ISOLA D’ELBA, TUSCANY

ISOLA D’ELBA, TUSCANY, ITALY

Population

57.68 million persons

PopulationGrowth

0.080 percent

Land Area

294,020 sq km

Currency & exchange rate

1 Euro = 100 cents

(~ 0.664547 GBP)

GDP-PPPMethod

1,188,770.0 millions of US dollars

GDP Growth

1.72 percent

GDP Per Head

20,610.0 Thousands of US Dollars Per Person

Financial

Interest Rate

Inflation Rate

2.6%

National Bank

Banca d’Italia

Political

The last parliamentary elections were held on the 13^th of May 2001 and the last presidential ones on the 13^th of May 1999. The election of 2001 was won by Silvio Berlusconi and his centre-right coalition of parties. It has a substantial and strong holding in the senate and the Chamber of deputies. The next due elections for both parliamentary and presidential are due in May 2006.

The centre-right coalition includes Berlusconis party - Forza Italia (FI) (Italian Force), Alleanza Nazionale (AN) (National Alliance), Lega Nord (LN) (Northern League) and Unione dei Democratici Cristiani e dei Democratici di Centro (UDC) (Union of Christian and Centrist Democrats) (elected May 2001).

The centre right coalition was elected with a strongly reformist agenda, including promises to cut taxes, stimulate new jobs and to create a more liberalised labour market

Italy held the Presidency of the EU from July to December 2003 and is playing a prominent role in the fight against international terrorism and reconstruction in Iraq, Afghanistan and the Balkans.

Social Security

Yes

Languages

Italian (official), German, French, Slovene

Customaries

The handshake is the standard greeting for men and women, upon meeting and again upon departure. Even children are encouraged to shake hands. In social settings, people may kiss on both cheeks. Formality is still appreciated. One should use the formal form of address such as Mr. or Mrs. followed by a surname, unless invited to move to a first name basis. Younger people are more apt to move to less formal forms of address quickly, while children tend to address each other using first names. Body language is quite interesting in Italy, and because much gesticulation tends to take place in this culture, one should be aware of the commonly used gestures

Ethnic Make-up

Germans
French
Slovenes
Albanians
Greek
Italian

Tax

Income Tax

Capital Gains Tax

Non-residents are taxed on income produced within Italy at the same rates as residents:

Taxable income (€)		Tax on lower amount	Rate on excess
Exceeding (€)	Not exceeding (€)	(€)	%
0	10,329	0	18
10,329	15,494	1,859	22
15,494	30,987	2,995	32
30,987	69,722	7,953	38
69,722	-	22,672	44

Capital gains not realised from business activities are subject to a specific capital gains tax at a rate of 12.5%

Description

Italy is the fourth-largest economy in Western Europe and is the worlds seventh largest. Policies introduced in the early 1990’s helped prepare the country for a smooth transition to the Eurozone, and it’s decision to join the euro has improved investor confidence significantly. Italys major industries are Tourism, machinery, clothing, engineering, chemicals, textiles and motor vehicles with the major trading partners being the EU (in particular Germany, France and the UK), and the US.

The south of the country, the Mezziogiorni, has a much lower economic output and suffers higher unemployment rates than the more industrialised north. The country’s standard of living is high, particularly in the North, where unemployment is extremely low and per capita income is amongst Europe’s highest

Investor Profile:

Cash & Equity Investor

Pension Investor

Holiday Investor

Retirement Investor

Downshifter Investor

Business Investor

Category:

Bronze

Population:

Total

British

30,000

200

Climate:

Hours of Sunshine Per Day in Summer

Days of Rain Per Year

January

July

Average

Water Temp.

Nine

17C

27C

23C

Proximity to:

Airport

Beach

Nearest City

Pisa Airport - and then either connection to Aeroporto La Pila in Marina di Campo, or drive directly from Pisa Airport to Piombino Marittima The only way to go to Elba island from here is to take the boat.

Elba does have an airport nearby, but only caters for a few flights from privileged European cities.

Fetovaia beach, Seccheto beach,

Cavoli beach

Fetovaia

Restaurants and bars:

The island has some good restaurants, including from Mexican. Many tourists often try some of Elba's best wines in Wine cellars which are located just by the seaside.

Sports and leisure facilities:

Swimming, horseback riding, golf and trekking, hiking, botanical walks, bird watching and tennis. The island is also a nice place to go for fishing activities or for sailing.

Transport:

Public Transport

Roads

You can reach the island of Elba by car where on arrival to Piombino, you must take a ferry across to the Island.

The island offers regular bus services around the islands beaches in addition to water taxi’s and minibuses to the beaches

The roads are in good shape and are used by buses, taxis and cars.

Crime rate:

Very low

Main types of employment

Tourism and services mainly.

Future plans:

To improve upon its thriving tourism industry and preserve the rich natural history of the island

Yield range

6 – 9%

Type of property

Entry Price

Rent-

Peak

Rent-

Off Peak

Average Annual Yield

2 bed apartment

£45,000

£400

£250

8.6%

3 bed apartment

£60,000

£500

£300

3 bed townhouse

£65,000

£500

£300

7.3%

Detached

£75,000

£550

£300

6.4%

Demand for letting

Peak

Off peak

High

Moderately high

Finance and leisure scores:

Total (out of 10)

Financial (out of 5)

Leisure (out of 5)

Flights scheduled from:

London, Manchester, Birmingham, Liverpool, Coventry, Newcastle, Luton and some other regional airports.

Typical cost of flights:

Peak

Off Peak

70 – 120 GBP

40 – 90 GBP

Operators:

Alitalia, British Airways, Ryanair, Britannia, Mytravellite and other low cost airlines

Description:

Elba is rich in memories of her tormented past: archaeological finds, military structures, Napoleon's residences, and then, under the sea along the coastline, the remains of ships that transported Elba's wine in the most important Mediterranean centres. Elba is a rich source of history, archaeology and treasures, providing a testimony to the past. It's hard to find anywhere else in the middle of the sea, which tells of a past enriched with such colour.

Its very cheap to get here as there are many low cost airlines flying to this area. Yields are okay and entry prices are reasonable compared to other countries such as Spain or Portugal. Capital gains tax is set at a low rate thus exiting from the investment will not hit the bottom line too hard.

Hot Website:

www.elba-online.com

Estate Agents:

Name

Address

Tel

Web

Tuscany Invest

Via L.da Vinci, 15

57029

Venturina (Li)

Tuscany, Italy