Terratetto unifamiliare in Cantalupo Ligure
CANTALUPO LIGURE - COSTA MERLASSINO Nel tranquillo borgo di Costa Merlassino proponiamo in vendita una caratteristica casa semindipendente bifamiliare, disposta su tre livelli e completamente da personalizzare, ideale per chi desidera realizzare una grande abitazione di famiglia oppure due unità abitative…
What it really costs
See what needs doing and what each job costs
246sqm townhouse at €142/m2 vs baseline median €351/m2 is ~60% below market, a strong headline discount. Fresh listing (5 days), 46 photos, garage/cellar/garden/balcony. Energy class G and 1900 build are expected for the area. Main caveat: partially 'allo stato grezzo' — ground floor 6 rooms are raw/unfinished (tool shed/storage) and second unit needs a bathroom completed, so significant renovation is required (~€700/m2 to make fully habitable). One unit is livable, which keeps this out of ruin territory. The odd AI-assistant sentence at the end of the description ('posso anche renderlo più commerciale') flags a contradictory/auto-generated listing but doesn't undermine the facts. Solid opportunity for a family home or B&B if renovation budget is factored in.
More on the house and the area
A 246sqm semi-detached bifamiliare in a small Piedmont hamlet, priced at just €35k (€142/m2) — an obvious bargain but reflecting extensive work needed. Exterior shows a rustic stone village row with balconies and a stone-arch entrance, some historic character. Surrounding greenery, walnut/fruit trees and mountain valley backdrop give a pleasant rural setting, but no standout view. Interiors are almost entirely raw: crumbling plaster, damaged ceilings, exposed wiring, rough attic and cellar spaces, and improvised utility/bath rooms. The stone bones and rustic bread oven have charm potential but nothing here is a scroll-stopper as photographed. Low wow beyond the price and renovation upside.
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€49,000 – €86,000
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.
- Completely unrenovated throughout — grezzo state, needs full restoration
- Rooms in derelict condition with damaged ceilings, exposed pipes, debris
- Bathrooms are makeshift/utilitarian, not finished
- No sea access; energy class G
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 66/100The cluster is in the upper Val Borbera, with wooded Apennine ridges and passes close by. The Borbera river runs through the valley. The Alta Val Borbera and nearby ridges are known for hiking country and for chestnut woods and summer pasture landscapes. Cabella Ligure is the nearest small valley centre; for broader services the reference town is Novi Ligure.