Casa colonica in Parenti
Casa colonica in Parenti. Habitable, autonomo heating, garage, cucina, arredato.
What it really costs
Can you move in?
Livable, but something basic is worn out
In the listingHabitableSee what needs doing and what each job costs
Price €55,000 plus estimated renovation €16,000 (80 m² × €200/m²) gives an effective cost of ~€71,000 or ~€888/m², well above the regional median of €244/m²; the house is listed as habitable with heating, garage and 8 photos but the effective price makes it overpriced.
Decoration, tired fittings, a bathroom or a kitchen. The house is liveable as it stands.
Our read of the photos is €200/m². There is no published price band below €350/m², so the range is that figure widened by the spread of the lightest band.
Materials only, work you may do yourself€5,000 – €9,000
Wiring, water and sanitary work of any kind, heating, air conditioning and gas go to a registered firm by law, and so do flues and the air openings for gas appliances. That labour stays in the bill. Yours is the stripping out, plaster, paint, floors, tiling and carpentry.
Labour is 61% of a renovation price on average and 67% at the median, across 191 items of the Emilia-Romagna 2025 public price list. Materials are the rest. An averaged price list, not a quote.
Materials you buy yourself carry 22% VAT; supplied by the firm doing the work they go at the 10% renovation rate. On a €30,000 materials bill that is €3,600 of extra tax.
Household wiring installed before 13 March 1990 counts as compliant if it has a main breaker with overcurrent protection, protection against direct contact and a 30 mA RCD. Having a firm bring the existing wiring up to that and certify it is the cheapest lawful route.
Estimate from the listing and its photos, not a survey. Treat it as the starting point for your own quotes. An Italian builder's quote is normally written without VAT and without design fees, so add about a quarter to any figure a firm gives you.
The area around
Location score 72/100The cluster is in the Sila Piccola uplands of the Calabrian Apennines. Lake Ampollino and Lake Arvo are the main nearby mountain lakes in the wider Sila plateau. Much of the surrounding upland falls within Sila National Park. The nearest ski area is Camigliatello Silano on Monte Curcio, about 35 km away by road. The nearest larger town is Cosenza, which has the main urban services, rail connections and a historic centre. This part of Calabria is known for Sila forests, chestnut and potato growing, and mountain pasture.