I recently joined an expats in Puglia Facebook group, predominantly to share a request I had from a UK journalist. I was surprised by the number of questions relating to building works – mostly about the costs and doubts people had. Being the eternal volunteer, I answered the first ones I came across but was somewhat horrified both by the lack of knowledge out there and also that people were either unreasonably suspicious or walking into things with their eyes closed.

One thread really bothered me. I didn’t comment there, as I have no desire to be trolled into all eternity, but it reminded me why I haven’t joined similar groups before. Someone was concerned about a quote they had received. Someone else recommended an English builder and, when another user perfectly reasonably pointed out that in Italy it was probably better to use an Italian builder, shot them down rudely and in flames with other users egging them on. The final comment was that ‘everyone knows Italian builders are rip off merchants’.

Firstly, I have restored property both in the UK and Italy and, not only is the quality of the work/price ratio better here, but people take pride in their work, and I have never come across ‘cowboy builders’ which are two a penny in England. You get people taking advantage of other people’s lack of knowledge anywhere and the best way to avoid this is to be better informed. See here

Secondly you could be in real trouble using a non-Italian builder unless they also work with an Italian geometra, engineer, or architect unless you are doing work which comes under the heading of ‘edilizia libera’. The same applies for DIY. Work that comes under edilizia libera is painting, small areas of plastering, laying new floors without changing the level, changing bathroom fittings without moving any of the plumbing or adding extra items, re tiling, adding aircon, solar panels new boiler or heat pumps. Also replacing doors and windows without changing the position or size of the opening. Recently they have introduced the requirement for energy efficiency as well.

This project, from 6 years ago, required a Scia 

The work on this one would have come under edilizia libera but the pool needed a permesso di costruire

If your work doesn’t come under edilizia libera you need either a CILA (work which is more than edilizia libera but does not involve any structural changes), or a SCIA (work that involves structural changes such as adding new internal walls, moving internal doorways or opening new ones, or replacing a roof – also changing the internal layout, adding bathrooms and so on). Anything that involves changes in volume or, for example, adding a pool needs a ‘permesso di costruire’ or building permit. With a CILA you can start work immediately, with a SCIA you can start work after 30 days if you have not heard from the council (but they have 60 days to make you change any work they are not happy with.)

Councils are cracking down on people renting out without a CIS and issuing large fines. They just need to go on Booking.com or Airbnb to see who is renting out. These sites now ask for your CIS as well.  If it is evident you have done work, or your layout differs from the old cadastral plan, and you can’t demonstrate that the work done is legitimate you will have great difficulty selling your property in the future, let alone renting it out.

As anywhere else you might get a cheaper price for cash in hand, but it may mean your builder isn’t insured and, in any case, you have no come back. You can’t do anything other than edilizia libera cash in hand unless you are paying the majority of the work on the books, or you won’t have a CILA or SCIA. Obviously, you don’t pay IVA tax if paying cash but, in any case, if you are doing anything that requires a CILA or SCIA you can pay IVA at the reduced rate of 10% rather than 22%, something that almost no one on the forum seemed to be aware of (you need to fill in and sign a declaration).

As far as paying too much is concerned, if you get a recommendation from an expat for builders or tradesmen you will at least know that they are reliable and do good work, but the other expat may still have paid too much for the work and you will therefore do so too.

It is worth knowing that there is an official Puglia price list – which lists the price per square or linear metre of any work conceivable. Builders are not obliged to quote these prices – some may quote over and some under, but it gives a good base line.

As there is evidently a need for it, I am going to run an ongoing course on refurbishing your property which will cover the getting quotes stage, planning, prices of work, tips and tricks and economical fixes for problems common to many properties, pitfalls to avoid and suppliers for sanitary ware, tiles, furniture etc. As each new section is published you will get an email with a password to access it. There will be no start or finish date, but I expect to have all of the content up in the next few months . You can also pick and choose and pay individually for lessons. If you need help quicker than this, I can work on a one-to-one basis – feel free to email me. Details here