subject: Why Real Estate Hunters Are Beating A Path To Liguria [print this page] Why Real Estate Hunters Are Beating A Path To Liguria
Around 100 years ago Sanremo drew Europe's aristocracy and the likes of Tchaikovsky, who finished his Fourth Symphony here in the late 1870s and Swedish inventor Alfred Nobel, who passed away in the resort in 1896.
Half a century on it was to Portofino, some 120 miles along the same coast, to which Hollywood icons Frank Sinatra, Brigitte Bardot and Liz Taylor flocked. Today the faces are those of Cruise, Clooney and Washington.
In other words, the coast of Liguria in Italy has down the years exuded the type of star quality that to this day attracts more than five million people yearly, making it among Italy's most visited areas and a favourite for property in Italy buyers. With good reason. For one, the region overlooks a majestic 170-mile coastline also called the Italian (or Ligurian) Riviera, extending from the border with France at its western extremity to the five picturesque villages that make up the fabled Cinque Terre, now a UN World Heritage Site.
Stef Russo, who runs Italian property finders The Property Organiser, points out: "This region is surpassed only by perhaps Tuscany when it comes to parts of the country most requested by our clients. On top of the Cinque Terre, its beaches and scenic mountainsides, Monte Carlo is just a leisurely drive away, there are ski slopes in 45 minutes away in Piedmont, while it is served by two airports in Genoa and Nice."
The costliest areas are probably Alassio, Bordighera, Portofino and the Cinque Terre. Bear in mind you pay a premium if you are set on overlooking the sea. The housing market is kept buoyant by well-heeled Italians, Swiss and French. As a ballpark figure you will be asked for in the region of Euro 410,000 for a flat within walking distance of the beach and up to two and a half times that for a sea-view villa in a similar location.
As usual, patient buyers can find bargains by looking around. In Alassio, 90sq m apartments boasting a view over the Ligurian Sea can be got from Euro 235,000. And in Bordighera, Euro 335,000 can pay for a two-bedroom home also boasting a sea vista, although you are likely to be a bit farther out from the beach.
Yet overlooking the coast is the mountainous countryside littered with lovely villages and hamlets. But if you are prepared to give up being close to the sea, head just less than half an hour inland, to hamlets such as Isolabona, which is what countless American and British bargain-hunters have done in recent times. Here, you will probably pay a 70sq m apartment to cost around Euro 135,000.
Prepared to take on a property needing some work? Then you may get away with Euro 100,000, possibly with up to 2,000sq m of garden to boot. Given the region's enduring popularity, rental potential remains bullish, especially if you have bought near a coastal resort. Expect a two-bedroom apartment can go for up to Euro 1,500 a week in summer and a four-bedroom villa with swimming pool twice that.
Among the most beautiful spots on the coast are undoubtedly Alassio, Sanremo and Portofino. Alassio has a 3km long sandy beaches and has pulled in Brits since the 1900s while famous faces such as Hemingway started holidaying here in the 1930s. Sanremo is heady with old-fashioned glamour and is today best known for its pop fete.
While among Portofino's most striking features is pastel-coloured huddles of fishermen's houses that line its marina. In summer months its high-end fashion outlets packed designer items and the sleek boats moored in its marina say it all about the class of well-heeled visitor that frequents the village.
But in terms of natural magnificence not much matches the five clifftop hamlets that make up the Cinque Terre. Then again, some things in life money can't buy.
