Buying a home in Rome as a foreigner: the complete guide

Foreigners can buy property in Rome with few restrictions, but the search, the paperwork and the negotiation work differently from what most buyers know at home. This guide walks through each step, what it costs, and where buyers from abroad usually lose time or money.

Can a foreigner buy a home in Rome?

Yes. EU and EEA citizens buy exactly like Italians. Most other nationals can too, under the reciprocity rule: you may buy in Italy if Italians can buy property in your country on similar terms. US, UK, Canadian, Swiss and Australian buyers all pass this check, and the notary verifies it for you. Holders of an Italian residence permit for work, family or study are exempt from the check.

You do not need to live in Italy, and you do not need an Italian bank account to sign. You do need two things:

• An Italian tax code (codice fiscale). It is free and issued within days by the Italian tax office or by an Italian consulate abroad. Every contract, bank transfer and utility account will ask for it.
• Traceable funds. Every payment, from the deposit to the balance, must go by bank transfer or banker's draft and is declared in the deed. Cash is not an option at this price level.

Why the search is hard from abroad

The Rome market has no single listing service. Homes appear on several portals at once (immobiliare.it, casa.it, idealista, JamesEdition for the top end), often posted by more than one real estate agency, with different photos and sometimes different prices. From abroad, that turns into four problems:

• Noise. The same apartment shows up three or four times, and a relisting at a new price looks like a new home. You lose evenings sorting duplicates instead of judging houses.
• Speed. The best homes between 1 and 3 million euros move in weeks. By the time you fly in for a weekend of viewings, the one you liked may already have an accepted offer.
• Missing information. Listings rarely say whether the floor plan matches the land registry, whether the building has works planned, or why the price has dropped. You only find out after a viewing, or after an offer.
• Language and habits. Agencies answer quickly in Italian and slowly in English, and much of the market still runs on phone calls rather than email.

The process, step by step

From the first search to the keys, a purchase in Rome usually takes three to six months. These are the steps, in order:

1. Tax code and funds. Get your codice fiscale and line up the money, or a mortgage pre-approval. Italian banks do lend to non-residents, but expect a larger deposit and a few extra weeks of paperwork.
2. Search and viewings. Shortlist the homes, then view them in person. If you cannot travel often, plan one or two focused trips with a full day of pre-screened viewings.
3. Checks before the offer. Have the documents checked before you commit: land registry, building permits, energy certificate and the condominium's situation (see below).
4. Written offer (proposta d'acquisto). In Italy an offer is usually a signed, irrevocable proposal with a deposit cheque, valid for a set number of days. If the seller accepts it, it becomes binding on both sides, and the real estate agency's commission normally becomes due at that moment.
5. Preliminary contract (compromesso). Within weeks you sign the preliminary contract and pay a deposit, usually 10 to 20% of the price. If you walk away you lose it; if the seller does, they must pay it back twice over. The preliminary is registered with the tax office within 20 days.
6. Final deed (rogito). The notary checks the title, collects the taxes and registers the sale. If you do not speak Italian, an interpreter must be present, or you can sign through a power of attorney given to someone you trust, notarised and apostilled abroad or signed at an Italian consulate.

What it really costs

On top of the price, budget roughly 5 to 8% for a resale home, depending on the agency's fee and the home's cadastral value. The good news for buyers from a private seller: the registration tax is calculated on the cadastral value, which is usually well below the price you pay.

Some of Rome's most prestigious homes are registered as A/1 ("signorile") or A/8 (villas). Check the category before you count on the main-home rate.

The checks that protect you

In Rome, the most common problem is not fraud but mismatch: a home whose current layout differs from the plans on file with the land registry or the city. A wall moved, a terrace closed into a room, a loft turned into a bedroom. It can block the deed, or become your problem after it. Before any binding offer, check:

• Planning compliance (conformità urbanistica). The home matches the building permits on file at the city, including past amnesties.
• Land registry compliance (conformità catastale). The registered floor plan and category match the home as it is today.
• Title and encumbrances. Who owns it, and whether there are mortgages, liens or rights of others on it.
• Energy certificate (APE). Required for the sale, and a useful clue to running costs.
• The condominium. Unpaid fees, works already approved (a new roof, a facade, a lift) and who pays for them.

Irregularities can often be fixed by the seller before the deed. The point is to find them before you sign the offer, when you still have leverage on the price.

Negotiation: who is on your side?

In most Italian sales the real estate agency is a mediator between buyer and seller, and by law it must be impartial. It earns a percentage of the price, so it has no interest in negotiating that price down for you. That is not a criticism, just how the incentives work: nobody at the table is paid to get you a lower price.

The asking price in Rome is where talks begin, not where they end. How far you can push depends on how long the home has been listed, whether it has been relisted at a lower price, what similar homes actually sold for, and what the checks turned up. A buyer who arrives with that information, in Italian, negotiates very differently from one who arrives with a mortgage letter and a deadline.

How Giusto helps

Giusto is a network of licensed real estate agents in Rome and Milan who work only for the buyer, from the search to the deed, in English and Italian.

• The search, done for you. Our AI reads what's new on the main property portals every day, removes the duplicates, and sends you only the homes that match your criteria, with the link to each listing. You get a first selection right after you sign up, then what's new every two days.
• A home you found yourself? Send us the link before you make an offer.
• Viewings with you. We organise them with the real estate agencies, always together with you, in person or remotely for qualified clients.
• Free checks. Planning and land registry checks are always included. We only propose homes that are compliant or can be made so.
• Negotiation. We negotiate the price only in your interest, and stay with you until the keys.

The search and the proposals are always free. If one of the homes catches your eye and you decide to go ahead, our fee is 20% of what we save you on the asking price. If you don't save, you don't pay.

Start your search on giustohomes.com

Sources

• Tassazione seconda casa 2026: aliquote, IMU, novità — Infobuild
• Buying Property in Italy as a Non-Resident: reciprocità, codice fiscale, and taxes — private.law

Figures as of October 2026. Tax rules change: always confirm the final amounts with the notary before signing.