Having had no communications with the ‘Commune’ since my visit last July, I received a notice via email on the 26th November 2021. In a nutshell, the notice stated that permissions had been granted and we could proceed to purchase the €1 house in Zungoli subject to the normal protocols including carrying out renovations to make the property habitable within 3 years. There was also confirmation of my €2,000 security deposit having been paid (better late than never!)

This is a very positive update, but I have still not received two things I have asked for on a number of occasions, including when we visited the Commune earlier this year in July.

I asked for some internal pictures of the house, as when we visited, we could only look at the building externally (no access available). I also asked for a very rough estimate of the costs to renovate the property due to its location and access – I know this is very difficult to predict, but I did see houses in the “Old Town” that have been renovated recently, including one that had just been completed – they were still painting it!

So, I have not had these two requests acknowledged or more importantly dealt with, but the official notice also said I had a 15 day “cooling off” period and after this period had elapsed, I would be obliged to proceed with the purchase?

I don’t think my requests are unreasonable – but I guess this illustrates how slow the Communes are to deal with queries.

So, in the absence of internal pictures and a rough idea of renovation costs I prepared a letter ready to be sent by email to say I do not want to proceed as I haven’t been provided with this vital information. I emailed my English-speaking contact at the Commune, hoping she could help me before the end of the “cooling off” period……….