If you’ve ever dreamed of living under the Tuscan sun, you might be able to make it a reality.
In June, the Italian region of Tuscany announced the “Residenzialità in Montagna 2024,” or “Residency in the Mountains 2024” in English, which offers people a financial incentive to move to rural communities.
Through the program, Italy offers people grants ranging from €10,000 to €30,000, or about $10,720 to about $32,161, to help with the costs of buying and renovating a home, according to the translated website.
“The purpose of the intervention is to favor and encourage the repopulation and socio-economic revitalization of mountain areas, acting in contrast to the marginalization of these areas,” the website states.
Tuscany has allocated a total fund of €2,800,000, or about $3,001,712. These grants will cover up to 50% of the costs associated with buying and fixing up a home in a town with less than 5,000 residents.
Those interested must make the property their permanent residence. Applicants must be either Italian citizens, EU citizens, or non-EU citizens holding a long-term residency lasting no less than 10 years. They will need to commit to registering as residents in an Italian town and can’t currently be residents in another mountain town.
The application closes on July 27 at 1 p.m. local Tuscan time.
Tuscany’s grants are to be used to help cover the costs of purchasing and renovating a home.
Shaun Egan | The Image Bank | Getty Images
Italy has been trying these sorts of schemes for some time now in hopes of rejuvenating the population of rural towns throughout the country.
In 2022, the government of Sardinia, Italy, paid people €15,000 each (about $14,767 at the time) to move to the Mediterranean island. Sardinia set aside €45 million to subsidize 3,000 grants of up to $15,000 each. The stipulations also included moving to a Sardinian town with a population of fewer than 3,000 people.
In the region of Calabria, new residents were promised $33,000 each, while in the village of Santo Stefano di Sessanio, people were offered up to $52,022 in grants to move and work there.
“The goal is to boost the local economy and breathe new life into small-scale communities,” Gianluca Gallo, a regional councilor, told CNN in 2021.
Conversions from euros to USD were done using the OANDA conversion rate of 1 euro to 1.07 USD on June 27, 2024. All amounts are rounded to the nearest dollar.
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Source: CNBC