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Luxury Villa near Montepulciano
€4,500,000
$4,905,000
€
$
53045 Montepulciano, Province of Siena, Italy
15
18
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Ref #: V58902-X
Cortona, TuscanyRef #: V58902-X
FURTHER PHOTOS ON REQUEST
A breath-taking property near the wonderful town of Cortona.
Cortona and its surrounding countryside is a stunning area that sinks its roots back into an astoundingly long existence. Cortona has been continuously inhabited for over 2700 years and evidence of every historical period since the Etruscans and then ancient Romans can be found in buildings in the town, providing a multitude of opportunities to visit cultural heritage sites within a short drive of the Villa.
Cortona is also conveniently located to visit many other famous sites such as Florence, Chianti, Montepulciano, Siena and Todi, providing a nearly endless list of neighbouring areas to be visited.
Historical context
The original version of the villa itself dates back to the 16th century and was passed on by Saint Filippo Neri of Cortona to the Tommasi family 200 years later, and a historical drawing of the structure at the time can be still found inside the Villa.
The Property
The villa itself is a small world unto its own, a wonderful example of a patrician family’s country property that has evolved very gradually over the centuries.
It has the hallmarks of a fine Tuscan property. It is surrounded by tall, attractive walls and covers an area of 4.5 hectares (9.8 acres).
Besides the impressive main villa, there are several other smaller yet beautiful and functional buildings such as a private chapel, a limonaia (a greenhouse dedicated specifically to providing winter shelter for lemon trees), a series of cellars and an astounding Baroque fountain complex and reflecting pools from the 1700s. The Villa’s lawns are adorned not only by many statues and plants, but also by both a swimming pool and tennis courts.
The property also includes 10 hectares (25 acres) of a separate and yet nearby piece of agricultural land where the Villa’s olives and grapes are grown.
The villa once belonged to the Tommasi family, one of the most distinguished noble families within Cortona’s history. The Villa was passed down through the generations from one Count Tommasi to the next. Many parts of the Villa have been recently restored, fully respecting the structure and spirit of this historical property.
In short, the property combines elegant Italian architecture with the famed la dolce vita, and has all the elements and amenities that one could desire in a luxury Tuscan country property.
The Main Building – The Villa
The heart and main feature of the property is the Villa, which has maintained its original aspect of the 1700s throughout the centuries.
A wide, double staircase leads to the main entrance and looks out over the gardens, with its statuary and geometrical hedges. Typical of the Tuscan style for important manor houses, the Villa is a three storey, sizable rectangular-shaped building characterized by a simple elegance. The main entrance is located at the first floor under the family crest, and is accessible via the grand double staircase. The building has 28 rooms that have been recently restored; while features such as the marble fireplaces and the trompe l’oeil frescoes have remained purposefully unaltered.
A particularly important room within the Villa is a private chapel dedicated to the Virgin Mary, embellished with period frescoes on the ceiling.
The ground floor, which is the main entrance reached via the double staircase, has always been dedicated to the functional such as the kitchen, the laundry room and cellars, a study, as well as an extensive hall at the entrance and a dining room. The rooms all boast beautiful terracotta floors and ceilings with wooden beams.
The first floor is accessible from the monumental staircase plus internal stairs linking the various floors. On this floor is a vast hall with a stunning coffered ceiling and a marble fireplace, making it the grandest room in the Villa. Adjacent to this room is another smaller yet equally handsome hall, with frescoes representing hunting scenes and the room’s original floors.
This floor also hosts three bedrooms with their respective bathrooms. The configuration of the second floor is similar, divided between large and impressive public rooms, bedrooms and their respective bathrooms, plus a library and a living room. All of the main rooms have delicately decorated walls and coffered ceilings.
Additionally, the villa has an attic that can be reached via on the second floor.
The Stable
What once used to be a stable is today a two storey building: the ground floor consists of a wine cellar and a basement, while the first floor has a hall with a marble fireplace, a bathroom and a kitchen with a stone fireplace. Near the structure there is a covered area where the ancient oak trees have been incorporated and a wood-burning oven is present.
The Limonaia and the Magnolia
Aristocratic Tuscan families often built a limonaia on their property – a building created specifically to house their lemon trees and pots during the winter. This property is no exception and has an exceptionally large structure dedicated to this function.
Adjacent to it is the magnolia building, named after the tree in front of it. It was once used to display vintage cars. This long and narrow space has now become a perfect location for parties, thanks to the warmth created by the brick ceiling with wooden beams, terracotta floors and terracotta heaters. Also the numerous windows facing the greenery allow the hall to be sunlit throughout the day.
The limonaia is a structure on the right side of the villa aligned with the boulevard. The ground floor has a broad hall, two smaller rooms with arched entrances together with two bathrooms. The hall is ivory colored, with two large wooden beams on the ceiling and terracotta floors with marquetry of light stones. There are two grand bedrooms, a bathroom and a dining room with a fireplace.
The Garden
The garden still resembles drawings of it from the 1700s. There is an elaborate fountain known as a Nymphaeum. It has a series of reflecting pools period, statues and decorations in rocaille style – a rococo style characterised by intricate rock, shell and scroll motifs.The garden has various elements that work together in a harmonious fashion, as is typical of properties of this period.
It has an oak-lined driveway, an orchard, a tree-lined road running from the Nymphaeum to the other side of the property, olive grovesand a broad lawn with pine trees planted centuries ago, flowers and a large plane tree.
A tennis court and a swimming pool are present as well.
The water supply, needed for the ponds, pool as well as all the greenery is guaranteed. This is thanks to the wells in the garden, but most importantly to a spring higher up in the property with a 60 m drop.
Address: Cortona, Tuscany
Location type: Rural
Condition: Restored
Bedrooms: 8
Bathrooms: 8
Property size: 2116 sqm
Land size: 14.5 hectares
A notary is a qualified lawyer who is employed by the Italian government. When you are buying Italian property, it is a notary who conducts the legal transfer of a property from vendor to buyer, and prepares the deed of sale, checks there are no charges on the property, title issues and with the assistance of a technician such as a geometra or architect, checks the property conforms to all planning issues.
It is always the buyer and not the vendor who pays the purchase taxes due and who pays the notary fees also. This means that it is up to the buyer which notary is used. In practice it is usually one of the local notaries and we can recommend which one to use and which one is cheapest, as notary prices do vary.
We provide a detailed list of all fees and taxes (including the notary’s quote) before you sign any contracts.
Translator – if you do not speak fluent, enough to understand detailed legal contracts, you will need to have a translator at the notary deed. Your agent or the notary will usually arrange this so you don’t need to worry about it. The cost varies but is often 200-300 euros. This can sometimes be shared with the vendor if they are also non fluent in Italian.
This depends firstly on two things.
A. Are you buying as a resident or a non resident?
B. Are you buying from private individuals or from a company?
If you are buying from private individuals, then the taxes you pay are based on the cadastral value – a nominal value which each property has and which depends on its size, location, standard etc – nothing to do with the market value.
Example 1:
House price agreed €100,000.
Property belongs to private sellers.
Cadastral value of the property €32,000.
Let’s say you intend buying the house as a non resident (.ie. you do not intend moving to Italy permanently and applying for residency).
Taxes payable are 9% on cadastral value €32,000 so €2,880 plus a few smaller fixed taxes.
Or, if you intend moving to live in the house permanently, applying for Italian residency, then as long as you don’t already own another property in Italy;
Taxes payable are 2% on cadastral value €32,000 so €640 plus a few smaller fixed taxes. A minimum figure may be payable.
Please note, you could buy the house as a resident and pay the lower rate of tax if you intend moving there and obtaining residency within the next 18 months. Don’t be tempted to do this unless you are definitely sure you will become a resident. If you then do not, you need to pay the difference in taxes plus a penalty of around 30%.
If there is substantial land (not just a garden) with the property, then 15% is payable on the value attributed to the land, which can be quite low, eg a value of €15,000 could be attributed to the land so 15% of 15,000 = €2,250 would be the tax on the land.
Example 2:
House price €100,000
Property is being sold by a company
Cadastral value of the property is €32,000
Let’s say you intend buying the house as a non resident (i.e. you do not intend moving to Italy permanently and applying for residency).
Taxes payable are 10% VAT on full market price €100,000 so €10,000 plus a few smaller fixed taxes.
Or, if you intend moving to live in the house permanently, applying for Italian residency, then as long as you don’t already own another property in Italy,
Taxes payable are 4% VAT on €100,000 so €4,000 plus a few smaller fixed taxes.
Once we know
– which house you want to buy, its cadastral value and who owns it (company/individual)
– whether you intend to buy as a resident/non resident and if it’s your first property in Italy
only then can we ask the notary to provide a quote for the precise taxes payable.
Other circumstances
Then of course there are other scenarios.
If the value of the property you want to buy is very low (eg €50,000) then purchase costs are likely to be a higher percentage as there are set minimums to pay for all fees and taxes. So on a €50,000 house, you are likely to pay 12-15% instead of 10% (non resident).
You might want to buy a property (being sold by private individuals) with your company. Taxes are considerably higher in this case, as they would be 9% on the sale price (not on the cadastral value). So it’s cheaper to buy a privately owned property as a private individual, not as a company.
But, in the case of a country property which is a farm/winery/agriturismo, these are often owned by a farming company (azienda agricola) , which has considerable tax advantages as you can buy the farm and pay just 0-1% (depending on the circumstances) on the purchase price in tax.
Taxes would be different for a commercial purchase, eg if your company is buying an Italian company (ie a farm or other company). Buying the shares of a company usually meets zero taxes, just a few fixed fees, and notary and accountancy fees.
The above is a guide, and once you have found a property you are interested in buying, we can obtain a notary quote for you, with a full breakdown of the taxes and fees due.
Notary fees – approx 1-2%, more for a lower priced property due to some fixed taxes.
Agency fees – in Italy both buyer and seller pay the agent. These are payable to the Italian agent (one of our partners) you view the house with at compromesso (preliminary contract) stage and for each party are usually 3% plus VAT. VAT is 22% in Italy. Minimums apply. Nothing is payable to Casa Tuscany so you will not pay double the fees, you will just have double the assistance!
Compromesso registration fees – approx €380 plus a part payment of taxes which is deducted from the total taxes due at completion.
Translator for the deed signing at the notary’s office. Required if you do not speak Italian well enough to understand legal deeds. Approx cost €250 – €350 depending on the notary.
Technical report for the notary. Checks all the planning issues of the property, making sure it matches the official plans, no works have been carried out without permission, gathers all previous permits, checks the house is sellable and not illegal in any way. Carried out by a geometra, architect or engineer and costs vary considerably, a minimum of €761 including VAT/ Please note this report is NOT a structural survey, that is an optional additional report you may wish to instruct.
Local council tax – IMU (formerly ICI) – payable only by non residents. This needs to be paid twice a year at the post office – no bill is sent. Most people use a local accountant or property manager to calculate it.
Refuse tax (TARI)
In some areas, mountain community tax.
If you buy a property which is part of a condominium, e.g. with shared pool and grounds, lighting etc, then there will be annual condominium fees to pay which usually range from about €200 to €1000/year unless it is a particularly luxurious property with many amenities in which case costs could be higher.
Utilities
You don’t really need an Italian bank account for buying a property in Italy any more as money is usually sent by bank transfer, although some notaries insist the funds are sent from an Italian account set up by you.
You could of course open an account to handle bills but bear in mind that some utilities companies refuse to arrange direct debits for non resident accounts, and some bills cannot be paid by direct debit.
You could always pay your bills online or if you have a property manager then send them the funds for settling all the bills.
If you do intend opening an Italian bank account, bear in mind that Italian bank charges are high . Usually there is a monthly fee to pay, plus charges for receiving money, paying bills, sending statements, etc etc.
