Sell Your Property The Right Way

Seek Professional Support or Do It Yourself?

While in your home country you may be used to handling the sale of your property on your own, in Italy it is common practice to appoint a real estate agent. Especially for foreign sellers who do not permanently reside on site, managing the process alone can be even more complicated.

Of course, selling a property through an agent involves additional costs that you might prefer to avoid. However, it is equally important to recognize that saving in the wrong place can cost you much more in the long run.

Advantages of Selling Through an Agency

The benefits of entrusting the sales process to an agency are obvious.
First and foremost, after the initial consultation and handing over the relevant documents, you no longer need to worry about anything else. The agent ensures that the transaction is carried out properly, checks whether the cadastral records match the actual condition of the property, promotes the sale, negotiates with buyers, and organizes viewings.

How to Find the Right Agency

Here it becomes more challenging: the number of agencies offering property sales services is large, making it even more crucial to choose the right one.

Ideally, the agency should be located in the same town as your property. This ensures that the office already has interested buyers specifically looking in that area. If you opt for an agency based in Germany or Austria, it should have a reliable local partner to arrange last-minute viewings. Many prospective buyers plan their visits spontaneously while already at Lake Garda, making flexibility a key factor.
Check the working hours of the agency. Many agents do not work on Sundays or public holidays – yet these are precisely the days when foreign buyers have time for viewings.
The commission for real estate agents at Lake Garda is usually between 3 and 4% of the purchase price, plus 22% VAT. Ask explicitly which services are included in this fee, and as a seller you may even be able to negotiate slightly.
Normally, the commission is due once you accept a purchase offer. However, since sales sometimes fall through despite a binding offer, try to split the commission payment into two stages to ensure that the agent remains committed until the final notarial deed is signed (even though they are legally entitled to the full commission once buyer and seller have signed an offer).

Good to Know

Selling property in Italy involves several steps. If you are unfamiliar with the buying and selling process, please read further here.

Check your cadastral plans before selling: the property can only be sold if the official records match the current condition. Even minor discrepancies can cause delays or prevent the sale altogether.
Ensure that any mortgages or other charges on the property are cleared before or during the sale.
Be aware of speculation tax: if you sell within five years of purchase, any profit from the sale is subject to a 20% tax. This obligation lapses if you buy another property in Italy within one year of the sale.
If you purchased the property as your primary residence with a reduced tax rate and resell within five years, you must repay the difference in taxes. This repayment obligation also lapses if you buy another primary residence within one year.
If selling a farmhouse or agricultural land, neighboring farmers have a pre-emptive right (prelazione agraria). This right remains valid for two years after the sale. The offer price to the neighbor must not exceed the actual sale price, otherwise the transaction can be challenged. If no claim is made within 30 days, the right expires.

Selling Property Quickly

The supply of new properties at Lake Garda is high, which sometimes results in unexpectedly long selling times for used properties. “Home Staging” offers an interesting solution.

Home Staging is the professional preparation and presentation of a property for sale. It significantly shortens the selling period and allows the property to be sold at the highest realistic price. While it may initially seem like an additional cost, it is worth considering the bigger picture.

On average, professional Home Staging costs around 2–4% of the selling price, but the final price can often be increased by up to 15%. Most importantly, Home Staging is proven to shorten the selling period, sometimes by as much as 50%.

Can you afford to leave your property unsold for more than half a year?
How much will you spend on running costs during that time?
Could unexpected maintenance costs arise?
Is the property subject to a loan on which you must pay interest?
Do you have enough capital to invest in a new property at the same time?
How much interest do you lose by having your capital tied up?

Also keep in mind the depreciation of a property that has been on the market for too long. As a rule of thumb, you should calculate with a value loss of around 5% per quarter.

When you take all these factors into account, you will realize that Home Staging does not create costs but instead pays for itself in saved time and added value. It not only helps you sell or rent your property faster but also strengthens your negotiating position by reducing the need for price concessions. Home Staging is not just about appearances – it highlights exactly those aspects that have the greatest influence on the final price.