HOW TO FINISH THE RESTORATION OF A PROPERTY IN UMBRIA (Part 3 of 3)

By John Tunstill

You now have a small mountain of paperwork, the building has passed the “shell” stage, with walls, floor and roofs completed and now you enter into the final lap, the finishing stage. The more money you spend now doing a proper job will be repaid in the future by savings on replacements, repairs and maintenance. Put in the correct amount of insulation, yes, it is required in Italy, most parts of the more popular areas of Tuscany, Umbria and the Marche often experience frosts and snow. But don’t fall into the trap of spending huge amounts of money on “named” or “signature” taps, tiles, sinks or cookers; unless you are one of those people who really believe that a well advertised label on a product does in fact improve your life; and remember that the thousands you spend giving yourself comfort and satisfaction, may not be appreciated by any future buyer.

Quite often, although one has all these papers, permits and required permissions the site will be regularly visited by gun carrying members of the Italian State, Police, Vigili, Carabinieri and the Forestale being the most likely. Each has the right to check and control all papers to do with the building, the workers and you, and fines can, and often will, be handed out to all who infringe the multiplicity of rules and regulations. We paid one the other day, quite a large one, for having dug into the earth some 60cm, to create a terrace, when our permission was for a depth of up to 40cm. Hardly a hand’s span, but a walloping big fine. And to control a JCB equivalent on a hillside, in the rain to within a hand’s span is not terribly easy.

Fines are part of life in Italy. Everyone supports the black economy by not paying their full amount of tax, and on a rebuilding project costing a quarter of a million, euro, pounds, dollars or whatever, and with a VAT rate of 20%, savings of up to fifty thousand, whatevers, could obviously be made by not paying VAT. If you get caught you will be fined. But, as with all laws and rules in Italy there are ways and means of reducing tax liabilities on the buying, selling and restorations of properties. Two that were recently exchanged attracted no capital gains taxes, no VAT and no “stamp” duties, so it can be done, but do take proper advice from experienced consultants. Similarly, on the last six renovations which were completed, the owners paid some 8.5% tax instead of the suggested 20%. The customer saved 11.5% which more than paid the consultancy fees for the whole reconstruction job, not just for the tax advice.

Did I mention enlarging your house? Current legislation allows the addition of 100 sqmt of extra space, four good sized rooms of 5m x 5m to be added onto any existing country house. This space obviously has a resale value, should you be thinking of selling, or could provide the basis of an income generating rental property or be made into guest accommodation or a granny flat. It doesn’t have to be attached to the original building. But I’m sure your friendly architect told you this. Another way of enlarging the capacity of a building, the floor space, the square meterage, rather than the volume, is to find a two-storied property with high rooms, and, by lowering the ground floor, which probably was an animal housing, and which has to be dug out and modernised, and by lowering the intermediate floor, which you have to take down and rebuild anyway, and by heightening the external walls when putting back the roof you may just be able to fit in three floors, instead of the original two, and increase the size of the house by 50%. But here you really do need to consult with an expert to ensure that permissions, structural strength and costings are all carefully controlled and calculated.

Have all the pipes, wires and tubes, in your new house, which are associated with modern living, encased in the walls, not left exposed or boxed in with plywood, hardboard, plastic or MDF panels as is still so often the case with British buildings. Hide those unsightly cables, in the walls, conceal those central heating tubes, and as for the large, grotesque, cast-iron lavatory waste pipes so beloved of English developers, hide them. Create a graceful habitat for your future living not an impoverished utility shelter for dwelling in. The aesthetic value of the property will increase by taking care of these small details, as well as the financial value.

Double glazing should be standard, make sure it is included in your specification. External window shutters are optional “extras”, not really necessary, and considered by many local authorities to be a French import. The vernacular Italian way was internal window shutters, not external. Do have these installed as not only do they keep out the cold in the winter, and at night, but, every bit as important, the also keep out the sun and the heat in the summer. The sun passes through the double glazing by direct radiation straight into the room, where it heats the air, which rises, leaving an area of low pressure which is filled by cold air, which, in turn is heated, rises and this cycle if continued throughout the day will leave unprotected rooms at an unpleasantly high temperature. By having a wooden shutter inside the double glazing, only the air in the space between the glass and the shutter can be warmed, the wood is a good insulator and doesn’t allow very much heat to pass, and once this small air space has heated to the radiant temperature no further heat will be absorbed, and the rooms stay cool. All the window openings should have a chamfer on them to allow the windows, and shutters, to be opened widely to allow more view of the countryside. Mirrors placed on the insides of the shutters increase the light into a room on a dull day, and also through windows on the north side of a building, and also, carefully placed can reflect a wider outside panorama.

Whilst thinking of heating, and cooling, give consideration to the amount of electrical current you want supplied to your house. In Italy the electricity connection is referred to as the “luce”, the light, which was OK fifty years ago when a 25 watt bulb per room was the norm, but today, with all the electrical gadgets with which we surround ourselves, a “light” supply of 3kw, which is the standard connection, is quite useless. Always make sure that you have at least 10kw to ensure that all your appliances will work at the same time, and that every time the washing machine goes on, the telly doesn’t go off.

And for home heating, yes of course a wood fire; ‘er indoors will always chop the logs, bring them in, in a howling gale and generally clear up the mess of cinders and ash in the morning; but as well, you will need central heating. Consider under-floor, really marvellous, warmth in every part of the room, heat used to warm your toes and creep up your trouser legs rather than being utilised to warm the ceiling and transfer sooty patches onto your walls and also under-floor heating leaves more room for furniture, and less spaces for cobwebs. Make sure that the boiler size is sufficient, there are simple tables to work out the thermal capacity required in your new home, and buy one a size larger than the manufacturers say that you’ll need. Their calculations are made under optimum conditions, but you are living in the real world. Your surveyor, advisor or plumber should have advised you about this, we are, after all attempting to live in the twentieth century!

Solar power can be utilised in any of the properties, and there are grants from the Government, but unhappily most of the systems are not in keeping with the style and character of the old house that you are restoring.

Now that you are in the finishing stage you can apply for a telephone, if you want one for internet access, but, often, until you have the two certificates, one for technical compliance with the building regulations, and the other to confirm that the property is suitable for human habitation; which can’t be obtained until the building is completed and coupled to all the services; you obviously don’t have a habitable house and therefore you don’t need a phone! Catch 22 is the phrase that springs to mind in these and other similar circumstances, but then, this is Italy.

Colours for the walls? Get lots of samples, paint lots of patches on various walls, check the apparent colour at various times of the day, under natural and artificial light, and take into account the reflected colour from your roof beams and floor tiles will have on your carefully chosen shades. Use a water based paint, distemper it used to be called, to allow the walls to breath, because moisture will be coming out for several years. If you seal the walls with synthetic emulsions you trap the water inside and blistering will occur.

Furniture, fixtures and fittings will need careful consideration. Please don’t transport the old toot from your Aunt Edna’s spare room in the hope that it will do. It won’t, it will spoil your beautiful new house. Don’t bring out the family heirlooms of “contemporary”, or was it contemptible, spindly legged coffee tables. And the cost of transporting second-hand fridges, freezers and cookers to Italy, where most of them are made anyway, doesn’t make economic sense.

So, three articles, what have I told you, and more importantly, what have you learned or remembered? Find the right property in the right location at the right price. Find the right surveyor, advisor or consultant and their fees can often be paid out of the tax savings that they can make for you. Build a house, as Frank Lloyd Wright once said “that brings grace, rather than disgrace, to the landscape”. And talking of the landscape, you should have started on this when you started on the house. The building will only take a year or eighteen months to complete but a garden, to mature, takes five years. It is easy to cordon off an area of access for the builders, and some five meters or so all around the house whilst you get on with the landscaping and planting. And, at the end of the building work you won’t be living in a rubble strewn desert, because the close areas can be quickly gravelled over, and the further areas will be planted and pretty, but do install some sort of automatic sprinkling system, otherwise all your hard work will count for nothing when the hot August sun is beating down.

And, yet again, most importantly, enjoy your new adventure.

And let me know how you get on.

John Tunstill, usual copyright restrictions etc, waived if full credits are included.

John Tunstill, architect, developer and consultant in Umbria since 1983 his website www.propertiesumbria.com which has a frequently asked page, FAQ’s, which will assist you in your search for properties, as well as giving lots of helpful free advice

Topics also included on the tour include;

Underfloor central heating, bathrooms, gardens and garden watering, sumps, wastes and soakaways, taps and tiles, doors and windows, pine, fir or chestnut, double glazing, kitchens, lighting, electricity supply, kilowatts, tennis courts and swimming pools, advice on living and reconstruction, Snagging,

And introductions if required to local trades people, doors and windows and general cabinet making – Falegnami - Locchi, Montecastelli. Landscape Gardener – Angelo, Calzolaro. White Goods, furniture, kitchens – Sembolini, Mercatale. but as none of them speak English, you’ll probably have to work through me! There’s always a catch isn’t there! And for Architectural Salvage – La Co Le – Cittá di Castello. Plumber, Central Heating and Swimming Pools – Idraulico, Riscaldamento e Piscine –Montanucci, Calzolaro, Electician – Electricista – Felicetti, Trestina

Properties in Umbria

Dear John,

Thank you for your e-mail. Yes, we very much enjoyed the rest of our holiday. We managed to get tickets for the opera in Spoleto, which we thought was great, and it's always interesting to see local people in a different context.

We then spent a couple of days in Lucca, which is a fascinating city. We walked the walls/ramparts - about 4 kms, which are very wide in parts and look splendid with their tree-lined avenues, especially this time of year. We then spent a day in Pisa, before catching a late flight home. We thought the Cathedral in Pisa was stunning. It’s so big, and for us outclasses the tower.

We thoroughly enjoyed our few hours with you, and sorry again for the false start. Unfortunately the trains didn’t get much better on the way back, and after several delays we arrived in Spoleto at around 9.00pm! One gets the feeling that the Italian Railways are becoming increasingly obsolete and nothing is really being done to modernise them. This impression was powerfully reinforced when on Perugia S G station we witnessed a member of staff vigorously turning this contraption by hand on the platform - presumably to change the points for the incoming train - ours! Also we couldn’t get the validation machine to work on one of the trains, whereupon the ticket inspector gave it a bash (which he explained to us was the "Italian way", and it starting working! Anyway, we did get to meet some interesting people on trains and platforms during the holiday.

We were knocked out with the position of the properties - and thank you for showing us your home. I think we found the amount of effort and commitment in creating such an amazing home a bit difficult to comprehend. As for the properties, the larger, as you know, is considerably more than we were wanting to spend, but as you have reminded us, there are other possibilities in the scheme. We shall have to see how our property sale goes - and anyway, would I think need to pay another visit before finalising a purchase.

I was equally impressed with the two fields that you have also acquired. I remember what you were saying about planting the right grape varieties - i.e. needing to be those in demand. I have read that there is some experimentation going on with grape varieties new to Italy. Also, you may be aware that a grape variety found nowhere else is grown in the Montefalco area - Sagrantino. Maybe the price is based on it’s scarcity value but the very cheapest we saw was Euro15 and the most expensive Euro85. This compares with a bottle of good Montefalco Rosso for around Euro 8 - so perhaps if you wanted to add wine-making to your many other interests, it might be worthwhile investment.

Thank you also for introducing us to your Reel Streets website. As you probably guessed, I have a number of favourite films - some British, as did my father - who had the most extraordinary memory for all things connected with theatre, cinema and music. I was interested to see the photos connected with The Day the Earth Caught Fire with beautiful Janet Munro, who tragically died early - from a heart condition - hypertrophic cardiomyopathy?, which presumably manifested itself in "Sudden Death Syndrome". One of my brothers suffers from the condition but, curiously, as it is thought to be passed on genetically, nobody else in our family has the (supposedly) offending gene sequence. (I have only once seen eyes like Janet Munro’s in another woman, and was completely captivated by them, at the tender age of 17 - but it didn’t last! I wonder where she is now?) Also Hell Drivers. I remember standing outside the Odeon in Welling, Kent, with my friend Peter - both of us about 12 at the time. So determined were we to see this A film that we asked a number of adults to take us in, and got lucky. It was certainly worth it. As for the street shown with Stanley Baker (wasn’t this when he went to visit his brother and mother who owned a sweet shop?) As to clues - Why would a wall need to be so high, and why does there appear to be buildings immediately behind it? Is it something to do with security - a prison maybe. It reminds me a bit of the wall around Woolwich Arsenal.

Anyway - fascinating stuff - and the amount of detail in your article left me breathless.


Kindest Regards

David Perry

HOW TO START THE RESTORATION OF A PROPERTY IN UMBRIA or even ITALY (part 2 of 3)

By John Tunstill

So, you’ve bought the house, your geometra has the plans approved, and together you have chosen a builder. Ah, but do you have a written agreement, or contract, that you, and the builder, have signed? Is it in English, or Italian, and do both parties understand their responsibilities? Do you understand enough Italian to understand what you are about to agree to? Probably not, then do not pass “Go”, but go straight back to the geometra that you were going to employ, sack him, and find someone who can not only speak to you in English but understands your language well enough for him to become your intermediary. If this new geometra is any good he should be able to explain to you, and the builder, what is to be agreed, and he should be able to write a simple contract for agreement between you both. Beware of the contracts incorporating huge screeds of text taken from the regional guide for builder’s prices and building practice, you won’t understand what they are saying, neither will the builder, and the geometra’s explanations will leave you equally confused. Spend some time now on agreeing a short, easy, understandable contract for the first part of the work, the floors, walls and roof, and avoid tears, and expensive mistakes, in six month’s time.

OK, we’ll start again, drawings and proposals are approved, and here again, beware, don’t get pulled into the trap of getting full planning permission if you are only rebuilding an existing house, all you probably need is a “D I A”, a Declaration of the Inizialization of the Activity. The local authority have to advise you if you can’t go ahead within a set number of days after this application is made. Ask your surveyor why he is suggesting a full building permission request rather than a DIA, and if he can’t give a really convincing answer, then sack him, as it is obvious that he is trying to create much more unnecessary work for himself, that you eventually will have to pay for.

If you ask a geometra, surveyor, for a costing of a job, whether or not he undertakes the supervision of the contract, you will have to pay his fees for any work carried out by anyone that corresponds to any of the work for which he has provided an estimate. Go to three geometras and you’ll end up with three fees even though none of them was awarded a contract or has done any further work!

So, how do you get this estimate, that you can agree with a builder, which can then be supervised by your tame geometra? Who sold you the house? Do they speak English? Do they have any restoration experience? And, when it comes to experience, ask the geometra to show you houses he is working on, do they reflect the style and taste that you are looking for? The same with the agent, the builder, and anyone else concerned with your project. What have they done, and what are they currently working on? A man who builds factories or blocks of flats may not have the flair and sympathy that you need to restore and modernise this dream house of yours.

OK, already, so now we really are ready to start. Agreements are agreed, drawings are drawn, permissions are granted and you have your money in the bank ready to settle all the bills in cash at the end of the month. Ah. You forgot about the money? Get your money in hand, pay cash and you’ll save a huge amount of tax. Wait for a formal account, then the statement, then the demand and you’ll end up paying the full tax, your house will take forever to complete, and your builders will start to wander off to do other jobs, where they are being paid cash, promptly. During all this time buy the popular magazines that show the style of building that you are trying to create, pull out all the pretty pictures, create a scrap book. A picture / thousand words etc., you remember? And of course the picture speaks Italian, or Greek or Swahili. “Cosí”, “Like this”. Easy, no?

Whilst you’ve got some pretty sheets showing the proposed layout of your new home, with plan and elevation drawings and lots of measurements, can you really understand what you’re looking at? If the answer is anything less than a firm and resolute yes, then stop and think, again. Perhaps making a cardboard model of the house at a scale corresponding to that of a toy figure that you can easily buy could be an answer. Walk the toy man through the toy house and see if he fits, is there too much corridor space, can he fit in the kitchen, what are the bathroom accesses like, is there space to get on, and off the stairway. So much better to come up with a fundamental change now, before you’ve paid to have that wall built, and to shift the doorway half a meter to the right, now, before it’s built, really costs nothing.

Colours is another thing; you could argue here that colours are plural, but I’m refering to all colours together as a group, so singular it is; don’t wait till the wall is finished and then say “Oh I thought it was going to be more greeny, or less bluey”, get a colour sample, cut it in pieces and give a slice to all concerned, don’t give the whole thing, it’ll get lost, and then you’ll say, “Oh, I thought…………..”. And do remember that the hot, bright Italian sun will brighten or darken tremendously, the colours that looked so good in the paint-shop catalogue. Buy half a litre, paint several patches on north, south, east and west walls and see what they start to look like as the hours pass, and remember that the light reflected from your floor tiling will also change the colours of your walls.

Right, now we’re really starting, are you getting used to our Italian ways by now? First thing, site clearance, bulldozers, sweated labour and all. Don’t knock anything down, or let them knock it down either, that you might be able to use in the future, even though it’s filthy and dirty and damp, it will dry out, and it will save you the cost of rebuilding it. Your geometra will have made your applications, you will have had to pay some fees, you should have a receipt for the money paid to the local authority, which may well double as your building permission, and you will now have a project number. Your builder should, by law, erect a notice stating who is doing what, by permission of whom, names of owners and other responsible people and similar information. If the sign isn’t up you get a fine, because after all it’s your house, isn’t it?

The walls or floors won’t have any damp courses, but with the surrounding earth taken away there is less opportunity for the damp to penetrate. Make sure that the builders, the muratori, and your geometra know about “igloos” a system of underfloor damp proofing, and that they understand that the old system of chucking down a plastic sheet to stop the damp, doesn’t work, because it doesn’t stop anything at the edges of the sheet; as you may well find out in the future, if you take bad advice; and only builds up more humidity under the sheet, which eventually creeps to the edge, and into your walls again. You have to have a well ventillated space, hence the “igloos”. More details from your friendly neighbourhood builder’s merchant.

Don’t let the builders charge you for carting away your stones, you’ll need them to rebuild your house, don’t let them charge you for carting away the muck and dirt, you can probably use it to start levelling the ground around the house for your terrace or patio. Don’t let them have the broken and rotten beams, many can be partially reused, when trimmed and reduced in size, as window and door lintels, or even garden benches.

You shouldn’t have to worry about the actual building construction, this is why you use a State registered geometra to act on your behalf, and the responsibility is his to ensure that current building practice is followed and that your house won’t fall down or crack apart when the next earth movement arrives. Oh, you didn’t think about earthquakes. Well think about them, they do occur, but a well built house with the correct seismic bricks, the correct cement/concrete mix, and the correct steel and concrete ring beams, cordoli, will withstand them. Your surveyor will ensure that all the work is done in accordance with local seismic regulations.

Always, every month, get some small regular accounts showing that you have paid some IVA (VAT), this way, should anything ever go wrong you can prove that you have had regular dealings with the person concerned and that as an honest and upright citizen you have paid the required taxes. If you never pay any of the IVA then it would be impossible for you to have any legal recourse to anyone. After all, a mugger who has just stolen a handbag can’t really complain to the police if someone steals the bag from him.

Keep your eye on the local magazines for ideas, colours, styles. The local shops will always get what you want, as long as you know what to ask for. It is up to you to pull them along behind you rather than wait for them to find something to offer to you.

Whilst writing this I was interrupted by a phone call from a man who, although “bleeding” his radiators, can’t seem to get any hot water circulation in the top parts of the upstairs radiators. “What can I do?” was his plaintif wail. I explained that the circulation pump for his radiators was a small pump and although fine for circulating water in a closed circuit, was not strong enough to combat the atmospheric pressure that was now in his heating system. But couple the bathroom tap to the radiator and the “mains” pressure would be strong enough to blow away the atmospheric pressure and fill the system with water. Close the radiators and the circulating pump should do the rest. Roberto’s your Zio!

In my area the people that I deal with, and have dealt with for up to 20 odd years include my surveyor, Matteo Fiorucci, who speaks English, the builder’s merchant Paolini, nearby in Ventimiglia, who doesn’t, and my builders, muratori and operai, my own gangs here in the Upper Tiber Valley of Umbria, Peter from Slovacchia, Vladek from Poland and Giovanni from Napoli, and none of them do either, speaka da inglesi, and well meet them all in the next issue.

© John Tunstill 2005, normal restrictions regarding reproduction apply, waived if full credits are given.

John’s workforce, some half dozen gangs, include grandchildren of some of the original workers on John’s first Umbrian house. His hobbies include flying light aircraft, paragliding, collecting British feature film locations, www.reelstreets.com, Italian postcards, www.cartolinetunstill.com, writing a guide to Umbria, www.tunstillsumbria.net, running a model soldier museum in his monastery, www.soldierssoldiers.com, and exploring the curiosities of the British language, www.tunstillsdislexicon.com.

Often referred to as “The Man Who Invented Umbria”, John was honoured a few years ago by being made an honorary citizen of the city of Montone, one of Italy’s ten most beautiful hilltop towns. John has chronicled the Tunstill / Tunstall family history for the last 600 years, has written a number of books and articles on lead soldiers, and acts as a property restoration consultant in his spare time, either advising people about purchase or restoration matters and contracts or, occasionally, helping to dig people out of the expensive holes that they have dug themselves into with a little help from the local muratori and the geometra. John can also provide copies of his building restoration guide and current estimate of prices for restoration projects. www.propertiesumbria.com

HOW TO BUY A PROPERTY IN UMBRIA or even ITALY (Part 1 of 3)

By John Tunstill

Firstly, obviously, you’ve got to find the right property, and equally important you’ve got to find the right area. Italy is really a number of independent states roughly joined together by almost the same language, and just buying into any old area may not be the best thing to do. Have a few days holiday in some of the locations that appeal. Want all-night disco dancing and falling down drunk? Then perhaps Umbria isn’t for you. No, not perhaps, definitely. And what is idyllic for a couple of weeks lazy holiday could become something of a bore when you want your computer repaired and the only way is to ship it out on the back of a mule! Explore the area, how do the locals regard you, what are the shops like, how many iron bars are there on ground floor windows, how many burnt out cars and derelict factories can be seen, is there a motorway for easy access, or escape, where can you fly from, are there buses and trains, and would you worry about your mother being left alone in the town centre after dark when the wheel has fallen off your car?

So, you’ve settled on an area, but can you afford it? Look in the windows of the local estate agents, look at the pages in this magazine, look on the internet, and, unless you can speak Italian, you’ll need to find someone who can explain in your own language what is going on. So, a local agent. How long have they been in business, how many English speaking clients have they got, can you meet some of them, how many houses have they sold, and how many client accounts are they handling, and have handled?

No, I’m really serious, here you are about to commence upon one of the more exciting or frightening things that maybe you’ve ever done in your life, in a foreign language, with foreign law; and, for you stay at home Brits, even foreign money, and you’re about to hand over perhaps a quarter of a million Euros on the strength of a bright smile, and all without investigating the background of this person.

Where will they meet you, do they have an office, and where do they live? Old bright eyes may meet you in the lobby of your hotel because “You’ll get lost in the maze of small streets”. A map perhaps? He/she will meet you at the bar, the motorway exit or the town square, “It’s nearer to the house/s that we’re going to look at”. But if they have no substance what’s to stop them doing a runner with your money? Your cash isn’t paid to a lawyer, but to the agent, and, because you’ll want to save fees, taxes and the like, it’s often paid in cash, which the agent will hopefully pay on to the vendor. And, you’re not paying down a silly £100.00 deposit as a show of goodwill, good faith etc, No you’re paying between 25 and 33% of the purchase cost…………which is a lot of money. Beware.

So, this dream house you’re looking for, be realistic about your budget, there really are very few bargains waiting for you to come along, if it was such a good buy someone else would have already bought it. The agent will often have a queue of people just waiting to press their hard earned cash into his hands, in order to buy this piece of real estate that he has set your heart on, but no, he won’t sell to them, he likes you, so would rather you had it, but you’ll have to hurry! Beware.

Take your time, make a comparative listing of points out of ten for shape and possibilities; size and maybe enlargement; position, whether it is high or low, near or far, and the condition of the roads, and what they’ll be like in winter; and lastly the price, which is often in proportion to the size, and, if it’s too cheap there is bound to be a reason. And, really lastly, the heart factor, why does one fall in love? The feelings, the vibes, the intangibles, these too are important. Take lots of photos and give each house an easy name so that you can remember it later.

So, you’ve selected the property, checked the agent, paid the deposit, signed the Compromesso, the formal Act of Agreement; and now you are really compromised to buy, for if you don’t, you’ll lose your deposit, yes, all of it. If however the seller can’t really sell you the house by the appointed day, more or less, he has to give you all your money back, plus a 100% forfeit. So both sides have to think long and hard before they sign and pay or accept, the money. Oh, by the way, did old bright-eyes give you a written or printed list of all the fees that you will be expected to pay on the day of the sale? He didn’t? How remiss of him, obviously an oversight. You are responsible for the surveyor’s fees, the lawyer’s fees, the VAT or IVA, the Registry Office fees, the agent’s commission, and, unless someone else has already paid, all and any back taxes due on the property, and in a few cases a mortgage could not have been fully cleared, or extinguished. Beware.

So, the house is bought and paid for, you’ve paid everyone who has asked you and now you want to get cracking rebuilding your house. Sorry, I know it’s a bit late, but did bright-eyes get agreements from adjacent property owners to the effect that they have renounced all claims to your land and garden? Why? Because adjoining contatini, farmers, do have the right to buy any land sold AFTER the Public Act has been completed, and at the price declared on the Public Act, which is often a lot less than the real price that you actually paid. Remember how keen you were to agree to defraud the tax authorities so as to keep your VAT, registration costs, legal and other fees as low as possible?

Sorry about that, but now you really are ready to start, but aspetta, wait, stop, permissions are needed for everything you intend to do in or around your house, garden or land. You have got these of course, haven’t you? Various levels of bureaucrats exist; some even in uniforms, and with guns; who are there to help, or hinder, assist, or confuse, sympathise or penalise, and all of them to cost you money, for permissions or fines. Said money recirculates in order to keep them, the bureaucrats, more than fully employed, and have their wages paid. Here is where your friendly surveyor starts to earn his keep. He/she who, hopefully, can speak English should have discussed the restoration or refurbishment of the property long before it was bought and sold. The applications can’t be lodged until the property is in your name, but, to save some time, can be drawn up well in advance, and can be discussed at local planning level. These documents will seemingly take for ever to arrive, but, once in your hand you can start work, which we’ll do in the next nail-biting, cliff-hanging episode.

The author, John Tunstill has had 25 years building and restoration experience, has sold 240 houses, undertaken 80 restorations, and has 8 sites currently open, all in the Upper Tiber Valley of Umbria, between Umbertide and Cittá di Castello. John offers “ on-site building experience” day tours, 8 hours, five sites, morning coffee, light lunch, afternoon tea, for €250.00 per person.
When not building restoring or selling properties, www.propertiesumbria.com, John helps his wife to organise an 11th century restored monastery in which they live and run as a luxury country house open to paying guests, www.lapreghiera.com.

© John Tunstill 2005, All rights reserved, reproduction etc, allowed provided full credits given.