My scout Ciaran Madden has just returned from Sicily…
He spent more than a week scouting the south and west of the island, and had two missions: to investigate incredible bargains in some of Sicily’s Mediterranean beach towns…and to find the historic hill towns where foreign buyers are breathing new life into once-declining communities.
He came back with some fascinating discoveries.
Homes near beautiful Mediterranean beaches for under €100,000…properties in UNESCO-listed Baroque towns for as little as €17,000…and spectacular renovated historic homes for a fraction of what you’d pay elsewhere in Europe.
Ciaran has written up his full scouting report for Real Estate Trend Alert (RETA) members. This report contains all the intelligence he gathered on the ground, including the towns where it makes sense to own, the most compelling listings he found, introductions to brokers, and more.
If you’re a RETA member, that will land in your inbox tomorrow.
But first, I sat down with Ciaran to go over what he saw on the ground…and answer the big question: Where should you buy in Sicily today—on the coast or in its historic hill towns?
Watch our conversation below…
In this new video on my YouTube channel, Ciaran and I discuss his recent scouting trip to Sicily, the opportunities he uncovered, and his biggest takeaways from the road. Click to watch…
I first scouted Sicily back in 2013, when I investigated the hill town of Gangi for RETA.
That was one of the first places to launch a €1 home scheme. Since then, people have often come up to me and said, “I wish I’d paid attention when you first wrote about Sicily.”
My answer is always the same: The opportunity is better today than it was then.
Here’s why…
Sicily is home to some of the most beautiful historic towns in Europe. For decades, many of them emptied out as young people left in search of opportunity. That’s left behind a vast supply of homes.
In recent decades, the €1 home schemes shone a global spotlight on Sicilian real estate.
A lot of those schemes went nowhere. But they introduced the world to Sicily’s extraordinary real estate bargains. That attention has helped breathe new life into select historic towns across the island—and not just those offering €1 homes.
Now, foreign buyers are arriving. Homes are being restored. New businesses are opening. And once-declining communities are becoming vibrant places to live again.
Here’s the remarkable part…
Even as more people come, prices have stayed broadly flat because there’s so much supply.
This is the opportunity in Sicily today. You’re no longer buying into a town hoping it will come back to life. In certain places, that revival is already happening. Yet real estate remains remarkably affordable.
Ciaran went to Sicily to see specific towns where this transformation is taking hold…and to see whether the island’s bargain-priced beach towns offer a similarly compelling opportunity.
In our conversation, we discuss:
- The astonishingly cheap beach homes along Sicily’s southwestern corner…and why Ciaran was disappointed by some of the destinations getting attention online.
- The coastal town that stood out from the rest…and came closest to delivering the Mediterranean lifestyle people look for.
- The corner of Sicily that so captured Ciaran’s imagination, he’s now considering buying a home there himself.
- The UNESCO-listed Baroque towns where you can buy move-in-ready homes for under €70,000…with incredible architecture, thriving communities, and potential rental income.
- The unexpected challenges of buying and restoring a home in Sicily…and how to avoid some of the biggest headaches.
It’s all in our conversation. Click here to watch now.
Wishing you a good real estate investing,
P.S. If you’re a RETA member, stay tuned to your RETA Alerts. Ciaran’s full Sicily scouting report will drop tomorrow in your October issue of RETA, with all the listings, introductions, analysis, photos, maps, and more.
