Verona and its province
What the house is really like, before you book the flight.
I am not an estate agency
You found a property online and you cannot tell whether it is worth the trip. I go instead of you: photographs, video, a look at the real condition of the property and of the streets around it, and a detailed written report. I do not sell houses and I take nothing from the people who do.
Rafael Peier, Sue Winston, Domenico Adornato, Ivanna Vinnicsuk / Unsplash
Why you can trust this
I do not sell houses
I am not an agency. I have no properties for sale, I take none on, and I never work for the seller. You are my only client.
No commission from agencies
I receive nothing from estate agents or sellers. I am paid by you, and only the amount written below.
The report may say do not buy
If the property has problems, the report says so. That saved you a mistake, and it is exactly the work you paid me for.
I save you the trip
You travel only if it makes sense to travel. What I charge is a fraction of a flight, a hotel and three days of leave spent on a wasted viewing.
How it works
Four steps, no surprises
From your first message to the final report, you always know where things stand.
- 01
You message me
Send me the listing link on WhatsApp or by email and tell me what worries you. I reply whether I can take it on, and how long it will take.
- 02
Engagement and deposit
You sign the engagement, pay €295 and I open the case. I ask you for no documents: all I need from you is the listing link and your questions.
- 03
I go to the property
I photograph everything, film the video, check the condition of the property and what is around it, and ask the agency for the documentation they hold.
- 04
Final report
I write up what I found, in plain language and in your language. You settle the remaining €295 and the report is yours, with whatever the agency handed over attached.
Areas
The areas I cover, and how they differ
“Near Verona” can mean four places with almost nothing in common, all of them within half an hour of each other. Chosen from a map, they look interchangeable. They are not.
Lake Garda, the Verona shore
Peschiera to Malcesine: forty kilometres, two different worlds.
Peschiera del Garda, Lazise, Bardolino, Garda, Torri del Benaco, Brenzone, Malcesine
The hills: Valpolicella and the eastern hills
Real countryside, a quarter of an hour from a city.
San Pietro in Cariano, Negrar, Fumane, Marano, Sant'Ambrogio, Illasi, Tregnago, Soave
The mountains: the Lessinia
Stone hamlets and a regional park, directly above Verona.
Bosco Chiesanuova, Erbezzo, Velo Veronese, Roverè Veronese, Sant'Anna d'Alfaedo
The city: Verona
Walkable end to end, yet the districts are very different.
Centro storico, Veronetta, Borgo Trento, Valdonega, San Zeno, Cittadella, Borgo RomaPrice
€590 per property, everything included
A fixed price, the same for every property. No percentage of the purchase price, no surprise invoice at the end.
Level 1
Full property analysis
The core package. Identical whatever the house.
€590per property
Final price. No VAT applied.
- Physical visit to the property
- Full photographic report
- Video filmed on site
- Whatever documentation the agency holds: I bring it back to you, and I tell you which documents are missing and what that absence means
- A 360° assessment: real condition, whether the asking price stacks up, and whether the listing matches what is actually there
- Answers to your own specific questions, the ones you set me at the start
- A detailed written final report, in your language
Payment
€295 on engagement, the rest on delivery of the report.
The report is yours the moment the balance is settled, with whatever the agency handed over attached.
Level 2
Extra services
You ask for these afterwards, only if you decide to go ahead. Each has its own fixed price.
- Accompanied visit on site
- Geometra: document and planning checks, applications and a costing of the works
- Cleaning
- Renovation coordination
- Notary support
I quote these when you need them. They are not part of the €590 and you do not pay for what you do not use.
How I am paid
The service is paid for by the buyer alone. I receive no commission from the seller or from estate agencies, and I do not act as a real estate intermediary: I do not bring the parties together to close a deal, I do not negotiate the price, and I have no interest in whether you buy. My fee is the same whether the report tells you to buy or to walk away.
About me
Andrea Padoan
Pre-visit analysis for buyers — Verona and its province
I live and work here. I know the difference between a village on the lake and one two valleys further up, and I know which questions to ask before you sign anything.
If you are buying from abroad, finding the house is not the hard part: you can browse the listings from home. The hard part is that the photographs were chosen to sell, and that the paperwork often tells a different story. To check in person you would have to fly over, and find out in twenty minutes on the doorstep that you should not have come.
My job is to make that trip instead of you, and to put in writing what I found.
Glossary
The Italian words you will meet in the paperwork
I do not translate these literally, because these are the words Italian offices use. Here is what they mean.
- Visura catastale
- The extract from the land registry: who is recorded as the owner, how the property is classified, and the rendita that Italian property taxes are calculated on.
- Planimetria catastale
- The floor plan filed with the land registry. If it does not match the house as it stands today, walls were moved without updating the records.
- Titolo edilizio
- The building permit under which the property was built or altered. Missing, or works carried out differently from what was authorised, means the property has a problem.
- Agibilità
- The certificate that the property is fit to be lived in: safety, hygiene, building services. Older buildings often lack it, and it has to be checked case by case.
- Sanatoria
- The procedure to regularise works carried out without a permit. It costs money and is not always possible, so it must be checked before you buy, not after.
- Conformità impianti
- The declarations that the electrical, gas and heating systems meet current standards. If they are missing, bringing them up to standard is at the buyer's expense.
- APE
- Attestato di Prestazione Energetica: the building's energy rating. It is legally required for a sale.
FAQ
What people ask me most
Are you an estate agency?
No. I have no properties to sell, I take none on, and I do not work for sellers. I do not act as a real estate intermediary: I do not bring the parties together to close the deal and I do not negotiate the price. You choose the house; I go and check it.
Who pays you?
Only you, the buyer. I receive no commission from the seller or from agencies, and no referral fee, rebate or kickback of any kind. That is precisely what lets me write that a house should not be bought.
What if the property turns out to have problems?
They go in the report. The report can conclude that you should not buy, and that is not a failed service: that is the service. The price is the same either way.
Do you also check the paperwork and the planning position?
Not in the base package. My report tells you what the property is really like and which documents are missing. If you decide to go ahead, I put you in touch with a geometra I trust who does the full check: visure, planning and land registry conformity, and a costing of the works. That is a separate service, with its own fixed price.
Which area do you cover?
Verona and its province. That includes the Veronese shore of Lake Garda, from Peschiera up to Malcesine, and the whole of the Lessinia.
What if I have two properties to check?
A second property visited on the same trip costs €390 instead of €590, because the travel is already paid for. They do need to be close enough to see on the same day.
Can I have you visit more than one house?
Yes. The first property is included in the €590. You add the others yourself from your own area, whenever you like, and they cost €390 each because the trip is already paid for. You do not pay when you add them: it all goes into the final balance, and I only count the ones I actually went to see. If we drop one before the visit, you do not pay for it.
Do I need to be in Italy?
No — that is precisely why the service exists: I go, and you stay where you are. I ask you for no documents to get started. I view the property as a prospective buyer on your behalf, and I report back what I see and what the agency hands over.
What language is the report in?
Italian, English or German. Italian technical terms stay in Italian, because those are the words you will meet in the documents and at the counter, but I explain each one.
Can I ask you specific questions about the property?
Yes, and it is included in the price. When you engage me you tell me what you want to know — damp, noise, neighbours, which way it faces, parking — and the report answers each one.
How do I pay?
By PayPal. €295 when you engage me, €295 on delivery of the report.
How long does it take?
It depends on how quickly the agency gives me an appointment, which is not up to me. I give you a firm answer when I reply, before you pay anything.
Contact
Already found a property you want checked?
Send me the listing link and tell me what worries you. I will reply whether I can take it on and how long it will take, before you decide anything. The first exchange costs nothing.
I answer in Italian, English and German. WhatsApp is for messages only, not calls.