Real Estate in Italy: space, quality and sustainability, the new priorities for investors and families

The Real Estate DATA HUB maps the new geographies of real estate in Italy: ESG criteria, Build To Rent, the return of the provinces and the rise of green mortgages.

The Italian real estate market is changing shape. More flexible housing models, growing attention to sustainability and the new centrality of the provinces are redrawing the map of value, while investment is once again on the rise. Demand is evolving and redistributing itself, rewarding comfort and the optimization of space. Hence the growing appeal of suburban areas, which are gaining ground over city centres, reflecting greater attention to quality of life.

After the adjustment phase of 2023, 2024 marked a turnaround, with global investment volumes rising to almost €10 billion, an increase of more than 50% compared with the previous year, with different trends across the individual sectors. In particular, the analysis highlights a new spring for offices, driven by growing interest from Italian and international investors in sustainable properties aligned with ESG criteria. Strong growth in the retail market, which, thanks also to the entry of new operators, is establishing itself as a strategic asset, with particular vitality in the North-East, North-West and South. Investment in the hospitality sector is also significant, focused on resorts and branded residences, an emerging trend in 2025. Signs of growth for residential and substantial stability for logistics, which in 2024 is going through an adjustment phase, with a 10% increase in rents for new builds, and a good recovery in 2025.

This is the picture that emerges from the latest edition of the Real Estate DATA HUB, the half-yearly market report produced by the REMAX Italia Research Centre, the YARD REAAS Research Office and the 24MAX Research Office, which offers an analysis of the Italian real estate market in 2024 and looks ahead to the outlook for 2025. This edition pays particular attention to the dynamics of Milan, Rome, Bari and Turin, together with their respective regions, analysing the asset classes of living, luxury, logistics and data centres, offices, retail and hospitality.

Residential: the new appeal of the suburbs
2024 saw the residential market gradually recover: after a weak first half, the second half of the year recorded a rise in transactions and an average price increase of more than 3%. Lombardy confirms itself as the leading region by number of transactions, accounting for 35% of the total. In Northern Italy, Liguria, Veneto and Piedmont posted growing performances; in the Centre, Lazio occupies the top spot, followed by Emilia-Romagna and Tuscany; in the South, Puglia and Campania stand out for a significant volume of transactions, while among the islands Sicily confirms itself as the most important market.

Milan remains the province with the highest volume of transactions, followed by Rome and Turin. At national level, the DATA HUB analysis confirms the attractiveness of metropolitan areas, against the backdrop, however, of a gradual expansion of demand towards well-connected peripheral areas. “It is no longer just a matter of square metres, but of services, surroundings and well-being,” says Dario Castiglia (pictured), CEO & Founder of REMAX Italia. “The market is finding new momentum thanks to the greater supply in areas that until a few years ago were considered secondary.” The three-room apartment is the most sought-after type, particularly in Northern Italy (46% of preferences), while in the South demand is growing for four-room apartments and homes with more than five rooms, helped by greater price affordability. “Looking ahead to 2025, the outlook for the real estate market remains positive,” says Castiglia. “The current forecasts point to the possibility of further interest-rate cuts, a factor that could further stimulate demand, strengthening the sector’s growth phase”.

Mortgage trends: first homes dominate, green loans grow and young buyers drive demand
The mortgage market is benefiting from a more favourable environment, thanks to ECB rate cuts and tools such as the First Home Guarantee Fund. 97.5% of applicants do so to buy their first home, with a clear predominance of fixed-rate mortgages (97.8%). The analysis by age group shows that the 35 to 44 age bracket accounts for 34% of mortgage applicants, followed by the younger group aged between 25 and 34, who represent 32.4% of applicants. These are signs of a return to long-term planning, especially among young families and first-time buyers. Applications for green mortgages, which are steadily increasing, now exceed 10% of the total, a sign of greater attention to sustainability and energy efficiency even in financing choices.

Retail, offices, logistics and hospitality: new priorities for investors and tenants
The Real Estate DATA HUB also tracks the performance of the other segments of the market, confirming growing interest in resilient and integrated assets. Retail was the undisputed star of 2024, with a record investment volume and growth spread broadly across the country. The entry of new operators and the dynamism of certain specific segments have contributed to the sector’s vitality, with positive prospects for the rest of 2025. In offices, interest is consolidating in flexible spaces, well located and able to adapt to hybrid work models; attention is growing for next-generation properties aligned with ESG criteria. Logistics showed overall resilience in 2024 despite a slight contraction in its share of total investment, and started 2025 well.

The hospitality segment remains stable, supported by growing interest in luxury hospitality. “We are witnessing the consolidation of certain macro-trends, such as the increasing relevance of ESG factors – highlighted, for example, by the spread of green financing and the orientation of the choices made by investors and tenants, not only in the office segment. At the same time, the role of services supporting properties and their occupants is strengthening: this is the case of Build To Rent (BTR), an asset class that is also establishing itself in the Italian market”, explains Laura Piantanida (pictured), Head of Institutional Relations at Yard Reaas SpA.