Buying a home in Florence and Tuscany: where to look and what to know

Buying a home in Florence and Tuscany starts with one choice: the city, with palazzo apartments in the centre and Oltrarno and villas on the hills, or the countryside, with a farmhouse in Chianti or the Val d'Orcia, a villa near Lucca, or a house on the coast at Forte dei Marmi or the Argentario. Foreigners buy on the same terms as Italians, and in Florence's prime market they are about 65% of buyers. The countryside adds checks the city does not need: agricultural land, the neighbouring farmer's pre-emption right, wells, septic systems, and pools and annexes that must be legally permitted.

Who buys in Florence and Tuscany?

Mostly buyers from abroad. The Market Report Italia 2026 by the real estate agency Engel & Völkers with Nomisma, reported by idealista in April 2026, puts foreign buyers at 65% of prime transactions in Florence, against 35% across Italy's prime market. Tuscany is also the region foreigners search most, with 14.77% of all requests in Gate-away.com's 2025 report. Knight Frank lists the US, France, the UK, Benelux and Germany as the leading nationalities.

For negotiation, note that almost 30% of homes on sale in Florence are in the prestige segment, according to Patrigest and Santandrea, and selling times there can exceed a year. For buyers who move, Italy's flat tax for new residents is part of the appeal.

Tuscany at a glance

Florence: where to buy in the city

idealista put Florence's average asking price at €4,800 per m² in September 2026: €5,664 in the centre and €5,000 in Settignano. The best homes ask far more. Engel & Völkers puts top prices in Florence at about €10,000 per m², and Tecnocasa reported in May 2026 that large luxury homes in the centre can reach €12,000–13,000 per m².

The historic centre

Here you buy an apartment in a palazzo: a piano nobile (the grand first floor) or a top floor facing the Duomo or the Arno. The centre, a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1982, sits inside the ZTL (zona a traffico limitato, limited-traffic zone), which in 2026 runs 7:30–20:00 Monday to Friday and 7:30–16:00 on Saturday, plus 23:00–3:00 on Thursday, Friday and Saturday nights in summer. Residents receive a permit, but garages are rare.

Oltrarno

Across the river, Santo Spirito, San Frediano and San Niccolò are more residential, with artisans' workshops and palazzi that sometimes hide a terrace or garden. It is part of the historic centre, with fewer visitors at night than around the Duomo.

The hills

On the hills you buy space: villas with gardens at Bellosguardo, south-west of the centre; around Piazzale Michelangelo and San Miniato al Monte, where the Michelangelo–Porta Romana area averaged €5,753 per m² in March 2025 (immobiliare.it); at Fiesole, a separate town to the north; and at Settignano to the north-east. Historic villas and restored homes with a view are the most requested. The trade-offs: a car-dependent life, narrow lanes and very few homes for sale.

The countryside: where to look

Chianti. Between Florence and Siena, this is the classic farmhouse market: casali, villas and wine estates. It is the most expensive countryside, with top prices up to €15,000 per m² (Engel & Völkers, 2026), and busy roads in summer.

Val d'Orcia, Pienza and Montalcino. A UNESCO landscape since 2004, with Brunello vineyards around Montalcino. Knight Frank put prime prices in Siena and the Val d'Orcia at around €5,000 per m² in 2025, about half those of central Tuscany. The landscape that draws you also limits what you can build.

Siena area. Villas and farmhouses outside the walls of a historic town. Engel & Völkers puts Siena's top prices at €13,000 per m², reflecting how few prime homes come up.

Lucca and its hills. Palazzo apartments inside the Renaissance walls, and villas on the surrounding hills. Knight Frank's Italian partner put renovated high-end homes at €7,000–7,500 per m² in 2025, after a 27% rise in five years. Pisa airport and the sea are close.

The coast. Forte dei Marmi is Italy's most expensive seaside town, at about €10,000 per m² on average (immobiliare.it, 2025), with prime villas reported at €25,000–35,000 per m². Elsewhere in Versilia, Viareggio averaged about €3,200. Further south, Monte Argentario and Castiglione della Pescaia reach top prices of €7,000 per m².

Maremma. Larger farmhouses and estates with real land, in quieter, wilder country, further from the main airports.

What changes when you buy a farmhouse or land?

• Agricultural land. Foreigners can buy farmland under the same reciprocity rule as any other property. A buyer who is not a farmer pays registration tax of 15% on agricultural land (minimum €1,000), calculated on the value in the deed: the cadastral-value rule that lowers the tax on homes does not apply to land. See the real costs of buying property in Italy.
• Prelazione agraria (agricultural pre-emption). A tenant farmer, or a neighbouring owner who farms his land directly (coltivatore diretto), may have the right to buy the land before you on the same terms. The seller must notify the preliminary contract, and the farmer has 30 days to match it. If the notice is skipped, the farmer can buy the land back from you within one year of the deed's registration. The right does not apply to land zoned for building, industrial or tourist use.
• Vineyards. In Tuscany vineyards are recorded in the regional vineyard register (schedario viticolo) kept by ARTEA, and new plantings need an authorisation. Check what is registered and which DOC or DOCG wine it can produce.
• Agriturismo licence. Only an agricultural entrepreneur (imprenditore agricolo) can run an agriturismo, and farming must remain the main activity. The authorisation is issued by the municipality and cannot be transferred, so a new owner must qualify and apply again.
• Wells and septic systems. Domestic wells must be declared to the Region's Genio Civile office, and a well that serves a business needs a concession. A septic system not connected to the public sewer needs an authorisation from the municipality. Ask for both.
• Access road. Check that the road to the house is public, or that your right of way (servitù di passaggio) is written in the title, and who maintains it.
• Swimming pool. Courts treat a pool as new construction needing a building permit (permesso di costruire), and in protected areas also a landscape authorisation (autorizzazione paesaggistica).
• Annexes and amnesties. Italy has had three building amnesties (condono), in 1985, 1994 and 2003. The 2024 "Salva Casa" decree eases the regularisation of some discrepancies, but it is not a new amnesty. Every barn conversion, pool house and pergola needs a permit or a granted amnesty, not a pending one.

Can you rent it out short term?

Every short-term rental in Italy needs a CIN (codice identificativo nazionale, national identification code), compulsory since 1 January 2025. It must be displayed outside the building and in every listing. Renting without it costs €800–8,000 in fines, and failing to display it €500–5,000. Gas and carbon-monoxide detectors and fire extinguishers are also required.

A 2024 Tuscan law lets municipalities set their own limits, and Florence has used it. Since May 2025 the city grants no new short-term rental authorisations in its UNESCO area. Across the city, units need at least 28 m², each authorisation lasts five years, and fines run from €1,000 to €10,000. The authorisation is revoked when the home is sold, so do not count on a seller's holiday-rental income. The regional administrative court upheld the rules in 2026. Outside Florence, check the municipality's rules.

The process, and the checks that matter in the countryside

The legal steps are the same as anywhere in Italy: a signed offer, a preliminary contract (compromesso) and the notary's deed (rogito), explained in the buying process in Italy, from offer to deed. With agricultural land, add at least the 30-day pre-emption window between the preliminary and the deed.

Before a binding offer on a country house, check:

1. Title and land registry for the house and every land parcel.
2. Planning compliance for every building, including annexes and pool.
3. Pre-emption: any tenant or neighbouring farmer, and any lease on the land.
4. Water, wastewater and access: well, septic authorisation, right of way.
5. Landscape constraints on anything you plan to build.

FAQ

Can foreigners buy agricultural land in Tuscany?

Yes. Non-EU buyers are subject to the same reciprocity rule as for any property, which US, UK and Swiss buyers meet. A non-farmer pays 15% registration tax on agricultural land, and a neighbouring farmer or tenant may have a right to buy it first.

How much does a farmhouse in Chianti cost?

It depends on size, land, condition and views. Engel & Völkers puts top prices in Chianti and the Tuscan hills at up to €15,000 per m² in 2026. Knight Frank's Italian partner valued the most sought-after homes in Florence and Chianti at €4–6 million in 2025.

Can I rent out a Florence apartment on Airbnb?

Not as a new activity in the UNESCO area, which covers the historic centre: since May 2025 Florence grants no new authorisations there. Elsewhere in the city you need a municipal authorisation, at least 28 m² and a CIN code.

Is Lucca cheaper than Florence?

Usually yes for prime homes. Knight Frank's Italian partner put renovated high-end homes in Lucca at €7,000–7,500 per m² in 2025, against around €13,000 in Florence.

How Giusto helps

Your dedicated Buyer's Agent covers Florence and the Tuscan countryside, from palazzo apartments to farmhouses with land. Our AI reads the main property portals every day, removes duplicates and sends you the homes that match, and we check planning and land-registry compliance for the house and every annex before you commit, always free. Viewings are always with you.

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.

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Sources

• Luxury property market in Italy: key prices, regional hotspots and buyer trends — idealista
• Evoluzione del prezzo delle case in vendita, Firenze — idealista
• Come Firenze sta provando a regolare e limitare gli affitti brevi — Il Post
• Art. 8, Legge 26 maggio 1965, n. 590 (prelazione agraria) — Brocardi.it
• Agevolazioni fiscali agricoltura, novità dal 2026 — Money.it
• Codice CIN — Altroconsumo

Figures as of October 2026. Rules change: always confirm with the notary or a tax adviser before signing.