Since the Aga Khan began to develop it in the 1960s, the Costa Smeralda, on
Sardinia’s northeast coast, has become one of the world’s most prestigious
holiday spots. This is where the rich and famous congregate every summer,
attracted by jewel-green seas, beautiful beaches and discreet, extremely
expensive properties designed to blend with the scenery. Tom Cruise,
Elizabeth Hurley and Rod Stewart have all stayed here; Roman Abramovich and
Princess Caroline of Monaco moor their yachts at Porto Cervo, which boasts
one of the finest marinas in Europe.
But while a cocktail on the Costa Smeralda will set you back at least £19, and
prime waterfront property goes for more than £13,000 per sq m, you need to
travel only a few miles in either direction to find a very different
Sardinia, with the same dramatic scenery and sandy beaches, but with much
lower property prices. Throw in direct, low-cost flights from Britain with
Ryanair and EasyJet, and the dolce vita, Sardinia-style, is surprisingly
affordable.
Three months ago, Jarrod and Susan Morgan, from Lichfield, Staffordshire,
bought a one-bed flat for £91,567 in the pretty resort of Calarossa, on the
Costa Paradiso in the northwest. “It was dead easy,” says Jarrod, a
financial advisor, of the purchase. “And it’s a beautiful place – the view
out along the coastline is one of the best in the world.” The couple, both
34, already owned a mountain property in Austria, but wanted somewhere warm
as an alternative holiday home.
Properties at the development of 350 flats, a short walk from the beach, are
built in a traditional style. They are painted in warm terracottas, yellows
and oranges, while the plots are divided with neat paths and abundant
greenery. The resort has three pools and its own small shops. Pierre &
Vacances, the resort management company, will even let out your property for
you when you are not using it.
Alternatively, you could buy land on the island and build your own place, but
rules on development are tight: a law passed last year banned building
within 1.25 miles of the sea (only those who already had planning permission
are exempt). Moreover, there are different types of permission with
different restrictions: agricultural land is the cheapest to buy, but, not
surprisingly, you can only build agricultural buildings on it.
Don’t forget those extras, either. Buying costs in Italy are high – count on
adding about 13% to the sale price to cover the local equivalent of stamp
duty and agents’ fees. Nonresidents must also pay an annual “luxury tax”
that varies from region to region, but could be as much as £1,000 for a
two-bed villa on the coast.
So where are the hot places to buy, and what can you get for your money?
Cagliari and the south
The ancient city of Cagliari is the capital of Sardinia, but after the local
authorities rejected the Aga Khan’s wishes to make it the centre of his
development, it did little but crumble gently under the hot Mediterranean
sun. Things have started to look up recently, however, thanks to heavy
investment by the European Union and the arrival of cheap flights from Luton
(although only in summer).
Cagliari itself is a mixed bag: the medieval citadel, with its surviving
bastion wall and imposing cathedral, is beautiful and peaceful, with
far-reaching views out to sea – although these are spoilt to some extent by
the giant oil refineries on the horizon. Its narrow cobbled streets are
charming, however, and there are several new funky bars and restaurants. A
two-bed flat set a little way off the main streets will cost about £130,000;
the beach is 10 minutes away by bus.
Just southwest of Cagliari is the pretty coastal town of Pula. Here, a fourbed
semidetached villa near the beach would cost a little more than £200,000,
says Chiara Nieddu, who works at the Alghero airport office of House Around
Sardinia, an English-speaking agency. “The prices are not as crazy as in the
northeast,” she says. This may change: Knight Frank is about to launch Is
Molas, an upmarket development near Pula, the first stages of which are due
to be completed in 2012. Prices are expected to range from £880,000 to
£2.72m.
Alghero and the west coast
Prices around the medieval fishing port of Alghero have shot up recently,
thanks to year-round flights from Ryanair. One-bed flats without a sea view
start at about £100,000; a fourbed villa with sea views and some land in the
Alghero area will cost at least £270,000. Further up towards the pretty
“finger” of the northwestern tip of Sardinia, around Stintino, semidetached
two-bed houses go for about £135,000.
North coast
Stretching from Porto Torres in the west to Santa Teresa in the east, this is
one of the most affordable areas of Sardinia, and has so far resisted mass
tourism. John and Margharita Davey set up Sardinia Estates in the mountain
village of Tempio Pausania last year to concentrate on this area; the couple
say that they have had a flood of interest from British buyers attracted by
the dramatic coastline and reasonable prices.
The gated resort of Costa Paradiso, towards the eastern end of this stretch of
coast, is one of the more upmarket developments in the area. On a rocky
hillside of pink granite moulded into weird and wonderful shapes by wind and
rain, villas have been built to blend in with their surroundings, giving
them a weirdly futuristic feel. The views out over the sea are breathtaking
and, although there are no sandy beaches, each flat or villa has access to a
pool. Prices start at £112,000 for a two-bed flat with shared pool; Sardinia
Estates is selling a three-bed villa on two levels, with its own pool, for
£610,000.
Further west, the landscape is gentler and less dramatic, but still pretty.
Prices remain low: in the small, bustling towns of Valledoria and Sorso, you
can buy a one-bed flat for as little as £65,000. This is also one of those
areas where you might stumble on that buyers’ dream: the villa in need of
work. Elma Homes, a British-based company with local Sardinian agents, is
selling a fourbed villa, half a mile from the sea, near Sorso, for £142,500.
East coast
Finally, there is no avoiding Costa Smeralda, at the northern end of the east
coast. As you will have already gathered, this is not a place for those on a
limited budget. “A villa on the coast in Costa Smeralda is seldom less than
£13.5m,” says Philippe de Clercq, the Savills representative in Sardinia. A
typical two-bed flat costs at least £340,000 – and that’s not even on the
coast. For a sea view, you would need to spend £600,000 or more. Many of the
properties conform to a sculpted, even surreal style.
Move south past Olbia (also served by cheap flights from Britain), and prices
drop substantially. More than halfway down the island, near Tortoli, for
example, House Around Sardinia is selling a three-bed villa, about two miles
from the beach, for £132,000. Prices in Villasimius, on the southernmost tip
of the east coast, have already risen considerably; fourbed villas inland
start from about £400,000. A little further north, in the small town of
Castiadas, £175,00 would buy a three-bed villa with a sea view.
Sardinia Estates, 00 39 348 334 7572, www.sardinia-estates.net;
House Around Sardinia, www.housearoundsardinia.eu;
Savills, 020 7016 3740, www.savills.com;
Elma Homes, 01923 893764
Island paradise
Savills is selling the seven-acre Cappuccini Island, just off Porto Cervo on
the Costa Smeralda, for £23.5m. The island has a large villa split into into
3-bed domes, a clubhouse with swimming pool and a private restaurant.
Savills: 020 7016 3744, www.savills.co.uk
Villa Smeralda Sei is a fourbed villa set in a large mature garden on a hill,
two miles from Porto Cervo and 600 yards from two beautiful beaches. It is
on the market with Brian A French & Associates for £1.36m.
Brian A French & Associates: 0870 730 1910, www.brianfrench.com
A one-bed country cottage in 4,700 sq m of land, with a small vineyard and 100
fruit trees, just over a mile outside Tempio Pausania, in the north is on
sale for £85,000.
Sardinia Estates: 00 39 348 334 7572, www.sardinia-estates.net
An 82 sq m two-bed ground-floor flat, with a covered verandah, in Santa
Teresa, is on sale for £64,500. Situated on the north coast, you can take a
day trip to Corsica or enjoy local beaches.
House Around Sardinia: 00 39 0782 620047, housearoundsardinia.eu
To
find properties for sale in Sardinia on propertyfinder.com click here
To search for properties in
Sardinia on properazzi.com click here
I find it sad reading articles advertising (ridiculously priced) Sardinian property to Brits, as if the whole island were up for sale. Most people in the UK don't even know where Sardinia is, let alone anything about Sardinia's people, history, culture, economy and outlook. Sardinia doesn't benefit from so-called "investment" by greedy, grabbing foreigners, looking for a slice of a life they don't undersatnd, through the irresponsible purchase of second homes - creating ghost towns and ugly developments, damaging the evironment and the local economy. Incidentally, holiday homes are now subject to taxation by the Sardinian region - thanks to Soru!
Kirsten, Milan, Italy
An interesting article, as someone who gave up the UK to live in northern Sardinia and has subsequently bought other apartments to rent I think this is a timely article.
I have been working for the last year on a project which may give more of a feel for the areas mentioned and what they can do in the surrounding areas; historical,cultural or just relaxing.
Just type "360 sardinia" into google and please give me any feed-back.
Thanks
Peter Ryder, Sorso, Sassari, Sardegna