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Excellent info

Looks a great place to visit and love your music choice👌

Fun tour! What a beautiful day. (nice music to go with your video too)

What an amazing little video

Thank you so much for making this video, Ms Britaly. It reminds me that I have dropped the ball and not pursued wineries as a wonderful and educational thing to do in Italy. This will change, I promise you. You have been my inspiration. Thanks again.

Very interesting. Thank you 😊

🍷 Cheers! Cincin!

Nice Claire. Like going there in person. Your commentary is very soothing on an autumn afternoon that feels more like mid winter…..

What did you think about the video? Comment below and let me know!🍷

Lovely! 🎉 are there a good selection of home and DIY stores in Southern Italy? My OH is good at DIY but is used to just popping to the nearest toolstation, screwfix or B&Q. If theres no kitchen etc usually .. would be good to know .

Wow, I appreciate your perspective. I have moved a lot in my life so i can somewhat feel your pain and hardship. Although, i did grow up bilingual so i can’t even imagine how much harder for you it was. This makes me want to appreciate my foreign friends a lot more

Hello dear

Why did you install the water filter? I've spent months trying to find out why Italians don't drink straight from the tap but came up with nothing other than they just don't trust it. So, I just started drinking from the tap because it tastes better and bottle water is just a pain and wasteful. What am I missing?

Yes, learn Italian!!

Agreed about the stress and about ex pat depression. I find myself down in the dumps as a TCK suffering in a monocultural environment.

These are exactly what homes that Italians built/ lived in/ live in here in Australia are like :-) lots of wood (dark), tiles, and a cool 70s feel 🙂if you like that sort of thing.....PS - the kitchen 'runner' along the floor thing is so funny....we have that here in Australia...definitely must be an Italian thing! :) also have a bathroom one

Hi Claire, part of my future plans is to rent in Italy. I am allowed 90 days on and 90 days off. So I would do 1 to 3 months at the longest. What would you suggest for these lengths of rental? Somebody suggested a family hotel in a region with food included. It wouldn't be in peak season as I can't stand the Summer heat. Any ideas would be good so I can live between the UK and Italy which is my dream. Thank you. Michael.

Their "work" in showing you the home. Work? That fee should be paid by the landlord. If I'm buying my own appliainces it better be damn cheap rent.

I really appreciate this video. I often get similar comments when I present reality in Italy where I have grown up and live as an adult or about New Zealand which has degenerated, socially speaking, from 2020 onwards. Talking about NZ some people need to acknowledge that things were much better in 2017 and things really have become much worse during the past few years.

I have been living in more than ten different countries, with 20+ times rented and ended up owning a few properties around the world. This includes living in Milan and Verona (both times rented). In most countries, there is a basic legal structure to cover housing issues. Usually the legislation is meant to protect the tenant rather than the landlord which does complicate things. However in all countries, a few things apply. Contract is better to be detailed rather than general (e.g., specify exactly the condition of the property at the moment of moving in. This means quality of painting, floors, equipment etc). Usually the tenant is responsible for any damage that is not normal wear and tear in terms of the rental time. In Milan I was responsible to paint the flat after rental period. In Ireland, putting anything on the walls was forbidden (no holes etc) and taking other people to live there was specifically forbidden (in Dublin this is very common, indeed). In most countries, the law has general definition what problems should be covered by the tenant and which ones by the landlord. I recommend to clarify this specifically in the contract as well as the basic requirement to act to minimise damage. Different countries and landlords have a different ideas for general costs & condominium fees and utilities. Sometimes the default is to have them covered by the landlord, sometimes by tenant. Although this sounds trivial, it is not. I know some people who had serious difficulties to open a bank account in UK without utility fees on their name as banks often require to see them. To have a residence, sometimes you can apply even the hotel to issue you a certificate that you can use to have "an address". I have done it serveral times 🙂 It is true that Italy is quite unique in terms of "unfurnished" to mean without anything at all but obviously this should be obvious when you see the flat. You can always, of course, rent a furnished flat as well. Deposit is actually tricky thing for both parties. It is mainly there to protect the landlord from damage that is beyond normal wear and tear and/or tenants not paying their rent e.g., for the last month. Sadly there are cases where the deposits are very high due to people trying to cheat. As an example, I am very careful to rent my properties to some kinds of people or demand excessive deposit from them. I have complete no-go to rent to anybody with diplomatic passport from any country. Foreign students and similar are quite risky cases as well. Sometimes the landlords try to cheat, especially when the tenant to moves to another country by refusing to pay back the deposit.

I am really enjoying your videos. I am reminded of when I lived in Sicily (stationed in Sigonella, lived in San Pietro Clarenza on the southern face of Etna). How is it you came to choose Palermo, say, over Catania or wherever else in Sicily). I visited Palermo years back and remember the cathedral at Monreale as stunning and the westward views at night from our next stop Erice as incredible.

Speaking of cleaning, one of the things that has surprised me as someone from the United States is Italian real estate listings. I enjoy looking at houses even if I'm not in the market for one right now. I find the lack of staging quite amusing. People will post photos of for-sale homes that are messy, piled high with junk, crazy colored walls, all sorts of things that make the home very unattractive. It's a very different approach from what I'm used to where listed homes are staged and photographed to look as enticing as possible.

Îs a must to do rubbish taxes in first month?

So helpful!! Thank you 🙏

This sounds like it is coming from a spoiled person expecting more than any country vacant provide. This is nothing like what I have experienced in many months of traveling to Italy.

Also getting your deposit back when you move out can be a challenge, or even impossible

Absolutely brilliant and informative Claire lots of excellent advice thanks 👍

I like that! I want to control the furniture and appliances in my apartment. Question: I'm Italian American dual citizenship , my wife is not. I noticed the Italian consulate still has me as single in their computer system. Do you recommend i register my marriage with Italian consulate? Is it required for her to get Heath insurance when we retire there?

In Italy, there are two types of apartments: those that are “furnished” and those that are “empty.” You must always specify, “I am looking for a furnished house,” if you want it that way.Those exist because they are usually reserved for people who work away from their real home. For example, students or civil servants, for example, professors. The rent of a furnished property can increase by 10-20% on average

I can't stand the garbage in southern italy and the bureaucracy drove me crazy. The men were rude too.

Valuable information , Thank you Ms Britaly . Very thorough .

That makes sense. I have never used the kitchen, and I don’t want to use the kitchen. I had a hard time explaining to the landlord, when I was renting an apartment temporarily during COVID why I don't need kitchen. So, I 100% approve of the Italian system.

Wow yes Claire, rubbish tax is cheap here Compared to council tax back home…..! No comparison. And where I live in Italy it works far better than council tax does for refuse which sometimes in the UK only collect certain things once per week. And you have massive bins. Here ours are manageable and the collection is each day a different refuse. If you don’t have composting equipment there is a communal bin within walking distance and that is collected every single day. For glass there is the glass bell next to the compost bin and you can dispose of whenever you want.

Definitely different rules from here for rubbish tax. All we do is to register our residency and the Polizia Municipale comes to check that you live where you say and from then on all is done for you. You start receiving the rubbish tax with discounts if you opt for composting equipment which is free and that is it. You opt for the composting equipment when you collect the containers and bags for recycling. You get a letter with instructions where to go. It’s just 3 minutes away from where I live. I opted for not and get 15% discount. You can opt for thornier you have a garden or space on the ground with a little land. It could be that it depends where you live as to how this works. Maybe in a big city there is a rubbish office and in a small Comune the rubbish department is the office next door or in the next room. I have never had to go to the Comune except for registering residency and renewing an ID card which is by appointment and takes only 15 minutes. I have been 3 times in 16 years. In a city the best would be to register your residency and ask where the rubbish office is and what else has to be registered and where to register etc. i used to play a bit dumb when I first came to Italy and would excuse myself for being ignorant and I would ask for whatever had to be done after registering the residency. I made a point of it not be be left stranded and shocked if I missed anything that I had no idea had to be done. I sometimes spoke in an broad English accent When I first arrived and people were always very helpful. When I first arrived here the police didn’t come to check. That law came out a year after I arrived.

For the rubbish tax you said the cost could be a few hundred euros. But is that per month or year?

I would hate to think about the cost of renting now in the UK, particularly London. With all other expenses on top you would have to be earning a very good salary. It would seem that you live to work!! Scary times. I'm sure Italy is a much better choice. Thank you 😊

A helpful summary of essentials when renting - thank you!