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RENTING

Reader question: How can I find an apartment to rent in Rome?

The Eternal City is a popular destination for foreigners wanting to stay for a few months or even years, but finding a place to rent can be complicated. Here's where to start.

Where should you start when looking for a place to rent in Rome?
Where should you start when looking for a place to rent in Rome? Photo by Ludovic MARIN / AFP.

Question: I’m moving to Rome in the spring with friends and we’re looking to rent an apartment in a central area. Do you have any suggestions for good sources of rentals in Rome?

For those staying in Rome for just a few weeks, it’s often simplest to go with a short-term booking site like Airbnb.

If you’re planning on staying for longer than this, however, it’s probably more cost-effective to go the official route and sign a rental agreement – though be prepared to deal with a certain amount of hassle (more on this below).

Some of the most popular websites in Italy for rentals are idealista.it, immobiliare.it, and casa.it, where you’ll find a wide range of apartments for rent.

All the listings on these sites are in Italian, so it’s helpful to familiarise yourself with some key vocabulary.

READ ALSO: Ten things to expect when renting an apartment in Italy

In affitto is ‘for rent’ (in vendita, ‘for sale’). For a short-term let, you’ll want a place that’s furnished (arredato). A  locale is a room (note: not a bedroom), so a bilocale is a one-bedroom with one other room and a monolocale is a studio. 

It’s worth reviewing all the photos available and if possible the floor plan (planimetria) so you know exactly what kind of set up the house has; for example a trilocale doesn’t necessarily have two bedrooms, but might just be a one-bed with a separate living room and kitchen. 

For people beginning their search without any Italian, the English-language real estate listings aggregator Nestpick is a good option – though bear in mind you’re unlikely to find the same range of options as on the Italian-language sites.

If you’re coming with a university, they should be your first port of call; some will have a roster of trusted landlords, or can at least direct you to online forums where you can seek recommendations from current and former students.

READ ALSO: Do renters in Italy have the right to keep pets?

Facebook is also a good place to look: Rent in Rome and Rome Expats have two of the largest groups dedicated to searching for an apartment in the eternal city. If you know you want somewhere for at least a year, Long Term Rentals Italy is also an option.

As a guidepost, InterNations, an information and networking site for people living overseas, lists the average monthly rent in Rome as €1,220.

Italy’s rental contracts tend to favour tenants: common contracts are the 3+2 or 4+4, which means the rent is locked in for at least three/four years, at the end of which the renter can choose to renew at the same rate for another two/four years.

Facebook groups can be a good place to start when apartment-hunting in Rome.
Facebook groups can be a good place to start when apartment-hunting in Rome. Photo: Filippo Monteforte/AFP

The contratto transitorio (temporary or short-term lease), by contrast, is for anywhere between one and eighteen months. Bear in mind it’s the landlord, not the tenant, that’s locked into these minimum time periods – just make sure there’s a clause that allows you to move out after a specified notice period.

Landlords often prefer to rent our their apartments with contratti transitori so they have more freedom to sell or raise the rent, so you may be at an advantage if you’re looking for a place to stay for just a few months.

Even with just a short-term lease, a landlord can request up to three months’ rent (!) in advance as a security deposit, and it’s common to ask for two. To stand the best chance of getting your deposit back, it’s worth taking detailed photos of the property before you move in so you have a record of its state.

READ ALSO: ‘Why I used to hate living in Rome as a foreigner – and why I changed my mind’

If you’re going through an agency, it’s also common for tenants to pay a finder’s fee of one month’s rent – all of which can make initial costs rise very fast. The silver lining is that in Rome you can (and should) negotiate on the rent, deposit, and other contract terms, and not just take what you’re offered.

Some landlords will suggest you bypass an agency and deal directly with them. While avoiding the agency fees is tempting, this can leave you in a very vulnerable situation as you have no legal standing if it turns out you don’t have an official rental contract – so it’s not advised.

It’s also important not to hand over any money until you’ve viewed the apartment in person (or had a trusted representative do so on your behalf) and confirmed the listing is legitimate. Scams are not unheard of in Rome, and foreigners are ideal targets.

READ ALSO: Moving to Italy: How much does it really cost to live in Milan?

When browsing listings, consider what’s important to you in terms of the neighbourhood and type of property – and if there’s anything you’re unsure of, it’s worth seeking out advice in online groups from people already living in the city.

A ground floor apartment on a cobbled side street near the centre, for example, may sound ideal, but if it’s in a touristy neighbourhood you may find you’re quickly driven mad by the sound of rolling luggage bouncing past your window all hours of the day and night.

Finding an apartment to rent in Rome can be a challenge, but if you put in the effort, you’re sure to find your ideal base – and move on to making the most of your time in one of Europe’s most picturesque and historically rich capitals.

Member comments

  1. readers should be aware that the web sites for real estate listed in the article (casa.it, immobiliare.it) show statistics on rental price per square meter by neighborhood, and the differences by neighborhood can be significant. although Rome real estate is highly variable and thus even within a zone there is variation in price, these stats are a good place to start. they are also useful to judge whether the rent being requested by the landlord is reasonable. more livable close in neighborhoods, like San Giovanni or San Paolo/Garbatella are more economical and deliver an experience more like living as a local, as well as having their own interesting histories. To avoid getting taken for a ride a renter might consider getting in touch with a Rome based English speaking lawyer to review the contract and see how the rates for the legal advice would compare with paying a real estate company. you might have a better chance of unbiased review of the rental contract, as well as experience dealing with issues common among foreigners, which a real estate agent may not have. but if the apt is listed and shown by an agency i don’t think you would have a choice as to paying the agency fee.

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MOVING TO ITALY

Moving to Italy: A guide to house-buying and can you get a mortgage as a foreigner?

Moving to Italy, a country infamous for its red tape, can seem like a daunting task. Our new newsletter is here to answer your questions - this time we're looking at what's involved in buying an Italian home and mortgage-hunting as a foreigner.

Moving to Italy: A guide to house-buying and can you get a mortgage as a foreigner?

Here at The Local we’re an international team living in Italy – which means we’ve either grown up navigating Italian bureaucracy or been through the simultaneously exciting and nerve-wracking process of moving countries.

Our new newsletter is aimed at people who are in the process of moving, have recently moved and are still grappling with the paperwork or perhaps are just thinking about it – and we’ll share a regular selection of practical tips. Our team is also available to answer questions from subscribers to The Local.

A beginner’s guide to buying a house in Italy

With its old houses often going for a song, Italy attracts numerous foreign buyers looking for an affordable second or retirement home. But for people completely new to the process, what does buying an Italian home actually entail?

Mario Mazzeschi, managing partner of the law firm Mazzeschi Consultancy, says there are four major stages to buying a house in Italy, from signing a contract with an agency – who typically take two percent to five percent of the asking price – to completing the purchase.

In between, you’ll be expected to sign proposta irrevocabile d’acquisto (binding proposal) and pay a deposit, followed a compromesso (preliminary contract), and eventually a final contract.

You’ll want to protect yourself from hidden traps by hiring a surveyor, who could save you a hefty chunk of change. “We had such a case once where the buyer shaved €5,000 off the asking price because his surveyor found something,” says Mazzeschi.

In all this, it’s worth bearing in mind that there are different rules for residents and non-residents of Italy, which may influence your thoughts about whether it’s worth pursuing Italian residency.

Non-residents, for example, can only buy if their country has a reciprocal arrangement in place with Italy – excluding residents of Canada and some Swiss cantons – while Italian residents benefit from lower taxes and cadastral costs.

Can you get a mortgage in Italy as a foreigner?

If you’re considering buying a home in Italy as a foreigner but don’t have the funds to purchase one outright, there’s good news: it’s generally possible for foreigners to take out a mortgage in Italy.

Persuading an Italian bank to lend to you as a foreigner, however, is likely to be less straightforward and more time-consuming than it is for Italian citizens.

Non-residents in particular are likely to require the services of a specialist mortgage broker who can help you access information about rates.

Italian banks are also known to be strict lenders and tend to require a larger deposit (regardless of whether or not the buyer is Italian) than international buyers may be expecting.

“In general, expect your down payment to be higher than it would be in the US or UK,” say lawyers from legal consultancy Italy Law Firms on their blog.

You can find out more about buying a home in Italy by browsing The Local’s Italian property section.

Questions

The Local’s Reader Questions section covers questions our members have asked us and is a treasure trove of useful info on all kinds of practical matters. If you can’t find the answer you’re looking for, head here to leave us your questions.

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