Italy: Town offering $30K to anyone who moves there

Rome: Make that Italian holiday permanent — and this local government will give you a down payment.

Indeed, this quaint town in one of Italy’s southernmost corners is throwing cash at new residents.

The provincial Presicce is joining the ranks of other dilapidated, down-on-their-luck but oh-so-pretty Italian towns to incentivize fresh blood by creative means. In this case, authorities are offering $30,000 to purchase an unclaimed residence and start calling it home, CNN reported.

“There are many empty homes in the historical center built before 1991 which we would like to see alive again with new residents,” local Presicce councilor Alfredo Palese told the news outlet of the village, which dates to the Middle Ages. “It is a pity witnessing how our old districts full of history, wonderful architecture and art are slowly emptying.”

The more-than-affordable offer is not yet set in stone, Palese noted, but more information and applications will likely be available via Presicce’s town hall website in the next few weeks. Qualifications will include buying property constructed pre-1991 and becoming a resident of Presicce. A 500-square-foot home will cost in the $25,000 range.

“We will be offering up to 30,000 euros to people willing to move here and buy one of these abandoned dwellings,” he added. “The total funding will be split in two: it will go partly into buying an old home and partly into restyling it, if needed.”

The money is sourced from a merger with a neighboring town in 2019. The joining of Presicce and Acquarica resulted in a bit of extra funding, and a total population of 9,000 or so.

“After the merger, as per Italian law, our wider territory will be blessed with more public funds, roughly [1 million] euros per year for several years forward, which we intend to invest to revitalize the old district,” explained Palese.