Palazzo - Edificio in Butera
Palazzo - Edificio in Butera. Needs renovation, esposizione esterna, balcone.
What it really costs
Can you move in?
Livable, but something basic is worn out
In the listingNeeds renovationMust be done first
- Damp
See what needs doing and what each job costs
The €60,000 asking price is attractive at €214/m², about 44% below the local €382/m² median. However, renovating 280 m² could cost roughly €196,000, bringing the estimated all-in cost to €256,000, or about €914/m²; the listing does not say when the building was constructed or provide an energy rating.
More on the house and the area
This is a very large, fully formed palazzo with ornate salon detailing, decorative ceilings, terrazzo floors, traditional furniture, and multiple balconies. It appears usable rather than a bare shell, but the interiors are strongly dated and show moisture damage, so it is a characterful renovation project rather than a move-in dream home.
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, €700/m², falls in this band.
Turnkey, facade and insulation included.
Materials only, work you may do yourself€55,000 – €98,000
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.
Bringing a house that has stood empty back into service: new water, sewer and electricity, plus the practices. The same sum on an 80 m² house and on a 300 m² one, which is why a €40,000 house is not a €40,000 project.
Show more
Water 1,800 · sewer 2,500 · electricity 700–1,600 · CILA 1,000 · cadastral filing 500 · structural design 700 · Legge 10 report 900 · safety coordination 1,800
No mains drain: add €2,000–4,500 for a septic tank. Listings never say, so ask.
- Substantial renovation is needed, including dated bathrooms and finishes.
- Visible damp/staining and peeling plaster should be investigated carefully.
- The property is in a dense, narrow urban lane with no garden and only small balconies.
- Utilities, roof condition, and structural status are not shown.
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 is a chain of cultivated hills in the inland part of southern Sicily, with views down toward the Gulf of Gela. The Salso river basin lies nearby, and the coast at Falconara and the Gela side is the nearest stretch of sea. Gela is the nearest town of size, with services, shops and archaeological remains from the Greek city. Butera itself is known for its hilltop historic centre and for cereal, olive and almond country typical of this part of inland Sicily.