Property Description

Sea-view Villa in Sicily’s Green Nebrodi Park; Two Independent Apartments, One Ready for Immediate Use and One to Renovate

A two-storey building set directly into the hillside with a sensational panoramic view over green hills and the turquoise Tyrrhenian Sea, Casa Gullotti is part restored three-bedroom home, part exciting renovation project.

The upper floor of the traditional sea-view villa in Sicily has been beautifully preserved and refreshed, so that it is ready for immediate inhabitation, while the completely separate apartment on the lower level will need to be totally overhauled. However, with each of the two flats offering a generous 120m2 of living space, besides sharing the use of the surrounding grounds, there is plenty of room to create a home for two families, or perhaps rental apartments for tourist use.

The upper floor has been fabulously restored in a way which preserves the traditional Sicilian character of what was originally the home of a wealthy family, noble landowners from Palermo. You’ll note the antique tiles floor tiles, majolica prints, locally made terracotta roof and the traditional Sicilian kitchen with built-in cupboards and an aga-style oven. The bathrooms are finished with some lovely pieces of marble, and the wrought iron railings on the balconies are an evocative decorative touch.

While the front door is on the eastern side of the building, the orientation of the property is towards the west, with a balcony off the living room providing the best single vantage point in this direction. There are also side balconies to the north and south, and each provides its own panoramic vantage point as the landscape falls dramatically away towards the sea.

At your back, the hills of the mystical Nebrodi Natural Park begin to rise towards their dramatic peaks nearly two thousand metres above sea level. Just 30km to the south-east, meanwhile, are the first slopes of Mount Etna.

The Property

Casa Gullotti sits below the level of the provincial road which winds up the hill from sea level to San Marco d’Alunzio. There isn’t a tremendous weight of traffic, and the position beneath the street keeps noise to an absolute minimum. An external stone staircase leads you down to a patio by the upper apartment, and then another takes you down to the flat which is still to be refurbished.

You can see at a glance that the sea-view villa in Sicily has been sturdily built in brick, stone and clay tile, while a semi-circle of decorative ironmongery over the front door is another clue that the house was built by people with money to spend – it’s a real status symbol in early twentieth century Sicilian architecture.

A spacious hallway leads into a long corridor which bisects the home. To one side you will find the kitchen and bathrooms – two of them, each with a shower. The kitchen is big enough to accommodate a breakfast table, and while you also have the convenience of a gas hob, the oven adds a lovely touch of timeless charm.

Three double bedrooms are all very spacious, especially the two with balconies, each of which could easily be considered the ‘master’ bedroom. Let’s just say that whether your guests end up with the south-facing balcony window that floods their room with natural light all day or the view of the sea to the north, they won’t be disappointed!

A living room is a little over 20m2, with the balcony looking directly out down the hill. The gradient guarantees that your view will never be obstructed by any new construction, meaning that your children, grandchildren and beyond can all enjoy the colourful array of umber rooftops, green hills, sparkling sea and blue sky during visits over many lifetimes to come.

The basement is totally abandoned but once renovated will be just as characterful as the upper home. It will benefit from easier access to the garden. This is currently overgrown, but contains a pair of olive trees and a mix of other fruit.

The home is connected to municipal supplies for water, electricity and sewage. There is currently no heating or air conditioning installed, but the roof was renovated recently and is in excellent condition.

Surroundings

The provincial road takes you up to the centre of San Marco d’Alunzio, a welcoming little village with an unmistakably Sicilian pace of life. You’ll find it very easy to relax here. However, the administration of the town, like many in the Nebrodi Park area, are extremely welcoming to overseas buyers, and you can be sure that the necessary planning applications for the work on the lower floor will be given the most positive consideration.

Home to about 1500 residents, the village can be reached in 10 minutes on foot. Although it’s an uphill climb, at least the return home is nice and easy! Here you’ll find some small shops, bars and restaurants, including the family-run La Fornace, specialising in Sicilian meat and vegetable dishes.

The nearest towns are by the sea. You can get to the beach at Torrenova with a short, scenic drive, and find all the amenities of a larger town at Sant’Agata di Militello and Capo d’Orlando – each about half an hour away.

Directly opposite Casa Gullotti, only just across the road, is a prominent local tourist attraction, the fourth century Greek temple of Hercules.

Looking further afield, most of Sicily’s major attractions are within an easy day-trip radius. Picturesque Cefalù is a 70 minute drive away, reaching the island’s capital Palermo, location of the nearest airport takes two hours, and the fashionable resort town of Taormina is also two hours away..

Potential

While the upper part of this sea-view villa in Sicily is inhabitable straight away, and would obviously give you a perfect base from which to renovate the lower floor, this will take a lot of work – everything will need to be done from scratch. As a rough guide you could budget for about €1,000/m2 when taking on this scale of project. Perhaps €100,000 above the purchase price would be a reasonable total to project, allowing for the fact that the structure of the building is sound.

The garden around the house is abandoned but with €5,000 – 10,000€ you could have that completely rejuvenated. Adding a swimming pool would cost in the region of €25,000.

The only expenses you might consider for the upper apartment are the windows, which have good wooden frames but only single glazing. It might cost around €10,000 to replace them with more efficient models that still respect the traditional aesthetic of the property. Adding a heating and air conditioning infrastructure could be achieved for around €5,000.

You never have to feel like you’re on your own with renovation work. We are always delighted to collaborate with buyers after the point of sale and through a restoration or remodelling process. Whether you need a friendly ear to talk through your plans or our full project management service you have an ally available who speaks your language.