Trilocale in Via Arena 6
Via Arena 18, Cengio. QUADRILOCALE, secondo piano con ascensore, 77 mq commerciali, due terrazzi. Dall'ingresso si accede a un corridoio che distribuisce gli ambienti: a sinistra la cucina vivibile, con accesso diretto al primo terrazzo, a destra il ripostiglio, la zona giorno e la camera matrimoniale, che può essere…
What it really costs
Can you move in?
Move in as it is
Condition not stated in the listingSee what needs doing and what each job costs
At €35,000 (€427/m²), this 82 m² apartment is priced well below comparable Ligurian stock and includes a box, attic, and two terraces. However, modernisation at roughly €600/m² brings the effective cost to about €1,027/m², so the discount largely offsets the renovation rather than creating an exceptional bargain.
More on the house and the area
A solid, fully usable apartment with two large terraces, hillside views, greenery, a garage, and an unusually low €35,000 price. The home is very dated and heavily cluttered, but it appears occupied and functional rather than a renovation shell; the main appeal is value and outlook, not architectural beauty.
Certified wiring, water and drainage, a heat source, a roof that keeps the water out, one working bathroom. Facade, insulation, a second bathroom and the floors wait.
All the services redone, bathrooms, kitchen, windows. The structure is left alone.
Our read of the photos, €600/m², falls in this band.
Turnkey, facade and insulation included.
Materials only, work you may do yourself€16,000 – €29,000
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.
- Clearly dated interiors and furnishings; the listing says it needs modernization.
- Central heating is included in roughly €100/month condominium fees.
- This is a standard apartment building rather than a characterful standalone Italian home.
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 58/100The area sits in the upper Bormida valley on the Ligurian Apennines, with wooded ridges and a river corridor shaped by the Bormida di Millesimo. The Langhe hills begin nearby on the Piedmont side, and the landscape around the village is a mix of valley floor, chestnut and mixed woodland, and small cultivated slopes. Millesimo, a short drive away, has a preserved historic centre and is listed among I Borghi più belli d'Italia. Cairo Montenotte is the nearest larger town, with the main services and rail connections for this part of the valley. The wider area is known for woodland, upper-valley villages and the transition between inland Liguria and southern Piedmont.