In post-Covid Italy, luxury property shoppers have a new city at the top of their wish list: Rome. Its real estate market began to thrive in 2021 as the pandemic’s end came into sight. Prime residential sales volume in the Italian capital increased 31.4% from 2020, reaching its highest level since 2007, according to the Italian Revenue Authority. By contrast, sales in Milan rose 24.4%, slower than the 28% average for Italy’s largest cities. One out of three potential Italian luxury property buyers searched in the capital during the first quarter of 2022, according to a report from Immobiliare.it and LuxuryEstate.com.

The Eternal City’s timeless charm is one attraction, but another is how comparatively cheap it is. Luxury residential properties in Rome’s most sought-after neighborhoods cost an average of about €6,000 ($6,500) per square meter (10.7 square feet), half the price for similar properties in Milan, says Carlo Giordano, a board member of Immobiliare.it, Italy’s most popular property portal.