![](\"https:\/\/www.thesun.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/11\/88p-houses-italy-861518388.jpg\")
\n
![](\"https:\/\/www.thesun.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/11\/88p-houses-italy-861518401.jpg\")
\n
![](\"https:\/\/www.thesun.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/11\/88p-houses-italy-861518399.jpg\")
\n
![](\"https:\/\/www.thesun.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/11\/88p-houses-italy-861518391.jpg\")
\n
![](\"https:\/\/www.thesun.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/11\/88p-houses-italy-861518411.jpg\")
<\/p>\nA CHEF who ditched London to buy a bargain house in Italy has told how the move came with huge hidden costs. <\/p>\n
Danny McCubin, 60, bought a house in Mussomeli, Sicily in 2020 after his friend told him the town was offering homes to foreigners for just \u20ac1.<\/p>\n
\n
\n
\n
\n<\/p>\n
Having worked alongside Jamie Oliver in London for 17 years as a chef in the bustle of the big city, Danny wanted to quit full-time work for good.<\/p>\n
When his pal told him about the town in Italy offering cheap homes to foreigners, Danny took the plunge and decided to move to Sicily.<\/p>\n
But the move came with hidden costs – and Danny's plan for a stress-free life didn't initially go to plan. <\/p>\n
He told The Sun: "A friend told me \u2018look there's a town in Sicily where you don't have to have any real criteria or there are no restrictions about buying'.<\/p>\n
"So I took my first trip in May 2019 and I moved in December 2020."<\/p>\n Several towns in Italy<\/span> have been offering one euro houses and other incentives to attract people to move. <\/p>\n A decrease in population and rise in unemployment have contributed to more and more places turning into ghost towns. <\/p>\n Some towns have restrictions with a minimum deposit on the house, while others had a lottery system where you put up a certain amount of money to get a good house. <\/p>\n <\/span><\/p>\n <\/span><\/p>\n <\/span><\/p>\n <\/span><\/p>\n That is, if luck is on your side. <\/p>\n In Danny's case, the requirement was to complete the renovation of a property in three years. <\/p>\n Otherwise, he was told he would have to pay a fine of \u20ac5,000 to the town municipality. <\/p>\n "These houses are crumbling, they've been abandoned," Danny said.<\/p>\n "So the town really said 'look, if you buy this one euro house, rather than just sitting on it, you need to start renovation'."<\/p>\n Danny signed the papers and paid his 88p to the municipality – but it turned out there was lots of paperwork to be handled and it cost him \u00a32,400 to hire solicitor to deal with it.<\/p>\n He also had to stump up \u00a3437 for the estate agent to help him find the house. <\/p>\n Adding in the cost of renovations, the true cost of the bargain 88p house came to \u00a320,000. <\/p>\n "You're looking at around \u20ac20,000 minimum to renovate a \u20ac1 house," Danny said. <\/p>\n "And for that money, you can buy a house in Mussomeli that maybe just needs a bit of cosmetic work."<\/p>\n Danny decided to pay \u00a37,000 for a liveable house that needed only minimum repair. <\/p>\n And he found his dream in a community kitchen that he opened in a more central location. <\/p>\n "I didn't want to take on a renovation project," Danny said. <\/p>\n "I already renovated my house in London, and you know, no matter where you are, renovations can be stressful.<\/p>\n "And part of my reason of moving to Mussomeli was to lead a stress free life."<\/p>\n He sold the 88p house but doesn't regret the decision of moving to the remote town. <\/p>\n "I was able to get my Italian residency," he said. <\/p>\n "So even though I lost \u20ac2,800, I didn't mind because some people have to pay lawyers to get a visa to live in Europe now and to be a part of the EU."<\/p>\n But he now wants to warn those who buy into the dream advertised by Italian government to not jump straight into it. <\/p>\n With a population of 10,000 people, the unemployment rate is 50 per cent for young people. <\/p>\n Danny said: "A lot of them\u00a0need to be able to survive financially so if they're independently wealthy or if they work online or work remotely then it's a perfect town to live in."<\/p>\n But he said those who dream of opening an AirBnb in their \u20ac1 houses should avoid starting businesses in Mussomeli. <\/p>\n "I am always very honest with the foreigners when they ask me about opening a business," the former Londoner said. <\/p>\n "I said 'well, look please don't do that because you'll be taking away business<\/span> from the locals'.<\/p>\n "But then secondly, there's just not enough people to start viable B&B."<\/p>\n Mussomeli sits 800ft above the sea and has beautiful views – but it also makes the town hard to access. <\/p>\n "It's not the most accessible town, but for me that's part of the appeal because I wanted to live somewhere that was remote and quiet and tranquil and, and you know, away from everything," the chef said. <\/p>\n "But for a lot of people, it's just too remote for them.<\/p>\n "Those eager to buy one euro houses also don't realise how small the town is. <\/p>\n "It has one cinema that opens up every month, couple of restaurants and no high street. <\/p>\n "I've met some foreigners who sort of think there's going to be more to the town, and when they come there, they realise that it really is a quiet town.<\/p>\n "It's possibly not for them."<\/p>\n Danny also recommends potential newcomers to visit the village in winter to see what it's really like for most of the year.<\/p>\n "It's easy to be fooled by the vibrant town during summer days when it's flooded with relatives visiting locals or tourists," he said. <\/p>\n "Most of the houses don't have heating. <\/p>\n "They're all farmhouses, so they would have farm animals in a stable attached to the house to heat the house up."<\/p>\n And despite Sicily having relatively low living costs compared to the rest of Europe, heating costs can get expensive. <\/p>\n "Be really careful what streets you're buying in, because you might buy a house that has a beautiful view, but then you have no neighbours," <\/p>\n Despite all the difficulties, it didn't stop Danny pursuing his dream life in Italy. <\/p>\n "People are kind, people are generous, people talk to you in the streets," he said. <\/p>\n "After London I wanted that, I wanted that sort of lifestyle for sure."<\/p>\n Now, Danny has opened a community kitchen that feeds Ukrainian refugees, elderly people and orphans in the town centre.<\/p>\n "I don't know if I would move here if I didn't have a passion project like the good kitchen," he said. <\/p>\n "I couldn't just sit and do nothing."<\/p>\n![](\"https:\/\/www.thesun.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/11\/MR-KENNEDY-COMP.jpg\")
<\/picture>'CONSPIRACY OF SILENCE' <\/span><\/p>\nThree ways JFK may have been SAVED as new clues emerge 60 years on<\/h3>\n
![](\"https:\/\/www.thesun.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/11\/JW_CITY_OF_DEAD_COMP-1.jpg\")
<\/picture>CITY OF THE DEAD <\/span><\/p>\nWorld\u2019s biggest graveyard where prophets & royals are among 6 MILLION dead<\/h3>\n
Most read in The Sun<\/h2>\n
![](\"https:\/\/www.thesun.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/11\/grace-dent-im-celebrity-get-861699445.jpg\")
<\/picture>GET EM OUT! <\/span><\/p>\nFears for \u2018exhausted\u2019 I\u2019m A Celeb campmate as they QUIT trial in dramatic scene<\/h3>\n
![](\"https:\/\/www.thesun.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/11\/RB-HOSTAGES-FREE-1916_COMP-1.jpg\")
<\/picture>ESCAPE FROM HELL <\/span><\/p>\n13 Israeli hostages finally FREED 48 days after being kidnapped by Hamas<\/h3>\n
![](\"https:\/\/www.thesun.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/11\/new-russell-norman-jmac.jpg\")
<\/picture>CHEF TRAGEDY <\/span><\/p>\nBBC star & award-winning restaurant owner dies at 57 after short health battle<\/h3>\n
![](\"https:\/\/www.thesun.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/11\/JB-CRASH_COMP.jpg\")
<\/picture>FINAL MOMENTS <\/span><\/p>\nChilling CCTV shows tragic teens in minutes before horror crash<\/h3>\n
![](\"https:\/\/www.thesun.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/11\/88p-houses-italy-861518392-1.jpg\")
![](\"https:\/\/www.thesun.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/11\/88p-houses-italy-861518386.jpg\")