Italian Asking Prices Fell 1.1% in July, the Sharpest Monthly Drop of 2026

Italian second-hand asking prices slipped 1.1% in July to €2,030 per square metre, yet remain 3.1% above a year ago, with 57 of 105 capitals falling.

Second-hand asking prices in Italy fell 1.1% in July 2026 to a national median of €2,030 per square metre, the steepest monthly decline recorded this year, according to idealista's index published on 4 August. Over three months prices are down 1.2%; over twelve they are still up 3.1%. Of 105 provincial capitals, 57 fell, 40 rose and 8 were unchanged — a majority moving down, but not a rout.

The big cities cooled together

Milan, the most expensive major market, fell 1.3% to €5,681 per square metre. Rome slipped 0.4% to €3,767, Naples 0.6% and Turin 0.4%. Bologna held flat at €3,798 and Venice rose 0.5% to €4,938. Bolzano at €4,901 and Florence at €4,786 round out the expensive tier.

The monthly extremes came from small provincial markets where a handful of listings can swing the median: Pordenone down 5.3%, Potenza down 5.0% and Belluno down 3.6%, against Ragusa up 3.9%, Mantova up 2.6% and Imperia up 2.5%. Regionally, Trentino-Alto Adige leads at €3,281 per square metre and rose 4.1% on the month, followed by Liguria at €2,645, Tuscany at €2,636 and Lombardy at €2,627. The floor is in the south: Molise at €887, Calabria at €897 and Basilicata at €1,065.

Asking prices are not transaction prices

This distinction matters for anyone comparing the number to other sources, including ours. The €2,030 figure is what sellers are asking on a listings portal. Glopra's Italian average of $1,730 per square metre is built on transaction-based national data with a different geographic weighting, and the two will never match. Both are correct measures of different things: asking prices lead the market and tend to sit above achieved prices, particularly when volumes soften and sellers hold out.

Istat's official Q2 house price index is not due until late September, so July's listings data is the only current read available. A separate idealista release on 3 August reported asking rents accelerating to €14.9 per square metre, up 2.4%, though at least one syndicated summary carried a contradictory rental figure — we are not reporting a rent number until the discrepancy resolves.

What the yield looks like

Italy stands out in our data for return rather than growth: a gross rental yield of 7.23%, among the highest in Western Europe, against a 21% effective non-resident rental tax that takes it to roughly 5.7% net. Prices in our transaction-based series are up 5.2% over twelve months, above idealista's 3.1% asking-price figure — again, different baskets rather than a conflict.

Our bubble score for Italy is 48, in the moderate band, and it is one of the few large European markets where high yield and unstretched valuation currently sit together. The July softening does not change that; it does suggest the buyer has more time than they did in the spring.

Sources: idealista/news Italia, July 2026 price index (4 Aug 2026) https://www.idealista.it/news/immobiliare/residenziale/2026/08/04/422487-prezzi-delle-case-in-frenata-a-luglio-1-1-ma-3-1-in-un-anno-scopri-i-valori; Teleborsa https://www.teleborsa.it/News/2026/08/04/prezzi-delle-case-in-frenata-a-luglio-1-1percent-ma-3-1percent-in-un-anno-51.html

Market data: Italy