Alps property: Italy’s Valle d’Aosta prices rise

In Italy’s Alpine ski resorts, the action may be downhill on the slopes but Alps property prices are still on the rise. While prices in large swathes of Italy – and the rest of Europe to an even greater extent – may be on the slide, there’s no sign of Alps property values going downhill just yet. In Valle d’Aosta, prices are up 7.7 per cent in Morgex, 7.1 per cent in La Salle and 4.2 per cent in Courmayeur. The Valle d’Aosta region as a whole saw an average one per cent rise in property prices. Courmayeur remains among the most expensive resorts for Italian Alps property at up to €11,000 per sq m. That is topped only by Madonna di Campiglio in Trentino-Alto Adige, with values of up to €14,000 per sq m. The region of Trentino Alto Adige as a whole saw prices stay generally steady. In both regions, the most popular properties were two- and three-room apartments that needed no renovation, had a garage and were ideally near the town/village centre; an area well-equipped with local services such as stores and post offices; an also near a ski resort. However, property prices in ski resorts elsewhere in Italy registered slight falls – 0.4 per cent in Piedmont, 1.6 per cent in Abruzzo and a 3.4 per cent in Emilia Romagna. These declines saw typical ski resort property prices across Italy as a whole register a slight 0.1 per cent drop over the period looked by Italian real estate group Tecnocasa – the first six months of 2008. Demand picked up slightly after summer but without a corresponding rise in prices, because buyers are increasingly aware they hold the whip hand in what has been a turbulence time for Italian property and the real estate market throughout the Western world. Lombardy is one region in which in which that turbulence has had different effects in different areas. In Val di Lozio, numerous new-build apartments are coming on the market in the €1,700-€1,900 per sq m price bracket. Local authorities are also about to build new public parking facilities, a high-altitude cycling track as well as improve the road leading to Ossimo and Borno. Borno, by the way, has seen a slight decline in demand for properties thanks to lower prices in neighbouring Ossimo and Lozio. There are also plans to complete the motorway leading to the ski complex of Ponte di Legno Tonale. Demand is holding up in nearby Media Vallecamonica, especially for two-room apartments of around 40 sq m in size. Purchases typically range from €60,000 for a previously inhabited property to €90,000 for high-quality new-builds. The presence of a garage tends to adds €14,000-€18,000 on top of those prices. In Ponte di Legno, however, demand has slowed down, with many developers and vendors reporting difficulty in selling new-builds in the €4,500-€5,500 per sq m price range. The typical purchaser has a budget of around €200,000 and prefers properties built in the 70s as they are somewhat larger than newly-constructed homes. However, the area remains popular with families who want second homes here for winter breaks. If you buy here, rental returns remain high, especially in winter, because recent years have seen many improvements to local infrastructure. If you enjoyed reading this article, why not take a look at our wide range of seaside homes and fixer-uppers in Italy?