Italian Adventures – We Bought a House in Italy!

Summer 2021

We knew up front this wouldn’t be fast, but given we found our house at the end of June, it meant trying to get stuff done throughout the summer which wasn’t going to be easy. Fortunately, the Geometra could start the 3rd week of July, and while we waited for him to be free, the seller’s Geometra requested the paperwork from the Comune (sounds like Commooonay). This way, we didn’t lose time waiting for our Geometra to finish his other work and then request the paperwork.

We waited with baited breath in Shoreline, WA, hoping the Geometra didn’t find anything major. We gave our list of questions to D&G, who shared them with the Geometra…Can we build an outdoor BBQ & Pizza oven if we wanted to? Can we remove some trees? Can we put in an outdoor firepit? How is the plumbing? How is the roof? Can the room across from the existing kitchen become the new kitchen? Does it have all of the access needed to gas and power?

Best news ever…there were only a few irregularities in the filed paperwork/house plans compared to the actual house at it stands today and they are very easy to correct. This is often a HUGE barrier to property purchases, as people remodel and make changes but don’t properly obtain Permesso and file the paperwork required with the Comune. If the paperwork can’t be rectified and you go through with the purchase, you may never be able to sell the house in the future.

The septic hasn’t been emptied in quite some time and there may be blockage in the pipes which is causing the backup in the small shower. We will require the seller to empty the septic and inspect the pipes prior to closing. The house itself is very sound – for a 100 year old house, the Geometra stated ‘the main building, with pleasing architectural forms and details, displays rough stone outer walls with brick courses. …the building is in good seismic condition and acceptable overall state of repair…’ As expected, the roof has ‘outlived its natural useful life’ and will need to be replaced, but there is no sign of water damage or leaks so we have some time. Specifically, ‘the roof is made of wooden rafters and brickwork, while the outside is tiled with Marseille tiles which have apparently reached the end of their life cycle, as it was found that there was no insulating layer underneath the tiles.’ ‘The windows…are generally in a good state of repair.’ ‘All of the floors are in a good state of repair…’

Yes- I can install a BBQ & pizza oven, along with a fire pit, and can remove certain trees and plant new trees without requesting Permesso with the Comune! Specifically, ‘The construction of an outdoor oven and BBQ comes under the heading of “permission-free construction work”, i.e. work that can be carried out without obtaining planning permission , as long as the construction conforms to the sized laid down in art. 21, paragraph 3, point f of Regional Regulations 2/2015…’ and ‘Maintenance of trees and lawns on private property is governed by the stipulations of the Code of Civil Law regarding civic responsibility. Planting trees within the property is possible, but the distances laid down in the Code of Civil Law for each type of tree must be adhered to.’

I have learned so many interesting things throughout this process. Legally, a house / dwelling is required to have at least one bidet and there must be at least 2 doors between a bathroom and any other living space. This explains why there are doors in both the kitchen and dining / pantry room.

I can’t wait to discover new learnings throughout this process.

WooHoo!!! We are now ready to make a formal offer!