Terratetto unifamiliare in Castiglione dei Pepoli
Terratetto su due piani libero sui quattro lati in località Castiglione dei Pepoli (BO) completamente da ristrutturare. Si trova nel borgo di Ca' di Lenzi a 10 minuti a piedi dal Lago S. Maria. La villetta si trova sulla via della Lana e della Seta a 50km da Bologna e a 50km da Firenze, uscita del casello autostradale…
What it really costs
Can you move in?
Not before the basics are done
In the listingNeeds renovationSee what needs doing and what each job costs
At €40,000 for 100 sqm, the ask is €400/sqm, but the house is described as completely to be restored, so I estimate about €1,100/sqm renovation; effective cost is roughly €1,500/sqm versus a local baseline of €465/sqm. Positives are the detached layout, gardens, and walkable lake setting in the Apennines, but on pure numbers this is not cheap once full renovation is included.
More on the house and the area
There is some rustic charm here: a detached village house with mature trees, two garden areas and a nice little stone well/store feature in an Apennine setting near the lake. But the photos show a plainly attractive exterior rather than a wow property, and the stated condition is a full renovation project with uncertain immediate habitability. At €40k for 100 sqm it has bargain appeal, yet this is more dream project than ready-to-love home.
All the services redone, bathrooms, kitchen, windows. The structure is left alone.
Turnkey, facade and insulation included.
Our read of the photos, €1,100/m², falls in this band.
Materials only, work you may do yourself€40,000 – €59,000
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.
- Completely to be renovated; current livability is unproven from the photos.
- No interior photos, so kitchen, bathroom and systems may need full replacement.
- Exterior shows wear and some roof/eaves deterioration.
- Shared parking/garden area in front reduces privacy.
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 71/100The cluster is in the northern Apennines, in a wooded mountain area around the passes between Bologna and Tuscany. Lake Santa Maria is at Castiglione dei Pepoli, and the Brasimone reservoir area lies nearby in the same mountain belt. Much of the surrounding landscape falls within the Suviana e Brasimone Regional Park. The nearest ski slopes are the small lifts of Corno alle Scale, roughly an hour’s drive depending on the exact hamlet. Castiglione dei Pepoli itself is a small service centre with shops, schools and rail access on the Bologna–Prato line, while Bologna is the nearest major city for higher-order services. The area is known for chestnut woods, reservoirs and Apennine ridge country on the old route between Emilia and Tuscany.