovers
)
Interesting thanks for the info. I didn’t know that much about the market in Venice
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This is a great idea. Especially if the US Dollar tumbles further, it would be nice to have some Real Estate in Italy.
Interesting article – thanks for sharing.
Wow. You are really an amazing writer and I agree with your assumption that Venice is definitely a hub for investors. In addition, it’s a historical city as you mentioned so tourist stop by often here and there are also so many other cultural events that make Venice heaven for property investors.
Intersting article. There are good real estate opportunities also on Lake Garda with beautiful lake view…
Venice and Italy are great.. beside there are also good opportunities in Turkey
How is the real estate market in Venice, and Italy in general? After doing a “junior year abroad” many years ago, I’ve always thought it would be wonderful to go back for extended periods. Venice is certainly a jewell! But are home prices there soft or falling, as they have been in the US with our great recession, or has this area been somewhat immune from the economic impact of the housing fallout?
Hi,
Venice is the great city in the word because the Venice environment is very light and cold.You property price is very cheap and affordable.I have always thought it would be wonderful to go back for extended periods.Italy real estate agencies is very useful like Indian Real Estate Agents because the Indian Real Estate Agents also use and affordable.India is the very largest country in real estate market.Most historical place in India.That reason is Indian Real Estate Agents refer to our real estate agent.There are highly affordable and profitable investment opportunities.
I like this post and thanks for given some information with us.
Indian Real Estate Agents
Venice is a unique city with romance, culture, history and is a good place for real estate. To escape the floods, Venice has started building a system of mobile barriers, which will bear the name “Moses”, for flow control of the Adriatic sea. It will be ready, probably in 2012.
sure, but what about the folks with billions? surely you have a small space we can carve our little niche in?
I may look at some of the things for sale before I go over in sept.
I love it there.
I have friends in Rome, but I would love to get up to Venice. Don’t know that I could buy for that price though
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Venice Italy can sure be an expensive place to live, I would prefer to live elsewhere however and just visit every year or two.
Good post..