A COUPLE who snapped up a cheap home in Italy, quickly purchased a €1 property too.
Jeffrey Pfefferle and his partner Leon McNaught paid just over €32,000 (£27,651) for two homes in Mussomeli, Sicily.
Jeffrey PfefferleJeffrey Pfefferle and his partner Leon McNaught paid £27,651 for two homes in Mussomeli, Sicily[/caption]
Jeffrey PfefferleThe couple purchased one property for just €1[/caption]
The town launched the one euro homes to encourage foreign tourists and to stop the depopulation of the area.
Jeffrey was tempted by the cheap homes after reading about the scheme back in 2019.
While the couple were concerned that the €1 homes were too good to be true, they decided to look into the scheme.
Two years after hearing about the cheap houses, Jeffrey and Leon flew to Italy to view properties.
Jeffrey told CNN Travel: “We really fought for it from the start, and it changed everything in our lives.
“At Rome Airport, I went into panic mode when we missed the gate for the Palermo flight – luckily we were able to catch another plane later that same day.”
When the pair arrived in Mussomeli, they were given a private tour of the available buildings.
There, they decided to purchase a fully-furnished house complete with antique furniture, glass chandeliers, plates, and blankets for €30,000 (£27,650).
But as they strolled through Mussomeli, a €1 home also caught their attention.
Situated in the centre of town, the bargain building was spread out across four floors and came equipped with a garage too.
The pair snapped up the €1 home without even viewing the property.
Jeffrey added: “It’s been gutted [by the previous owners] and our architect says it’s an easy fix, a blank canvas. The electrics are fine, and the plumbing is done.”
In the future, the couple hopes to relocate to Mussomeli.
But Jeffrey and Leon aren’t the only foreigners who’ve purchased one of the €1 homes in Mussomeli.
Earlier this year, Hussain Ramzan, 31, paid just €10,500 (£9,000) to buy and renovate his house in the Sicilian village.
While some of the more run-down houses are the cheapest options, Hussain paid slightly more for his two-bedroom, 90sqft home.
He said: It was a real bargain, practically an entire building for me and my family.”
Meanwhile, here is everything you need to know about buying and renovating a €1 house in Italy.
And this is what it’s really like to buy and own one of the cheap homes.
AlamyMussomeli launched the one euro homes to encourage foreign tourists and to stop the depopulation of the area (stock image)[/caption]