Similar to the Spanish market, the Italian real-estate market suffered a significant drop during the years of the economic crisis. However, after 8 consecutive years of a declining economy and many economic hardships, the Italian market is showing clear signs of revival and is positively changing the way the world perceives the Italian real-estate market. The recovery of the real-estate sector has opened a world of opportunities, making it the perfect time to invest in Milan.The current status of the Italian p2p lending and real-estate market can be summarized in one phrase: investing in Italy now is like investing in Spain 3 years ago, which is to say, now is the moment to start investing.

Today we are going to give you 10 reasons why Milan is the perfect city to begin investing in Italy and diversifying your portfolio.

1.- A Dynamic and Productive City

Milan has an excellent business environment; in fact, it takes only 6 business days to start a new business (quicker than the UK and Germany).

Milan is the undisputed capital of Italian fashion and it’s one of the five shopping capitals of the world. It’s also the third largest exhibition/fair center in the world, after Hanover and Frankfurt, with an exhibition area of 345,000 m2, hosting 51 events, close to 24.000 exhibitors and receiving more than 5 million visitors a year.

2.-The S.T.E.A.M. City (Science, Technology, Engineering, Art, Manufacturing)

Milan is home to some of the most advanced health science and biotechnology research centers in Europe, specializing in various sectors. We’ll let the following numbers speak for themselves:

  • 26% of the Italian companies in the biotechnology industry are found in Milan reaching profits of 4 million euros,  which represent 70% of the region and 45% of the national total profits.
  • 22% of the registered patents in Italy are from Milan

3.- An International City

The city has more than 100 consulates and commercial offices abroad.

The connection from Milan to the rest of the world is excellent through all means. By air travel, the city has three international airports (Malpensa, Linate, Orio al Serios); by land, the location of the city, holding a central position in the north of Italy, allows for excellent interconnection via trains (including high-speed) and highways, with the top European and international corridors.

Over 38.752.192 million passengers a year pass through the Milan airport system , according to 2015 data. Also, the high speed trains transport passengers from Milan to Rome in less than 3 hours.

4.- Universities for promising futures

One of the most important aspects of university/ higher-education systems is their degree of internationalization. Milan has a university center of excellence, Politecnico de Milan and Bocconi University, which account for 20% of the foreign students in Italy.

 5.- Innovative and Entrepreneurial

The metropolitan area of Milan represents almost one third of all foreign-invested enterprises in Italy.

Milan is home to 123 large companies (companies with profits exceeding 1 million euros), but it’s also a center for innovation and entrepreneurship, with 581 new companies representing 66% of the region of Lombardia and 15% nationwide.

 6.- Quality of Life

The quality of life in Italy changes greatly from the Northern to the Southern region. Big cities have progressively improved, with Milan taking the 49th position in the ranking of the 50 cities in the world with the best quality of life.

 7.- Foreign real-estate investment

Milan is a top investment choice for many of the big international investors. The city is a highly coveted destination by foreign investors, so much so that this year confirmed the uprising trend: Milan, rose from 12th place to 8th place in the 2016 European ranking of the best cities in which to invest in real-estate properties developed by PWC.

8.- Tourism and diversity

Tourism is a very important and highly respected sector throughout the Lombardy region, representing a real driving force for the city’s economic development. The entire region has tons to offer from an environmental, cultural and architectural point of view.

Milan is a magnificent city, where thousands of languages are spoken and heard and a myriad of cultures are welcomed and learned from.

 9.- Real-estate and increasing prices

The 2016 property market ended on a very positive note, with a 21.9% increase in the purchase and sale of properties compared to 2015.

Also, the bounce-back of the market is evident since the average time of residential housing sales was placed at about 4-5 months.

10.- Positive market outlook

Milan property prices are currently at their minimum, making it the ideal moment for investment. In 2017, it’s estimated that there will be a 6.9% increase in the number of total transactions. This means that in just two years, the real-estate market will have grown by more than 23 percentage points.

Likewise, the rental prices in Milan are also experiencing continuous growth with a year-on-year increase of 3.7% in 2016.

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