Property Description

One-bedroom, Sea-view Holiday Cottage for Sale in the Province of Palermo, Four Kilometres from the Gulf of Termini Imerese

This lovely country home with sea views and an expansive garden would make a superb mid-budget holiday home in an accessible and picturesque region of northern Sicily. Surrounded by olive groves and orchards, 380m above sea level and four kilometres inland in the municipality of Trabia, just west of Termini Imerese. A fifteen minute drive from the beach, it is also very convenient for both Palermo and Cefalù.

Despite this practical location, the few kilometres of hillside that separate Casa Ilona from both the Tyrrhenian coast and Sicily’s main E90 motorway mean that you find yourself in a very quiet, peaceful and scenic area, cooled by a thoroughly welcome breeze. The Gulf of Termini Imerese is in  view on the horizon, as is the rocky peninsula of Capo Zafferano.

The sea-view holiday cottage, a little over 60m2 in size, comprises an open plan living area with a fabulous kitchen, a bedroom with walk-in wardrobe and a bathroom with a shower. In addition to this, a basement floor offers a garage and a laundry room.

An obvious highlight is the large terrace that flanks the home, partially covered by a canopy and shaded with some tall evergreen trees. Partially renovated during the past year, it is is really good condition with some lovely fittings and would also make an interesting investment in the tourist sector.

The Property

The kitchen, which is included in the sale, has been expensively fitted in a rustic style with wooden worktops and lots of cupboard space. On the other side of the open plan living room is a lounge areas with a pellet stove that has been framed like a traditional fireplace with a brick-effect tile. Exposed wooden beams on the ceiling reflect the kitchen surfaces and continue the farmhouse feeling. An air conditioning unit keeps the place cool on the hottest days of summer, and will also provide an alternative heat source in winter.

The bedroom is compact, with a little walk-in closet in the far corner. The vendors are prepared to include the comfortable wooden double bed in the sale, and really that’s all the furniture you need in the cosy space. At the end of the corridor, the tidy bathroom is modern but nods to Sicilian tradition with the box shower tiled in a monochrome majolica pattern.

The floor is in travertine, a beautiful natural stone, and the windows are new, well-insulated and with external shutters in a cheery green. Casa Ilona is connected to the municipal electrical grid and water supply, with waste water discharged into an Imhoff tank.

Outdoors, you will enjoy approximately 1,000m2 of gardens. A concrete driveway slopes up from the automatic front gate, past the first of the property’s many terraces. There is off-road parking for three cars before we even reach the spacious garage, next to the utility room.

The next level of the terrace flanks the house. This is expansive and very nicely presented, with a neat surrounding wall finished in white plaster and stone trim. The Gulf of Termini Imerese can be seen between the adjacent trees, and about a third of the space is covered by a permanent awning.

Up another level, a patio has been laid at the back of the property, directly before the garden, which continues up several more terraces, begins. The cherry on the cake is the flat roof of the main building, accessed by an outdoor staircase.  There is no perimeter fencing or wall on most of the space, but it is completely safe to walk on, and with an enclosed and covered seating area of its own, it boasts the property’s best view of all.

At the time we visited to film our virtual tour some areas of the property boundary were not complete. However, the vendor is currently completing this work and it will be finalised by the time of the sale.

Surroundings

The sea-view holiday cottage offers a wonderful sense of isolation, but still connected. The nearest villages, Trabia and San Nicola l’Arena, only a fifteen minute drive away respectively. It’s fair to say that this is not the property for you if you don’t have access to a car or motorbike. The rather larger Termini Imerese is only twenty minutes’ drive.

To the south is Lake Rosemarina, and from here the hills begin to climb, especially continuing east towards the spectacular Nebrodi Natural Park. To the north you quickly find yourselves at some lovely beaches. The Ombelico di Venere is a particular favourite of our agent Romolo. Just ask for more local recommendations!

The nearest airport, Palermo’s Falcone-Borsellino, is about fifty minutes away by car.

Potential

The renovation work has been handled well, and you shouldn’t need to invest much more on Casa Ilona to reach its full potential. However, there is one pressing issue which will need some attention before the sea-view holiday cottage is fully finished.

You may be looking at the terraced garden and thinking “this would be a great place to put a swimming pool” – the current owner had exactly that thought, and in fact began work on the project a few years ago. One section has been closed off and bricked up, ready to hold a pool measuring three by seven metres. The work, in the end, wasn’t completed for personal reasons. However, the work done has caused some water infiltration on that side of the raised terrace this has arrived at the outer wall of the bedroom is located. Unfortunately you will need to budget around €15-20,000 over the asking price to address this. The better news is that when you do this, if you can find another €10,000 for the budget you will be able to complete the swimming pool project and enjoy the perfect way to cool off on a sunny summer’s day!

Perhaps if you really wanted to make a perfect first impression you might also do a bit of gardening around the front entrance and the driveway, but you could get great results here for a very modest outlay.As is the case with all of our properties, we are on hand to offer everything from informal words of guidance and some helpful contacts to a full project management service. If you see Casa Ilona as your permanent residence – perhaps to take advantage of the enticing tax climate Sicily offers new residents – be sure to consider our Welcome to Sicily relocation concierge service.