Sell Your Property The Right Way
Put Your Property in the Right Hands
Professional Support or Do-It-Yourself?
While you may be used to handling the sale of your property yourself in your home country, in Italy it’s common to appoint a real estate agent. Especially as a foreign seller who may not live locally, managing the sale on your own becomes even more complicated.
Of course, selling through an agent involves additional costs you may prefer to avoid — but it’s important to recognize that saving money in the wrong place can become expensive later.
Advantages of Selling Through a Real Estate Agency
After the initial briefing and handing over all relevant documents, you don’t need to worry about anything else.
The agent takes responsibility for a legally correct transaction, checks whether the cadastral records match the property’s actual condition, markets your listing, conducts negotiations, and organizes viewings with interested buyers.
How Do You Find the Right Agency for Your Property Sale?
This part is more challenging. There are many agencies, and choosing the right one is essential.
Ideally, the agency should be located in the same town as the property. This increases the chance that they already have buyers specifically interested in that area.
If you choose an agency based in Germany or Austria, make sure they have a reliable partner on site so that viewings can be arranged at short notice. Many buyers plan viewings spontaneously while they are already at Lake Garda, which makes flexibility extremely important.
Also pay attention to working hours. Many agents do not work on Sundays or public holidays — exactly when international buyers often have the most time.
The usual commission at Lake Garda is 3–4% of the purchase price plus 22% VAT. Ask clearly which services are included. As a seller, you may be able to negotiate slightly.
Normally, the commission becomes due once you accept a purchase offer. Since sales can still fall through afterwards, try to negotiate a split payment to ensure the agent remains committed until the final notarial deed is signed.
Good to Know
The sale of a property in Italy involves several steps. If you are not yet familiar with the buying and selling process in Italy, please continue reading here.
Before selling, make sure to check the cadastral plans of your property. A property can only be sold legally if the actual condition matches the plans registered at the cadastral office. Even minor discrepancies can delay the sale or, in the worst case, prevent it entirely.
Remember to cancel any existing mortgages or other liens on the property before or during the sale process.
If you sell a property within five years of purchasing it, the profit you make may be subject to a capital gains tax of 20%. This tax obligation does not apply if you purchase another property in Italy within one year of the sale.
If you bought the property as a primary residence with a reduced tax rate and sell it within five years, you must repay the difference in transfer taxes. This repayment is waived if you buy a new primary residence in Italy within one year of the sale.
If you sell a farmhouse or agricultural land, neighboring farmers may have a pre-emption right (prelazione agraria). This right remains valid for two years after the sale. Always check whether a neighbor intends to exercise this right. The offer made to the neighbor cannot be higher than the actual sale price; otherwise, the sale may be contested. If no claim is made within 30 days, the pre-emption right expires.
Selling Property Quickly
The supply of new properties at Lake Garda is large, and the selling time for existing properties can therefore be unexpectedly long. Home staging offers an effective solution.
Home staging is the professional preparation and presentation of a property for sale. It significantly reduces the selling time and allows the property to be sold at the highest realistic price.
At first glance, home staging appears to be an additional expense. You spend money on a property you want to “get rid of.” Many sellers stop thinking at this point. But the real question is not whether home staging is worthwhile — it’s whether you can afford not to use it.
A professionally executed home staging typically costs between 2% and 4% of the sale price. However, the selling price can increase by up to 15% on average, and the selling time is demonstrably reduced — sometimes by as much as 50%.
Can you afford to leave your property unsold for more than six months?
How much do the running costs add up to in that time?
Could additional maintenance or repairs become necessary?
Is the property financed with a mortgage for which you continue paying 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 consider the loss in value if your property remains on the market too long. As a general rule, you should expect around a 5% drop in value per quarter.
If you add all these factors together, you will quickly realize that home staging — on second thought — doesn’t create extra costs. Instead, it brings them back to you multiple times over, in the form of saved time and increased value.
Your property will sell or rent out much faster, and you will have to make far fewer concessions during price negotiations. Home staging is not just about creating a pleasant look — it focuses on the elements that have the greatest influence on the final price.