Bargain Real Estate Near the Amalfi Coast
Author: Ainsley | Posted: 09.01.2012The shores of Amalfi in Italy are numbered among the most renowned in Europe. That’s hardly a surprise. The 100 kilometres offer spectacular views as you go past a variety of picture-postcard towns: Amalfi itself, Cetara, Positano, Ravello
Little wonder that since it became a stop-off for Victorian aristos on the Grand Tour, it has lured the world's rich and famous. With prices to match too. A sea-view villa here can cost more than US$4m.
Yet travel a short distance from here an one can find the same natural beauty and more – at much more affordable cost. This is a little-known secret that has remained undiscovered for far too long. Welcome to the Cilento coast. The Cilento coast is some 50 miles to the south and stretches for approximately. It also borders the Cilento national park, the second biggest in Italy and – along with Vallo Di Diano National Park – is such an area of stunning natural beauty that it is a Unesco World Heritage Site.
Paestum apart, the names of its genteel resorts – Acciaroli, Ascea, Castellabate, Cape Palinuro – are not instantly recognisable but they offer the same mixture of lovely coastal towns and villages, superb sun and unparalled sea views but without the sizeable price tags of the Amalfi coast – which remains close enough to be taken in on a day or weekend trip.
Paestum – a city with roots as far back as some 2,700 years ago and boasts imposing and well-preserved Greek artefacts – is another Unesco World Heritage Site. Yet a 50sq m flat here may In general, on the Cilento coast you should be prepared to pay around $115,000 for a one-bedroom flat and $190,000 for two bedrooms – barely a fifth of what you would pay on the Amalfi coast. What’s more, some digging around – and a bit of luck – can yield even more savings. For example: in Ascea, one-bedroom sea-view condo was recently put up for sale for $100,000 and a second a mere one minute’s stroll from the beach for $85,000.
A couple of the prime locations are in almost opposite ends of the Cilento Coast, namely Agropoli and, around 70 miles to the south, Scario. Prices will be slightly elevated here, but again, shopping around can produce more affordable options. In Agropoli, a unit of new apartments around 1mile from the coast recently came up for sale from around $150,000 for one bedroom. If you must have a sea view, budget around $160,000 for a one-bedroom and $170,000 for for a couple of bedrooms.
As ever, prices fall significantly if you are happy to tackle a home that may be liveable but could do with some fixing up. But for house hunters drawn to the countryside but prefer to still have a sea view, the hills over Casal Velino are a rather inexpensive choice, with a newly built one-bed unit on offer from as little as $90,000.
About Author:
The author writes about property Italy at Homes and Villas Abroad. She is also knowledgeable on real estate Tuscany and real estate Umbria.
The author writes about property Italy at Homes and Villas Abroad. She is also knowledgeable on real estate Tuscany and real estate Umbria.
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