The Real Story Behind Sicily’s €1 Homes

I revved the engine, locked the gear stick into first, and took a flying run at the steep cobblestone road. Medieval towns like Sambuca di Sicilia were built on hilltops centuries ago to fend off invaders. Today, however, you can take them easily enough with a 100-horsepower compact and just a sprinkling of sweat. The prize is still very much worth the effort.

Reaching the town’s medieval heart is like taking a trip back in time. Stone steps lead to ancient churches with ornate portals and crumbling sandstone walls. Its Arab Quarter is a labyrinth of narrow alleys, with arches and ribbed vaults, and homes embellished with Mediterranean colors and Juliet balconies.

Buying on the resale market may make more sense.

Then there are the green valley views from the wide-open Terrazzo Belvedere, the highest point in town, where olive groves and vineyards create a mesmerizing patchwork over the undulating hills.

Sambuca is in the hinterland of Sicily’s Agrigento region, some 12 miles from the seaside town of Sciacca and 48 miles south of Palermo, the island’s capital. Sitting dramatically on a hill within the Sicani Mountains Park, it was voted the most beautiful village in Italy in 2016. Today, however, it’s probably better known as the town that started selling homes for €1.

In 2019, Sambuca followed the example of a number of other southern Italian towns that began to give empty homes away for the nominal price. The idea was to entice people to the town to replenish its aging population and help restore its crumbling historic core. The program has been repeated in at least 30 towns and cities across Italy and is broadly regarded as a success.

In Sambuca, not only did they sell the original 16 houses on offer, they ran a second round of the program (this time selling homes for €2 each), and it was another sell out. Buyers came from as far away as China, Russia, and Argentina. But predominantly they came from Europe, Britain, and the U.S. In fact, the offer was so popular with Americans that CNN recently called Sambuca “Little America,” after all the Americans who bought here.

I met up with the charming local mayor, Giuseppe Cacioppo, who told me they have sold 150 homes since 2019. Not exactly enough to significantly change the demographics of the town of over 5,000 people. But strolling through the streets, I could certainly see the impact these buyers were having on the face of the ancient Arab Quarter, thanks to their restoration work.

One buyer, Tamara Holm, first visited Sambuca in 2019 after seeing a news article about the €1 homes. “Sambuca was a wonderful, beautiful hillside town” she says, “and after I left, I had to bring my husband, Gary, right back. After our next visit together we both knew we wanted to do a project here.”

Tamara and Gary learned pretty quickly that they would have to spend a bit more than €1.

In fact, they didn’t get any of the original 16 homes offered. At the auction (the village auctioned off the euro homes), they bid up to €5,500 on one but still lost out. They ultimately decided to go a different route and instead bought through a private sale for €20,000.

“We fell in love with everything about the town and found a house we thought we’d like to own and visit year after year,” says Tamara. “The prices were reasonable, and the scenery was unforgettable. Hillside, with lake views, 20 minutes from the beach. It doesn’t get much better.”

Cacioppo confirmed that the real success of the €1 homes auction was drawing people to Sambuca to see what was on offer. Many who lost out of the auction, like the Holms, bought on the regular resale market instead.

In fact, they might have gotten a better deal on a resale. The thing is, each of the factors that drives towns to sell homes for €1 also influences the regular real estate market. As young Italians increasingly migrate to cities and choose cosmopolitan jobs over rural and community vocations, many of Italy’s prettiest remote villages are becoming abandoned.

Some elderly Italians have found themselves with no one to leave their house to, while some younger Italians have inherited properties in areas they have no intention of moving to. Having a second home in Italy also means paying taxes, so selling off these unused houses cheaply can be more lucrative than keeping them.

When you factor in renovation costs, buying on the resale market often makes more sense than the €1 homes do.

Each of the €1 homes in Sambuca required extensive renovation, which could cost anything from €20,000 to €80,000 (you can spend much more though…one couple recently featured in a CNN article, spent €250,000 renovating their home in Sambuca). Alternatively, you could buy a turn-key home on the resale market within that same price range.

The home Tamara and Gary bought was in good shape from day one. “In the beginning we were going to just do slight cosmetic repairs and make sure all the utilities functioned, says Tamara. “We planned to spend less than $30,000. However, we partnered with some friends, bought the next door neighbor’s house that shared a wall, and have decided to combine the two properties into one. The extended break in renovation during Covid made us re-evaluate and decide we wanted to do a much more extensive construction project. Now we’ve expanded our budget some.”

For the Holms, the hardest part is the distance from their home in California. “It’s a long flight, and we have a new baby so we haven’t gotten to go as often as we thought we would originally,” she says.

But they have big plans for the future. “We plan to use the house as a vacation home part time. We hope to share the house with friends and family who want to visit. And we hope to do some long stays in the town with our child.”

Sambuca is unquestionably a great regional jumping off point. Palermo is just over an hour away, with its bustling markets, grand theater, and wealth of history. Head south of Sambuca, and you’ll hit the coast in just over 20 minutes. I sped out to Porto Palo Beach, a popular bay with creamy-soft sand and a boardwalk lined with seafood restaurants and cafés. It was heaving with sunbathers. But for a more relaxed beach experience you can head a few miles down the coast to Le Solette, a quieter sandy beach set among sand dunes.

Then there is Sambuca itself. The small town doesn’t have a huge range of restaurants or cafés, but there are enough to keep you satisfied. You can stretch your waist on seafood and pasta at Pane e Radici, the best restaurant in town. Or gorge on woodfired pizza and wine for €5 a liter at Lu Saracinu—which has a cozy terrace with spectacular valley views.

You will not want to miss the delicious local specialty pastry, the Minni di Virgini, filled with cream, chocolate chips, and candied squash. I’m told its plump shape is made to resemble the local hills. But its name, translated as “virgin breasts,” suggests a slightly different origin.

For Tamara, Sambuca is the full package of food, scenery, and culture. “I think we mostly love the people though,” she says. “We have met some great international friends as well as some Americans, and we’ve also made great friends with locals. We hang out with both.”

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