Life in Italy - Telegraph Mentor
Peter Greene says many expats choose Le Marche for its natural beauty.
Our mentors are volunteers and any information they provide is for information only and is not intended to be a substitute for professional advice.
Peter Greene is an ex-London journalist and press officer who has lived and worked in Italy's Le Marche region since 1989.
He created and now runs Marche Voyager, the official English-language web site of the Marche region's tourism department and has written a number of guide books to Italy for British publishers. He also runs a holiday rental business in the old country parish church where he lives with his partner.
Le Marche: The region forms the eastern seaboard of central Italy with the regions of Emilia-Romagna to the north and Abruzzo to the south.
The region's name is pronounced "lay markay" , is plural (Le Marche) and is sometimes known as "The Marches" in English.
The total population of the region is around 1.5 million with an average density of less than 150 inhabitants per square kilometre. The region covers just under 10,000 square kilometres.
The inland mountainous areas are mostly limestone and are noted for bare peaks, rushing torrents, dramatic gorges and many warrens of caves. In contrast, the areas nearer the coastal plain are celebrated for their fertile, rounded hills topped by ancient fortified towns.
Economically, the region is mostly reliant on medium and small scale productive industries, often family run. Shoes, clothing and furniture manufacture are amongst the most successful businesses.
The relatively poor soil and the general movement away from the land has meant that agriculture now plays a lesser role than it once did, apart from the production of Verdicchio, Le Marche's famous white wine in the central areas. By the coast, fishing remains an important activity.
The main towns: The administrative capital of Le Marche is Ancona, a city with few obvious attractions. Give it time, however, and you may find you enjoy the salty charm of this bustling sea port. It's also one of Italy's principal ferry ports with boats to Croatia, Greece and Turkey.
Of the region's other principal towns, Urbino is my favourite. This jewel of a renaissance city remains little changed from the days when Duke Federico of Montefeltro set up his celebrated court here in the second half of the 15thC.
The provincial capital of Ascoli Piceno lies at the southern end of Le Marche. This beguiling old town is well worth exploring. Its marble-paved main square is one of the most beautiful in Italy.
Another of the region's provincial capitals, Pesaro is both an appealing seaside resort and a thriving commercial town. Good shops, fine beaches and great fish. The last of the region's provincial capitals is Macerata, a dignified town, famous for its annual outdoor opera festival.
Attractions: Many choose Le Marche for its natural beauty and much of the spectacular inland mountain country remains unscathed by the worst excesses of the 20thC.
The Frasassi caves are some of the most spectacular limestone caves you are every likely to visit. Limestone again is the leading player at the Furlo Gorge, a dramatic natural pass through the mountains in the northern Marche that has been in use since prehistoric times.
Most of Italy's Adriatic coastline is stubbornly flat. Monte Conero, just south of Ancona, is a rare exception - a high limestone mountain that plunges into the sea and guards a handful of delightful little bathing resorts.
You'll find some of the most impressive mountain scenery to the south of the region amidst the Monti Sibillini, whose peaks are often covered with snow until the late spring.
The best mountain views to be had in the north of the region, on the doorstep of Urbino, are around the giants of Monte Catria and Monte Nerone. In spring the upland meadows are carpeted in alpine flowers.
Buying property: If you decide to live here, buying a home will probably be the biggest and most difficult decision you will have to make. The best way, if you can spare the time, is to get to know an area well before deciding to buy there. Negotiate a hotel room for a long stay or rent a place, and make friends in the local bar.
Remember that accommodation will cost a lot less out of season and you'll be seeing properties in a less romantic light than in high summer when anything looks great.
Having decided that you like a property, the first stage is the signing of a compromesso. This scrittura privata or "private contract" between yourself and the seller is a legally binding document and if you change your mind you will loose whatever deposit you have paid and usually be liable to pay an additional penalty.
Deposits vary but are often around 10 to 20% of the agreed purchase price. The compromesso will give details of exactly what it is you are buying including the particulars as recorded in the local catasta, the long-established Italian "land registry". Make sure these details are correct and correspond to what it is you think you are buying before you sign the document.
At a time specified in the compromesso the final atto, or contract, will be signed in front of the local notaio, a public official who witnesses public contracts. Remember the notaio is not acting for any one of the parties - if you want to be sure that there are no nasty surprises hidden in the contract, that might, for example, give rise to neighbour problems in the future, get a local lawyer, or avvocato, to act for you.
At this stage you will normally have to hand over the balance of the purchase price and pay any fees due to the notaio and estate agent, or mediatore.
Citizens from European Union countries will find few problems in buying property and starting a new life in Italy, and for nationals from further a field the bureaucratic hurdles needn't be too much of a barrier. This doesn't mean, though, that you're exempt from the thorough paperwork so beloved of European public officials.
Foreigners frequently have an idea that anything goes in Italy and that rules are there to be ignored - in Le Marche, at least, this attitude all too often ends in disaster.
Citizens of EU countries and many other nationals can stay in Italy for up to three months with just a valid passport. If, however, you want to live in Italy for longer periods you will need a permesso di soggiorno, or permit to stay, from the Questura, or main police station, in the nearest provincial capital.
For EU citizens a European version of the permesso is pretty well automatic and, at the moment, is usually renewable every ten years. For non-EU nationals you will have to answer questions such as means of living, whether you own property, etc, and you have no automatic right to stay. For the latest detailed information contact the Italian Consulate in your home country before leaving.
For many things, such as opening a bank account, a residency certificate, or certificato di residenza, is often required.
The last of the trinity of essential documents to get is your codice fiscale, the Italian equivalent of a "national insurance" number combined with a tax code. This is one of the easiest documents to obtain, and is available from tax offices in the provincial capitals in a matter of minutes.
For advice on restoring property in Italy, please click here.
Taxes: What follows is a brief introduction to property and income taxes and other money matters in Italy. It is by no means exhaustive - Italian tax matters are rarely straighforward and it is worth every penny of the usually modest fees to use the services of a local commercialista, or accountant.
If you are neither resident nor working here, you need only bother yourself with property taxes on any buildings that you own. Each comune, or town council, levies I.C.I. (imposta comunale sugli immobili) that is a modest tax on property based on size and type of property and charged to owners. Your local comune also raises a separate, but low tax to pay for refuse disposal called T.A.R.S.U. (tassa per lo smaltimento di rifiuti solidi urbani).
If you wish to work here things get somewhat more complex and a commercialista becomes essential. And remember, even if you work for and are paid by companies abroad, if you are resident in Italy you are usually liable to pay tax here.
Italian income tax, I.R.P.E.F., and national pension and health payments, paid to an authority called I.N.P.S., are the two principal fiscal burdens you will have to get to grips with.
If you are self-employed or have your own company you will also have to get involved with I.V.A. (Italian value added sales tax); the threshold for IVA mean that virtually anyone who is self-employed has to charge IVA on sales or services. At the risk of sounding repetitive, don't try any of this without a commercialista.
When it comes to banking, keep in mind that local bank managers in most banks have a high degree of autonomy and you can often negotiate interest rates on loans and even bank charges on transactions.
Health care: Contrary to received opinion, the Italian public health service, at least in Le Marche, works very well. A modern, well-run network of hospitals covers the whole region and even in the most out-of-the-way corners you'll never be far from emergency treatment should you need it.
For minor aches and pains make for the local farmacia, or dispensing chemist. They keep normal shop hours and operate an emergency 24-hour service on a rotating shift basis, details of which are displayed in the window.
If you decide to live in Le Marche you will have to sign up with a general practitioner (medico di famiglia) through the local A.S.L. - Azienda Sanitaria Locale - office and if you are earning you'll have to pay your regular "national insurance" contributions (INPS in Italian).
You can, of course, always consult a doctor as a paying private patient without getting involved with the U.S.L. Under the public health system, unless you are elderly or chronically ill, you'll have to pay a contribution for prescriptions, laboratory analyses and hospital out-patient treatment.
Dental treatment and opticians in Le Marche, as in the rest of Italy, are excellent but expensive and are not covered by the public health service.
Driving: Drivers need a current licence and if it is not the pink EU type it should be accompanied by a translation in Italian, available from the Italian State Tourist Office in your own country or the frontier offices of the Italian Automobile Club (A.C.I).
If travelling in your own car you need the vehicle registration book - if it is not in your own name you must have the owner's written permission to drive the car. You will also need your insurance certificate. Motorists must have all their documents with them while driving as police spot-checks are common.
The only toll motorway (autostrada) in Le Marche is the Bologna-Pescara A14 along the Adriatic coast. Some of the main SS (strada statale) routes are fast, toll-free dual-carriageways, or superstrade.
The area's antique towns were never built for cars and you will find that some historic centres are now closed to unauthorized traffic. Parking, particularly in the morning and early evening, is often a headache. Where signs indicate a time limit you will have to set a disco orario to your time of arrival; you can buy the disc from most newsagents and garages.
If parking spaces are marked with a blue line, it means you have to pay - usually by buying a ticket from a nearby machine. Off the motorway, petrol stations close for up to three hours at lunchtime and all day Sunday. Carry a few uncrumpled banknotes to use in the 24-hour, self-service petrol dispensers now common in garage forecourts.
Seat belts are compulsory and you must carry a reflective warning triangle to be placed at least 50 m behind your car when broken down. You are also now required to have a reflective jacket if you break down.
Speed limits are 50 kph in built-up areas, 90 kph on country roads, 110 kph on dual-carriageways and 130 kph on motorways. It is now also compulsory to switch on your dipped headlights during the day on all main roads.
Police speed checks are frequent and on-the-spot fines are severe. Contrary to received opinion, the standard of driving in Le Marche is generally good.
Language and local culture: The marchigiani possess the best of North and South - you will rarely meet extravagant displays of Neapolitan emotion nor the cool indifference of Milan.
Try speaking a few words of Italian and your welcome will be that much warmer. If you can only master one line, at least try asking in Italian if people speak English - Parla inglese? Remember that outside the main tourist spots, you will not necessarily find people who can speak English. French is a common second language and German is catching on.
The key to Italian social behaviour is often to be found in the idea of bella figura, or cutting a good figure. This is not just a matter of dressing smartly, though that is included. It ranges from such things as using the right mode of formal address to staying relaxed while waiting. Dirt in all its forms cuts a decidedly brutta figura. Italians, incidentally, spend more than any other nation in the world on household cleaning materials and personal toiletries.
Non-smokers will notice - contrary to the received opinion that all Italians smoke - the rules of bella figura are beginning to cover smoking in restaurants and bars; anti-smoking laws that bring Italy into line with other EU countries are being applied with enthusiasm
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