House in Tuscany & find friends
House hunting in Tuscany + support in German up to the purchase contract, construction support on request + social network/friends
"I am drawn to a foreign country. What do you mean abroad? To a country that is familiar to me. Yes, a country that I love and whose art, culture and landscape I appreciate immensely. I am drawn to the lovely hills, the sea, the olive groves and vineyards. The thought of good food and excellent wine makes my mouth water. I could eat pasta day and night anyway. And doing something completely different, taking a new step. First work, then pleasure or... work as pleasure in the home office? And then relax, rest, enjoy, look at the enchanting landscape, visit cities of art and culture, jump into the sea at any time and sunbathe on the beach. A special attitude to life! Get out, start something new again. A house in Tuscany, that would be it! A dream that needs to be lived!""
I am Kristina Schmidt and I am here to make these dreams come true, because they're mine too!
For over 25 years I have been very familiar with the hills of Tuscany, 30 km south-east of Pisa in a beautiful village near Lari called Sant’Ermo. How I came to love Tuscany is described in a humorous way in my book “Foreign Paths”. Understanding two cultures and moving back and forth between them is and was sometimes not easy. The village of Lari now lives quite well from tourism, for which I was able to help create the basis . The village is nestled in the most beautiful hills, medieval, romantic and simply fantastic! The sea, many beautiful towns and villages and two airports are within easy reach. Nature, art, culture, pleasure and the sea right on the doorstep.
Here too, the cultural differences are obvious and sometimes take some getting used to. But my heart beats here, definitely! And of course for my home city of Leipzig!
For a long time, I have been thinking about what is now increasingly becoming a task in my mind: Using my work and experience as a local expert, real estate agent and craftswoman to settle new neighbors from my cultural background here and connect them with Italian culture. Making people happy, revitalizing places. That really excites me. There are great houses for sale here, good prices, fantastic locations, art, culture, lots of history, sun and sea.
Buying a house or apartment in Tuscany is fascinating, or emigrating completely and being accompanied in your own language until you have your dream house/ contract/ extension, finding a network of friends along the way is… wonderful! A win-win story, so to speak.
I like working with real estate for exactly six different reasons. One is as important to me as the other. Although the last reason is becoming increasingly important to me.
The prices are relatively cheap compared to Germany and there are very interesting offers. That makes working fun.
I get to know the country and its people better and better, I get into houses and villas that no one else sees and hear stories that no one else hears. Did I mention that I write books? There are always new stories for them here.
The profession I learned in Germany and practiced for 15 years is carpentry, actually model carpentry, restoration, stonemasonry. I love old houses, have helped restore several. I love building sites, seeing how new things are created from old, restored with care and respect. And I am happy to take on the building supervision. In concrete terms, this means that I can also take care of everything after the purchase if required, preferably in winter, as my vacation guests have priority in summer.
My little village is called Sant’Ermo and we are about 120 inhabitants (+ 46 cats and 22 dogs). It is the most beautiful place in the world for me. It is my second home, the place where my heart beats. Whether I’m in my first home in Leipzig or wherever I spend my time and enjoy myself from time to time, after a few days I’m drawn back with all my
might and wait for the moment to sit here on my terrace. When I moved here in 2005, there were two stores run by old ladies and a bar. They no longer exist because the young people are moving away from the village. They often work in the cities. The small villages are in danger of dying out. There is not enough money to restore houses. Who has the money and who likes living in the countryside? The city-stressed foreigners who are rightly in love with Tuscany and in need of peace and quiet. I would like to see this small village, which in its heyday had over 750 inhabitants, revive together with its residents. And also those in the surrounding area.
I have been involved in real estate for over 20 years. My main work here was initially with vacation apartments. Guests spend the best time of their year here. It’s important to me to make them happy, we have a lot of fun together. Working with real estate was initially a side job. Lots of nice customers, but the work is much more tedious. The most important thing is to build up a relationship of trust. After all, there are big dreams and a lot of money involved, everything takes a long time and the clocks tick differently in Italy. But despite all the challenges that this work entails, my attitude to it is changing and that has to do with the next reason, to which I subordinate everything else.
Emigrated to Tuscany! The house is finished, the dream fulfilled and then… feeling alone? Well, I ended up here anyway and it wasn’t originally my dream to buy a house here or move to Tuscany, as is probably the case with you. But over the years I’ve seen some people go back to their home country, especially older people. They felt alone here. They had made an effort to find contacts. That was nice and somehow worked, but no real friendships were formed. Well, that could happen to me as well as other people who settle here. And that would be a shame! You finally live your long-cherished dream and then realize that everything is perfect, only… the most important thing is missing, personal contacts, people you like, who you can talk to, who you trust and who are there when you need them. And that’s exactly what you can find here! Most people commute between two worlds like I do, but you can find plenty of opportunities to do something nice together….
And therefore, if you have read this far, you could be a future girlfriend/boyfriend. I will do everything I can to help you find a new home here, in our mutual interest and not just because I want to sell a property "per forza" (by the way, it's a fairy tale about making a quick buck with real estate. In reality, it's hard work with lots of costs and risks). At the end of the purchase and development process, we could end up sitting on the terrace with a glass of wine at YOUR place and saying "That's it, now comes the fun part! Che bella vita!"
New neighbors wanted for a beautiful life in Tuscany Salute! Cheers! A toast to buying a house in Tuscany!
I have this picture in front of me and I'm burning for it.
And how can you imagine “living together” here on site?
There are already many nice neighbors, such as Barbara/ architect & Hans/ retired professor; Yvonne, translator and tango dancer; Steffi/ teacher & Mathias/ well-known pianist from Hamburg, who gives wonderful house concerts; Julie and Daniel with two small children who have moved here permanently, Birgit, Arthur, Esther, Doreen and Pino, who are busy with a church project, Anna and Walter/ farmers; Holm, doctor from Berlin with his wife Anne, Ina and Andreas, who are preparing the most beautiful dance hall in Tuscany (the world?), Bärbel and Andreas, a dancer and also a pianist, and many more. Some have moved here permanently and others use their houses in Tuscany as vacation homes, often with the idea of moving here later. We have a WhatsApp group where we share experiences and information, arrange to meet up for concerts, events or parties, and friendships develop as a result. Of course, you determine the level of interest and intensity yourself. It is simply a nice and uncomplicated togetherness, supported by the desire to become at home with like-minded Tuscany-loving people in our new home.
And now I look forward to meeting you! And with a little patience and time we will find just the right thing!
Best regards,
Kristina
Search for your dream property in Tuscany
Perhaps you like the idea of finding people here who will make you feel even more at home. It’s nice and important to feel at home in another country, and that includes good contacts and friends.
Do you like our area 30 km south-east of Pisa near the pretty medieval town of Lari and do you have the time and patience to wait for the right house and the confidence that I will find it for you? Then I would be delighted to hear from you with a specific search request.
Thank you very much!