Our Three Homes in Italy

PART 159: It might be interesting to share how we pulled off living in Italy for part of the year. I will post some steps and what we are learning along the way.

We love every minute of it, and what was once a dream is our life!

We spend the Fall in Tuscany, then return in the Spring, and spend the rest of the time in California (as I explained in a previous blog, we only live in Italy part of the year).

Step 1: As we explore areas in Italy, we discover some gems worth sharing. Some are well-known tourist magnets, and others are lesser-known but always amazing. 

This week, let's explore the three homes we have had in Italy. Yes, we have one home at a time!

Step 2: Puglia as home. Renting

We turned to our Italian friends when we first decided to live in Italy. They lived in Rome but returned each summer to homes they owned in Puglia.

Where to live was a daunting question. We explored numerous towns and villages before settling on Salento, in southern Puglia, because we already had a sense of community there.

During our first visit to the area, we noticed our friend was renovating a property he had just purchased. He had updated it to modern standards, added a second bathroom, and was building an awning for the rooftop terrace. We walked in and wondered: should we ask if we could rent it? He agreed immediately.

That's how our life in Italy took shape—two weeks at first, then three months, then a year-long lease.

Renting turned out to be an excellent way to start. Rather than committing to one place, we could experience southern Puglia and see if it truly fit. It offered flexibility—the freedom to move on if we wanted, no responsibility for upkeep, no worries about reselling. But it came with trade-offs. If the owner decided to sell, we had no say in the matter, and we couldn't make the place our own.

Experience is the best teacher, and ours eventually led us away from Puglia. In another blog, I explained why we left for Tuscany. In short, the lifestyle felt too similar to southern California. We hadn't come all the way to Italy to replicate the life we'd left behind.

Step 3: Tuscany as home. Buying, renovating, and then selling.

I always assumed Tuscany was out of reach, so I never seriously considered it. But our friends in Puglia kept urging us to visit the Monte Amiata region in the south. Housing was affordable, they said, and they believed we would love it.

A year or two passed before we finally made the drive. We assumed we would rent again. Our friends gave us a list of towns to explore, and I scheduled a few property viewings—not because we intended to buy, just to see what was out there.

I've written about our shift from renting to buying in earlier blogs. It happened organically. We were comfortable as renters. But when we walked into a home for sale in Arcidosso, full of old stone and beamed ceilings, we looked at each other and had the same thought: this is a gem. Maybe we should buy it.

The decision to make an offer was almost impulsive—if they accepted, great; if not, that was fine. We weren't attached to the outcome.

They accepted. We bought the house and began renovating.

To summarize the renovation: we wanted to preserve what made the house special while updating it so we would feel at home. We accomplished that, and we're proud of the result.

When we finished, my partner asked if we might sell and take on something bigger in the same area. We had learned so much from the experience. At first I resisted, but eventually I came around, and we put the house on the market.

It sold a few months ago. Now we're ready for what's next.

Step 4: Return to Tuscany as home. A bigger project and challenge

We're about to take on a larger renovation—and a real challenge. The unit sits in a modern six-unit building, completely gutted. There's no charm to work with.

Our task is to create warmth and character while adding modern amenities—a space that feels like Tuscany but works for how we live. We believe it's possible, though we're still working out how.

Insights:

Each home taught us something different.

Renting in Puglia showed us that you don't need to own a home to build a life in Italy. It gave us time to learn the rhythms of a place without the pressure of a long-term commitment. If you're considering a move to Italy, renting first is one of the smartest things you can do. It lets you test your assumptions before they become expensive ones.

Buying in Arcidosso taught us that the right home doesn't always arrive on schedule. We weren't looking to buy—but we were open to it when the moment felt right. We made the offer without putting pressure on ourselves, and that made all the difference. Renovating taught us even more: how Italian contractors work, how to navigate permits, and how to balance preservation with comfort.

Selling taught us that a home can be a chapter, not a forever commitment. Letting go of something we'd built with our own vision wasn't easy, but it opened the door to something bigger.

And now, starting from a gutted shell with no existing character, we face the opposite challenge from Arcidosso. There, we preserved what was already beautiful. Here, we have to create it from nothing.

More next time.

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