Italy's extremes: the priciest villas, private islands and the oddest properties on the market

Italy is the country of postcard extremes: a cliff-top palace with 48 rooms, an island with a Napoleonic fort, a cave you can sleep in for the price of a used car. Press coverage loves them, and so do readers. This article collects what has been reported and shows where the headline and the real market part ways. All prices are asking prices or press-reported figures with the source and date; they can change and none of the properties is offered through us. It is general information, not advice.

The record: a Sardinian estate

The most expensive residential sale in Italian history is reported to be an estate in the Romazzino area of the Costa Smeralda in Sardinia. Elite Agent reported on 4 April 2025 that it had sold for more than 160 million euros. The parcel is about 5.7 acres with 28 bedrooms, 35 bathrooms, three pools, two private beaches and two private piers. Sotheby's International Realty is reported to have represented both sides. The buyer has not publicly confirmed the deal and we do not name anyone. One sponsored feature quoted a higher figure, which we could not confirm, so treat "more than 160 million" as the best-supported number.

According to the same coverage, the estate had been held for decades by one owner, a well-known Saudi public figure, who bought it in 1974 and held it until his death in 2021. It is the kind of property that rarely reaches the market: no portal listing, one broker, a private closing.

The priciest villas on sale in 2026

Idealista's ranking of Italy's most expensive villas by asking price, published on 28 September 2026, gives a picture of the top of the market today:

• Vietri sul Mare (Salerno): 58 million euros for a 1,700 m2 historic palace on a cliff above the sea, with 48 rooms, 20 bathrooms and an infinity pool.
• Porto Cervo (Sardinia): 38 million for four villas in a 10,000 m2 park overlooking Cala di Volpe.
• Capri: 33 million for an estate of more than 11 hectares with two residences linked by a private funicular.
• Rome, Trevi: 30 million for a 17th-century palazzo of 3,535 m2 near the Quirinale.
• Peccioli (Pisa): 25 million for an 18th-century estate of more than 300 hectares, with a private airstrip and a lake.
• Cernobbio (Lake Como): 23 million for each of two lakeside villas.

These are asking prices of live listings, not sales. The gap between ask and close at this level can be large and is rarely public. Berlusconi's former Villa Certosa in Porto Rotondo was reported by the news agency 9colonne as entrusted to Sotheby's with a figure of 500 million euros; we could not confirm a completed sale, so we do not quote a closing price.

Islands: more on offer than you would think

Italian outlets report that around ten private islands are on the market at any time. Examples reported in 2026:

• Viscontea, a small islet on Lake Como near Lecco and Malgrate: about 1.5 million euros for roughly 2,150 m2 with one historic building (idealista, February 2026).
• Ottagono San Pietro in the Venice lagoon: price on request, about 2,832 m2, built as part of the 16th-century defences. The island has no habitable residence and redevelopment would be tightly controlled by heritage and environmental rules (idealista, February 2026).
• Crevan in the northern Venetian lagoon, near Burano and Torcello: 5,700 m2 of land with a 215 m2 fort that began as an 1806 Napoleonic redoubt, two moorings and local planning rules that allow the existing outbuildings to be consolidated (ANSA, 25 August 2026). Idealista, citing a Milano Finanza list, reported an asking price of about 5.5 million euros.
• Reported asking prices on the same list range from about 1.65 million (Isola delle Femmine near Palermo) to 24 million (Santa Cristina in the Venice lagoon).

A word of caution for anyone tempted: an island is bought together with its limits. Heritage protection, nature reserves, partial public ownership and the cost of boats, utilities and mooring are the real price. See island real estate and islands and island homes abroad.

Lighthouses and state-owned towers

The state agency Agenzia del Demanio has run a programme called Valore Paese, Fari, that offers disused state-owned lighthouses on long concessions (the 2015 tenders for 11 lighthouses ran from 6 to 50 years). That means you usually get the right to restore and use the building for a period, not freehold. We could not confirm an open call in 2026; check agenziademanio.it before planning anything.

The other extreme: tiny and cheap

Cheap is not rare in Italy, but it usually means work:

• Matera: a roughly 50 m2 cave studio in the Sassi was listed at 49,000 euros in late 2025 and needed refurbishment; an 80 m2 rock-carved house was listed at 100,000 euros, also for renovation, energy class G.
• Castles and towers are rarely cheap. Listings we found, such as a 2022 castle-and-hamlet listing at about 1.9 million euros, are expensive before restoration starts.
• For very low entry prices, see abandoned houses and 1-euro homes and ruins to restore.

What a foreign buyer can actually do

• EU citizens, including Poland, face no reciprocity check. Non-EU citizens may need reciprocity under Article 16 of the preliminary provisions to the Civil Code unless they hold an Italian residence permit, according to law-firm and agency guides; confirm with a notary. We found nothing on military or coastal zones, so ask about them for any island.
• Budget for the real cost: taxes and notary fees, restoration, insurance and running costs. See prices and buying costs in Italy.
• Check the title, planning and heritage constraints before any deposit, see the resale property checklist for Italy.
• Treat headlines as marketing. A record sale tells you about the top 0.01%; the market a normal buyer sees is in the lakes and north and similar guides.
• Use your own lawyer or notary, not the one the seller or agent suggests.
• If you are weighing an unusual object, a Warsaw-based independent adviser such as D.H. Realting can introduce vetted local lawyers and agents.

FAQ

Can anyone buy a private island in Italy? Reports say they can be bought on the open market, but heritage and nature rules are strict and foreign-buyer rules depend on nationality; ask a notary before any reservation.

Are the 1-euro homes real? They exist in some municipalities with conditions; see our dedicated guide.