Are you planning to buy a house at Lake Garda? Are you looking for affordable real estate at Lake Garda in Italy? Obtaining good information beforehand and getting good advice when buying a property in Italy will save you a lot of money. Buying a house at Lake Garda can be easy. Here we provide prospective buyers and property owners of real estate at Lake Garda with useful information on the subject. Read on if you want to buy an apartment or house at Lake Garda. Hire a lawyer when it comes to real estate and Lake Garda. The dream of your vacation property at Lake Garda is within reach with the right advice!

You may also obtain more information on the subject of “buying a house at Lake Garda” at a reasonable price in an initial consultation.

Why should you hire a lawyer when buying a house at Lake Garda?

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Buying a house abroad has its pitfalls. Many prospective foreign buyers do not consider that buying a vacation property at Lake Garda is not just about Italian real estate law. The buyer must also keep an eye on tax law as well as inheritance law. Buying a house at Lake Garda should be coordinated at all levels. Only a specialist can do this. Anyone who is negligent in this respect will end up paying a lot in the end. In addition, as lawyers, we have often renegotiated the purchase price so that the costs for professional legal advice when buying a vacation home or apartment at Lake Garda are quickly recouped.

We offer you legal advice on Italian real estate law to protect your interests. Contact us when it comes to real estate and Italy. Contact us here to receive a detailed description of our services and a quote for legal advice on buying a house in Italy.

Lake Garda

Lake Garda (Italian: Lago di Garda or Lago di Benaco) is located between the Alps and the Po Valley. It spreads in the Italian regions of Trentino Alto Adige, Lombardy and Veneto. Trento, Brescia and Verona are the provinces that frame Italy’s largest lake. The region is known for its wine production. Lugana, Bardolino, Soave and Valpolicella are the most famous wine varieties of Lake Garda.

The summers are hot, the winters mild and with little precipitation. The climate is sub-Mediterranean, which has always made Lake Garda particularly attractive for foreign vacationers. It goes without saying, therefore, that at some point the desire for their own vacation property arises among Lago vacationers.

The advantages are obvious: Lake Garda can be easily reached by vehicle from the north via the Brenner Pass. The infrastructure is optimally developed. Even no language skills are not a problem due to the decades-long tradition of the region as a vacation destination for foreign tourists. The weather is pleasant, the vegetation lush, the food tasty and the towns picturesque. Nowhere is it easier for foreigners to live the dream of the “Dolce Vita”. With a property at Lake Garda you make this dream come true.

Purchase of a vacation property

The following questions should be answered by prospective property owners:

• Do I really want to own a vacation property at all?
• What type of real estate should I purchase?
• Where should I buy a vacation property?
• What may the property cost, for example, at Lake Garda?
• How do I want to fund the purchase of the real estate?
• Should the property also be rented to tourists?

Only when you have clearly and comprehensively answered the questions listed here does it make sense to dare to implement the project of buying real estate in Italy. Even a bargain can end up being a money pit. A vacation property is regularly not a goldmine in the very first instance.

Purchase of real estate at Lake Garda

Lake Garda is the place in Italy where you can find the highest number of German property owners. Real estate at Lake Garda is very popular. It is too tempting to own a house or apartment at Lake Garda. Due to the location and scenic features of Lake Garda, there are countless properties with lake views. The other advantages of Lake Garda have already been presented above. However, one must also be aware that in the meantime one meets mostly Germans on site. The typical Italy does not exist at Lake Garda for a long time. But there is an almost perfect infrastructure, so that one finds a good mix between Italian lifestyle and German habits.

Popular areas at Lake Garda

With a surface area of 370 km², Lake Garda is the largest lake in Italy. Only Lake Como and Lake Maggiore are deeper. It is surrounded by the regions of Lombardy, Veneto and Trentino-Alto Adige, making it a popular destination for its cultural diversity. Natural diversity is not to be neglected either. The Adige River runs parallel to Lake Garda, the Alps lie to the north and Monte Baldo towers over the lake in the north-east, inviting visitors to Lake Garda to go skiing in winter. The mountainous landscape around the lake gives it a mild climate and offers property owners an abundance of lake-view land. The popularity of a place is determined by one’s own interests. Climbing is popular in Arco. The area around Riva and Torbole, on the other hand, is very popular with windsurfers and sailors because of the winds. The towns of Malcesine, Brenzone, Garda and Bardolino are popular with tourists on the eastern shore. These villages are known for their lush Mediterranean vegetation. The west coast delights visitors with an attractive landscape and well-organized towns such as Toscolano-Maderno, Gargano and Salò. Here you can still find wide beaches and quiet vacation homes. On the south coast, on the other hand, there are towns such as Sirmione, Padenghe and Lazise. The location is excellent, as you can quickly reach the highway, which connects the cities of Venice, Verona, Brescia, Milan and Turin, among others, from east to west. This makes buying a house at Lake Garda an attractive proposition.

The cost of real estate at Lake Garda

Real estate prices at Lake Garda are high by Italian standards. While real estate prices in Italy are falling on average, the trend in real estate prices at Lake Garda is still rising. In some cases, houses and apartments at Lake Garda are overpriced due to the high demand from German buyers. Those who want to sell their vacation property at Lake Garda at some point may not reach the price they paid if they do not sell to a German buyer.

Often, buyers can renegotiate the price by hiring a lawyer. In the past, we have often been able to reduce the purchase price in Italy, sometimes by more than 30%. In such cases, the cost of the lawyer quickly pays for itself. Anyone who wants to sell their vacation property at Lake Garda at some point may no longer achieve the price they paid unless they sell to a foreign buyer.

Buy affordable vacation homes at Lake Garda from private sellers

Unfortunately, it is now difficult to impossible to purchase an apartment or a house at Lake Garda from a private seller. The closer you are to Lake Garda, the more difficult it is to buy from a private owner. If you want to enjoy a lake view, you are therefore forced to use a local estate agent. This increases the additional costs considerably. The estate agent’s commission in Italy is regularly 3% + VAT. It is rare to find inexpensive properties at Lake Garda through an estate agent, as they always set the purchase price higher due to their own economic interests. Estate agents regularly work with notaries they know, who usually charge quite high fees for the notarization of the property purchase. In the past, we have often succeeded in negotiating lower notary fees by engaging notaries known to us, which significantly reduces the additional costs of buying a property in Italy.

Ownership of real estate at Lake Garda

Owning a property at Lake Garda also come with obligations, of course. Property owners at Lake Garda have to pay the Italian real estate tax IMU for their property. If the property at Lake Garda is a vacation property, a higher IMU is owed.

In addition, the expenses for garbage collection, electricity and water, in particular, are to be paid.

Rental of a vacation property at Lake Garda

Of course, you can also rent out your vacation property at Lake Garda to tourists. While many people avoid the east coast (Garda, Bardolino, Lazise, Malcesine, Torbole, Riva) because of the German mass tourism, it can be interesting if you also want to rent out your vacation property at Lake Garda. However, the west coast (Limone sul Garda, Toscolano Maderno, Gargnano, Gardone, Salò) is now also overcrowded. Tourists from Bavaria are very common here and in the high season they now make up the majority of the population at Lake Garda. The southern coast of Lake Garda (Desenzano del Garda, Sirmione, Peschiera del Garda) is still in Italian hands and is very popular with tourists from Milan and Verona. If you want to rent out your property at Lake Garda to tourists as a vacation home, you should first seek advice from an Italian tax consultant if necessary. We will be happy to assist you in choosing a suitable tax advisor so that you receive the best possible tax advice.

Transfer of real estate at Lake Garda

Buying a house at Lake Garda can be easy, but Italian real estate law has its pitfalls. You should leave nothing to chance and not blindly trust the seller or estate agent, both of whom have an economic interest in the sale of the property. Property buyers should also bear in mind that a notary will not provide legal advice to the property buyer. It is therefore essential to engage a lawyer who specializes in Italian real estate law. You should expect high costs if problems arise later that could have been avoided if the purchase had been accompanied by legal advice.

Owners of foreign real estate should also obtain information and advice on the transfer of the property as part of an anticipated succession or inheritance, e.g. by will or intestate succession, when purchasing the property. After all, any changes in this regard will involve considerable costs. Be sure transfer your property at Lake Garda in a legally secure manner.

Your support when buying a house at Lake Garda

When purchasing a property at Lake Garda, it makes sense to instruct a lawyer who is familiar with inheritance and real estate law in Italy. Of course, we provide our clients with legal support when it comes to buying and owning real estate at Lake Garda. Those who seek advice from a lawyer often end up saving more money than the lawyer costs. Please bear in mind that Italian real estate law has its pitfalls, especially for foreigners. For example, Italian real estate law stipulates contractual penalties for preliminary contracts that may not be known in other countries. If you are interested in legal assistance when buying a house at Lake Garda, please contact us here. We will be happy to explain the advantages of hiring an expert in Italian real estate law. You can find more information about Lake Garda here.

The team at Barba & Partner Rechtsanwälte offers you legal advice on Italian real estate law. Rechtsanwalt Salvatore Barba is your lawyer for Italian real estate law from Munich. Take advantage of our legal advice on Italian real estate law when buying a house at Lake Garda. Leave nothing to chance when buying real estate at Lake Garda. A vacation property at Lake Garda can quickly become a cost trap if you decide to buy a house in Italy without competent legal advice on Italian real estate law.