Property Description

Build Your Own Villa in Sicily, Near Cefalù and the Tyrrhenian Sea

Four short kilometres inland from Sicily’s north coast, between the small towns of Campofelice di Roccella and Lascari and a twenty minute drive from the fabulous beach town of Cefalù, Plot Christine is a triangular tranche of land, a scenic and peaceful spot on which to build your own villa in Sicily. Technically in the municipality of Collesano, the plot actually straddles the SP128 provincial road which connects the sea road to Collesano, but both as the crow flies and by travel time it is slightly closer to the former towns, but far away from all three that you can be guaranteed peace and privacy in your new Sicilian property.

A perfect choice for a buyer looking to build a large, Tuscan-style villa in the Sicilian hills, the land is eligible for the construction of a house measuring at least 120 m2. Depending on the height of the eventual building as well as the internal configuration, storage space etc., it could in reality reach even 150-180 m2.

With no barriers to access for construction on this conveniently-located plot, its adjacency to the highway means that there will be almost no costs for adding access roads and none of the possible complications of bureaucracy which come with shared-use private roads or access covenants across other private land.

The view is rural and peaceful, with soft green hillsides and pastures rolling gradually up towards the Madonie Natural Park, and down to the Tyrrhenian Sea. There is even a tiny sliver of sea view from the high point of the land, but you won’t be paying the premium that comes with a full marine panorama. The asking price is actually extremely competitive for a plot of this size, especially so close to Cefalù, one of Sicily’s premiere tourist attractions.

The Property

By the standards of the hilly north side of our beautiful island, the land on Plot Christine is predominantly flat. Not only does this make it a great choice for land on which to build your own villa in Sicily, but also a flexible estate to configure with no need to move huge quantities of soil or create terracing.

Although the plot crosses the provincial road, it would not be essential to develop both sides of the property, at least at first. However, when the equations used to determine the size of property which can be built are performed, both sides are calculated together. This means that the eventual purchaser will be able to build a larger villa than would usually be possible, were the plot divided in two. Of course, if you wanted to cultivate a small orchard olive grove or vineyard, there would be a natural division of domestic and agricultural spaces. There is a blank canvas here, the estate currently home to only a few solitary olive trees.

On the north side of the road, an old storehouse is in a reasonable condition for its age, although certainly not close to being a habitable structure. This is not included in the building codes, and so leaving it in place for storage would be no issue when developing the land.

While it would be possible to put the villa right next to the old structure, using it as an outhouse or garage, the view is better from the southern half of the plot, where slightly higher land offers the small sea view you can see in our images of the estate. On the other hand, regulations dictate that development must be a minimum of 30 metres from the road and 10 meters from the boundary of the property. As this part of the plot is the tapering end of the triangle, space would restrict you to a building no more than 15m wide. Either way you would need to construct from scratch, but the benefits of the road traversing the property would apply.

The estate benefits from a well, which could offer you an independent water supply, although there would need to be work done here. An alternative, ecologically-astute choice would be to build rainwater collection tanks and use this filtered water. Between these two solutions you could be independent even to the extent of filling a swimming pool. We can’t think of any reason at all not to add a beautiful cooling-off spot in the gardens of your new Tuscan-style Sicilian home…

Surroundings

While the property has little in the way of immediate neighbours, the road that heads up the hill towards Collesano is dotted with small cottages, holiday homes and villas. Several of these are owned by overseas buyers, including English, German, American, Scandinavian and Polish couples. Some of these took on the same challenge you will face, to build your own villa in Sicily – and some are even former customers and new friends of Property in Sicily. So, although the area retains a strong local character, there is a small expat community of welcoming neighbours who can advise you on some of the issues involved in relocating to the island.

Indeed, we actually have an adjoining plot for sale, so if you can persuade friends or family to embark on this new adventure with you, you can even bring your own next door neighbours!

Collesano offers a unique combination of rural tranquillity and coastal splendour. With its narrow cobblestone streets, medieval architecture, and rich cultural heritage, Collesano is a town that has managed to preserve its traditions and way of life despite the passage of time.

Collesano is on the route of the legendary Targa Florio motor race, a museum to which stands at the heart of the town. It hosts a cheese festival in summer, and in the spring pilgrims attend the Feast of the Madonna of the Miracles, which celebrates the town’s patron saint.

The most conveniently located supermarkets and larger stores are in Campofelice, a lovely coastal community whose name literally means the ‘happy field’. Cefalù is of course a magnet for visitors, who fill its golden sandy beach in summer and visit the unique cathedral, nowadays a UNESCO World Heritage Site, to marvel at its fusion of Arab and Norman architecture.

Palermo, the cultural focal point of Sicily and its largest city by some distance, is an easy drive of under and hour to the west, where you’ll also find the most convenient airport, Falcone-Borsellino, which is named after a pair of beloved local magistrates whose assassinations were turning points as Sicily won its decades-long struggle against organised crime, no longer by any means a predominant characteristic of life on the island.

Potential

Building costs are obviously hard to estimate before designs have been established, but the usual rule of thumb we apply is that a square metre of new construction costs between two and three thousand euros. In a quiet area like this, without access issues or major levelling work to perform, we would expect that to be in the lower half of the estimate unless your tastes are towards the especially decadent.

A driveway from the road should set you back about €10,000, while a nice swimming pool will run to €25-30,000. So including the purchase price of the land, the total investment needed to build your own villa in Sicily on Plot Christine would be about €300,000. Considering the location, natural beauty of the surrounding countryside and proximity to a major tourist attraction, we think that makes Christine a very tempting investment. Remember that new residents to Sicily can cash in on some lucrative tax breaks on pension or professional income.

If you are a newcomer to developing property in Sicily, we can offer a comprehensive project management service. We have years of experience overseeing scores of builds of this nature and can help with everything from finding the right legal and architectural advice to maintaining the finished property during periods when life keeps you elsewhere in the world. Talk to us today about the level of assistance you might need to turn Plot Christine from a picturesque hillside to your new home in Sicily.