Terratetto unifamiliare in Villafranca in Lunigiana
Casa in sasso terratetto in borgo Lunigianese così composto: la casa è in pietra ed è disposta su due livelli indipendenti nel primo cucina con soggiorno con finestra che si affaccia sulla piazzetta storica, bagno cieco, camera matrimoniale con ampia finestra con vista sui monti dell'appennino; nel secondo una camera…
What it really costs
Can you move in?
Move in as it is
In the listingNeeds renovationThe photographs say otherwise, and we go by the photographs.
- On the market for a long time
See what needs doing and what each job costs
Asking €38,000 with an estimated renovation of €700/m² (~€49,000) gives an all-in cost of about €87,000 (≈€1,243/m²) versus the local median of ≈€660/m², so it's expensive once restored. The listing has many photos but has been on market 1,482 days, so it appears to be a stale listing.
More on the house and the area
Beautiful stone terraced house high in a dramatic Lunigiana borgo with medieval arches, a bell tower backdrop and wide mountain/valley views from the terrace. The apartment is a real, roofed two-level home with bathrooms, heating and a terrace — livable but in need of cosmetic renovation and modernising.
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€14,000 – €25,000
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.
- Needs renovation and updating (dated bathrooms/kitchen and finishes)
- Access up steep borgo street and external steps; parking is informal nearby
- Rooms are modest in size
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 area lies in Lunigiana, in the upper Magra valley between the northern Tuscan Apennines and the first ridges that lead toward the Ligurian Apennines and the Apuan Alps. The Magra river runs through this part of the valley. The Appennino Tosco-Emiliano National Park is nearby on the eastern side of Lunigiana, and the Apuan Alps Regional Park begins to the southwest beyond the valley ridges. The nearest ski area is Zum Zeri in the Zeri mountains, roughly a 40 minute drive, with larger lifts farther away on the Cerreto side of the Apennines. Pontremoli is the nearest historic town of note in the valley, with services, a preserved old center and the Piagnaro Castle; Aulla is the main service town to the south for roads and rail. The area is known for its stone villages, medieval castles across Lunigiana, chestnut country and the Via Francigena route through the Magra valley.