Property so popular

Add to this the fact that Italians traditionally put trillions of lira into high-interest government bonds only to see rates plummet after the advent of the euro and you can see why property investments are so popular.

House prices in the main cities rose 10.7 per cent last year, while general inflation was only 2.7 per cent.

And since 1998 house prices have risen by more than half.

Prices to continue rising


But house buying is a proud tradition in Italy where the proportion of citizens who own their own home is steadily approaching 80 per cent.

So expect prices to keep on rising.

There's another factor, too. Rental costs are increasing sharply too, forcing many people to bite the bullet and buy.

Good news for the investor either way you look at it!