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The first to think about it and to obtain enough success was the Canadian entrepreneur Peter Gatien, better known as the king of night clubs in New York. His discotheque, the “Limelight” in the Big Apple, was opened in 1983 in a deconsecrated church on the Sixth Avenue. After a few years he replicated in London where the “Limelight” found its location in a 1754 former Presbyterian church in Shaftesbury Avenue. Since then the idea to convert properties such as former places of worship, but also level crossing houses, lighthouses, factories and even slaughterhouses into homes has taken hold throughout the world and has landed also in Italy. Of course we are not yet in the same situation as the US where the credit crunch forced churches and congregations to put several places of worship on the market, but what once was a niche trend now is becoming ever more popular.

According to the last data from the Italian land registry office, under the category “Properties for non- residential use” in which are included buildings of worship, but also lighthouses, towers, fortresses, stations and even bridges, are only 60,875, just the 0.11% of all properties in Italy. But is the rarity of this type of properties that makes them so demanded by people who want to live in peculiar homes. Can you imagine the difference between the charm of living in a VII century church compared to living in condominium in the outskirt of a big city?

“To give an economic use to properties that didn’t have that use in the past – explains Mario Breglia, president of the property research and study institute “Scenari Immobiliari” – it’s a trend that is becoming ever more popular in Italy. A few years ago the Public Property Trust put on the market 362 properties used as summer camps, a third of them were in Emilia Romagna. After a few years about half of them were converted into business use, manly into hotels. We can say that in areas where the property market is lush this type of buildings gains a value that didn’t have previously.

The price of this type of properties differs from area to area and the difference can be very wide; for instance a small church of 170 square metres in Florence goes for “only” EUR780,000, another church of 840 square metres in the centre of Naples is sold for EUR5,000,000. But not only churches are for sale, on the internet can be found also road mender’s houses on auction with bid prices starting from EUR19,000 to over EUR600,000. Definitely more peculiar is the sale of the town’s slaughterhouse of Spoleto (Umbria) with a bid starting from EUR2,000,000 for a 710 square metre property. Ferrovie dello Stato (The Italian Railways) often put on the market its properties and the railway station of Cervaro (Puglia) has a starting bid price of EUR9,300,000 whereas to buy the former school of Chilini Ozieri (Sardinia) are requested just EUR128,000.

But beware of what you buy: what seems a great bargain at first sight not always turns to be as such. “The buying cost is the least – says Mr Breglia – the problems start with the renovation, that can result to be a lot more expensive that expected. In Italy, at the moment, nearly nothing can be pulled down and rebuilt, then is very important to know all the aspects of that property to see if it can be converted into a home or whether there is the chance to negotiate a permission with the municipality. Another aspect that must be taken into consideration is the location of the property. The rarity of this type of properties makes impossible to compare the price with similar properties to understand whether the price is fair or not. “If the property market in a certain area is lush then there are not voids” says Mr Breglia, “in Milan a lot of buildings are converted into exhibition areas, but the same building in another city such as Campobasso can remain unsold.

It is also true though, that whoever convert such a property into their own home probably take this decision more with their hearts than with their wallet.

Simone Rossi works for the Italian property portal http://www.gate-away.com Gate-away.com is the leading property portal specialized in the promotion of property in Italy to foreign investors.

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Back with more news for you today. It’s amazing how much good information there is on this stuff out there if you know where to look. Three in particular that I found really valuable were…

Homes for Sale in Deep Cove, North Saanich, British Columbia $1399000

2589.00 sq. ft. Homes for sale in Deep Cove North Saanich, British Columbia. For sale at $1399000.0000 CAD. 565 Norris Road, Deep Cove.

Homes for Sale in Cobble Hill, Malahat and Area, British Columbia …

2039.00 sq. ft. Homes for sale in Cobble Hill Malahat and Area, British Columbia. For sale at $509900.0000 CAD. 3526 Twin Cedars Dr, Cobble Hill MLS 277079.

Homes for Sale in Dolphin Beach, Nanoose Bay, British Columbia $400000

2524.00 sq. ft. Homes for sale in Dolphin Beach Nanoose Bay, British Columbia. For sale at $400000.0000 CAD. 1976 Harlequin Crescent, Dolphin Beach.

Hope you enjoy the read as much as I did and please if you have something to say, use the comments form below to let everyone know your thoughts.

Have a great day!

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When people think about expensive neighborhoods, people often think about Malibu, California, or Beverly Hills, or maybe even the Hamptons in New York. But did you know there are some neighborhoods in British Columbia that features homes more extravagant then homes found in those rich American cities? So, let’s look at the 5 most expensive cities in British Columbia.

Eagle Mountain on Sumas Mountain in Abbotsford

Abbotsford is a small town located about 60 miles east of Vancouver and just 2 miles north of the Washington State border. The city of Abbotsford is known to be a small country town with a lot of gang crime. However, Abbotsford is one of British Columbia’s fastest growing cities, and with that expansion comes the wealthy people. Whether these wealthy people made their money legally, or through their gang, it does not bother this neighborhood. Home prices on Eagle Mountain start at $800,000 and range upwards of $2,000,000.

Uplands in Victoria on Vancouver Island

Uplands is an extremely wealthy neighborhood on Vancouver Island. Uplands is located just north of the Victoria Harbor, and this neighborhood features some of Vancouver Island’s most affluent people. Home prices start and $1,500,000 and can exceed the $15,000,000 price tag. Considering the population of Vancouver island is 750,000, that is a considerable wealthy neighborhood for a small community.

Whistler, British Columbia

Located just 2 hours north of Vancouver, this world class ski resort is the host city for the 2010 Winter Olympic Games. And because this is such a famous ski resort, the real estate prices have exploded. And homes in this town can cost you as much as $28,000,000 for a 3000 square foot ski chalet.

Shaughnessy neighborhood in Vancouver

This neighborhood was once the most exclusive neighborhoods in all of Vancouver. Even today, this neighborhood has one of the highest household income rates in Canada. The average household income is $130,000, and that is the reason for the home prices fetching over $11,000,000. The reason for the expensive price tag is because of the large parcels of land, and the close proximity of the Pacific Ocean. Homes can be located on 3 acres of manicured land just a few block from the water!

British Properties, West Vancouver

West Vancouver is known to be one of the most exclusive neighborhoods in the whole world. The average household income is just below $90,000, but the reason for that low income rate is because ever 40% of the residents are retirees. So, if you were to poll the working families, the average income would be well over $200,000. Homes in the mountainside neighborhood overlooking the city of Vancouver range in the low $2,000,000 to well over $40,000,000.

Kirk Schroeder is the publisher of Vancouver Travel Guide [http://www.vancouver-travel-guide.com]. [http://www.vancouver-travel-guide.com] is the only Vancouver tourism website published by a Vancouverite!

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