Beautiful houses in Italy on sale for £1 - but there's a catch

Local authorities in Italy are selling off houses in three villages for less than £1.

The mayors of Gangi in Sicily, Carrega Ligure in Piedmont and Lecce nei Marsi in Abruzzo are hoping to entice young buyers with the bargain properties priced at just 1€ - but it's not as idyllic as it may seem.

According to the Independent, many of the properties need around £18,000 worth of renovation work.

Gangi's mayor is so worried about the hamlet becoming a ghost town that he has put up 100 homes for sale. The buildings date back nearly 200 years, the Daily Mirror reports.

Mayor Giuseppe Ferrarello said: "I want to repopulate it no matter what it takes."

The Daily Mail reports that those after the perfect holiday home in Italy should not expect Renaissance villas as these houses have been abandoned and are at risk of collapsing to the ground.

Mayor Gianluca de Angelis, of Lecce nei Marsi, told the Mail Online: "I want to avoid that the historical centre crumbles to pieces, there are no public funds for maintenance and I'd like young couples to return."

%VIRTUAL-TripAdvisorWidget%