Buying a second property in italy

A ridiculous statement and typical of the attitude I outlined.

While in Rome do what Romans do... Speak Italian for your day to day needs.

The number 1 language in the world is Mandarin Chinese, with 1.1 billion native speakers. English has just 373 million.

The number 1 language in the EU is German, the first language of 18% of EU citizens and an official language in all or part of 7 member states (relevantly, including Italy). English is the first language of 1% of EU citizens, and an official language in 2 member states.

It's true that English is the most widely spoken second language in the EU but, still, the majority of EU citizens cannot hold a simple conversation in English and, the further you get from the UK, the truer this becomes. The dominant second language in Central and Eastern Europe is German.

Not many. That's the point. Being the "number one language in the world" (which you claimed English was) is not in itself a reason for Italians to learn it.

In fact, everyone in Italy learns some English - it's a compulsory subject in both the primary and lower secondary curriculums. But most of them lose it fairly quickly, because they have little opportunity to use it, because English is not a widely-spoken language in Italy. Because why would it be?

Globally, English is a commonly-used language of international communication. But in Italy, it's just one of three languages that are so used, the others being German and French. All three are commonly studied as second languages in Italy, but the people who retain a second language into adulthood are predominantly those who work in international-facing jobs, which is a minority of the workforce. Italian busdrivers or shop assistants have no more reason to master English than British busdrivers or shop assistants have to master Italian.

That's true!

That's ironic, because I'm trying hard to leave this country (Italy) and move to Ireland because I consider this much better than Italy in so many ways. I always wonder what drags people from abroad to this dull land, and haven't found an exhaustive explanation yet.

Italian estate agents work locally, they rarely cover areas outside their location unless you are going to buy a luxury villa. So, when you find the area you like, you can contact the EA that sells the property you like. It is unlikely that the EA you find in the area that you like and who is selling the house that you like will speak English. It is not impossible, but very unlikely unless they deal with foreign customes on a regular basis. Expect they have a broken English if they do speak your language. It is way better if you find the assistance of an Italian friend who can translate for you during the visits and the meetings.

You make your offer to the EA and they forward it to the seller who might accept it or not.

Unlike Ireland, the final selling price will be always be lower than the asking price, this is probably the only advantage of living in this country. So, a house with an asking price of €300k will be more likely sold at €290k or even less.

The entire process, from when you start bidding to the signed contract, could take from a few weeks (sometimes days) to a few months, it rarely goes longer than 6 months.

Both the buyer and seller will pay the EA fee at the end of the process, only the buyer will pay the solicitor (notaio, here in Italy) which will be chosen by the buyer. This is where someone based in the area you like comes in help, they will suggest you the less expensive one.

There is no property tax on the house where you live in.

If you have more questions on this, please ask away.

Meanwhile, I keep looking for a suitable property in Ireland for me and my wife!

Yes, I am Italian and live in Italy (not for long, I hope).

If anyone needs any info on just anything regarding my country, I'll do my best to help.