Luxury Real Estate Trends: a brief overview
About 15% of HNWI assets are allocated to real estate on the year basis.
Aggressive rate hikes by Central Banks started in 2022 are prompting High net-worth individuals to expand the shares of real estate asset in their portfolios, with a specific focus on luxury real estate.
According to notary statistics, over the past five years, the average number of luxury property transactions (assets whose value is equal to or greater than €1 million) in Italy was 3,465 units, with an increase of 57% from 2016 to 2021 and 40% from 2020 to 2021, when the peak was reached, for a total of 4,630 units bought and sold.
Origin of buyers of luxury properties
When analyzing the origin of buyers of luxury properties in Italy, more than 70% of the total Italian luxury real estate is purchased by foreigners.
In particular, 14% shares is from North America, followed by Germany (8 %), the United Kingdom (7 %), Switzerland (5 %), and France (3 %). The target clientele is mostly represented by private clients, soccer and sports players, international artists, and top business people.
Target locations: the most popular locations for luxury transactions
Among the tourist locations most sought after by investors (especially foreign ones) are Courmayeur, Santa Margherita, Portofino, Rapallo, Cinque Terre, Lake Maggiore, Lake Como, Lake Garda, Cortina, Forte dei Marmi, the Chianti area (Tuscany), Capri, Costa Smeralda, Positano, Salento, Taormina, and the Sicilian islands. However, the most popular Italian cities are Milan, Rome, Naples, Florence, Venice, Bologna Turin, Verona, Bologna and Palermo.
Recent News & Events
A major legislative shift has arrived for retirees looking to move to Italy. According with the Law No. 34/2026 – and starting from April 7th 2026 - the Italian government has officially expanded the eligibility criteria for the popular 7% Flat Tax regime, raising the population ceiling for eligible municipalities [...]
Law 26/2026, which entered into force on March 1st, 2026, provides the extension of the deadline for building permits from 36 to 48 months. The extension concerns the deadlines for the start and completion of works, provided that the deadlines have not already expired on the date of notification by [...]
Since the beginning of 2025, 2 events have changed the reasons why wealthy foreigners might reconsider the structure of their investment portfolio relocating huge financial resources in Italy. On one side, the recent American protectionist policies could reshape global economic dynamics, driving an outflow of American HNWI and Ultra HNWI [...]
The Italian Government has adopted the Decree n. 113/2024 (entered into force on August 10th, 2024), increasing the HNWIs’ annual flat tax from Eur 100.000 to Eur 200.000. The Decree includes a grandfathering clause under which the above increase will be applicable only to those that move their habitual [...]
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Law 26/2026, which entered into force on March 1st, 2026, […]
Since the beginning of 2025, 2 events have changed the […]
