Rustico a Zeri Lunigiana Toscana Italia
Appennino Tosco Emiliano, bellissima valle di Zeri (MS) un piccolo e antico borgo per alpeggio a 900mt/slm costituito da gruppo di tre costruzioni da ristrutturare, attorniato da più di 3 ettari di terreno, strada di accesso privata ben consolidata di circa 300 mt partendo dalla strada principale. Km 1,5 dalle piste da…
What it really costs
Can you move in?
Not before the basics are done
In the listingNeeds renovation- On the market for a long time
Must be done first
- Structure
- Roof
- Wiring
- Plumbing
- Bathroom
- Kitchen
- Windows
See what needs doing and what each job costs
List price €50,000 for 200 m² plus estimated renovation €700/m² yields an effective cost ≈€190,000 (≈€950/m²), roughly 90% above the local baseline of €500/m². The site and utilities are attractive (3+ ha, potable water, good private access, 12 photos), but it’s been listed 2707 days, indicating the market has rejected this pricing.
More on the house and the area
A beautiful cluster of traditional dry‑stone alpine buildings with original slate roofs and sweeping Apennine views, set in over 3 hectares with a year‑round stream. The stone shells are largely standing and very photogenic but need significant restoration and installation of utilities — a great restoration project rather than a move‑in 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€40,000 – €70,000
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.
- Requires substantial renovation: roofs, floors and interiors will need rebuilding or major repair
- No visible modern services in photos (likely no electric/heating/plumbing installed)
- Remote mountain access — private 300 m track and ~6 km to nearest services; winter access may be challenging
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 cluster is in the Tuscan-Emilian Apennines, in the upper valleys around Zeri near the passes toward Lunigiana and the Ceno valley. The Teglia stream and the upper Magra basin shape the local landscape of wooded slopes, meadows and scattered hamlets. Part of the municipal area lies within the Parco Naturale Regionale delle Alpi Apuane. The nearest ski area is Zum Zeri at Passo dei Due Santi, a short drive from the main hamlets. The nearest larger town with broad services is Pontremoli, with a railway station, shops and a substantial historic centre; Massa and La Spezia are farther for wider urban services. Pontremoli is known for its stone old town and as one of the main centres of Lunigiana, an area known for castles, chestnut woods and mountain pastures.