Washington-born couple Cassandra Tresl, 33, and her husband, Alex Ninman, 34, were living in the Czech Republic with her grandfather when their daughter was born in 2020. They faced a crossroads: move back to the United States or stay abroad?
The couple had moved in with Tresl’s grandfather around March of that year after learning they were expecting, using her grandfather’s place as their home base while traveling around Europe before Tresl was due to give birth.
Tresl says they had told friends they’d move back to the U.S. after their daughter was born, but when they started looking at how expensive it would be to buy a house and pay for childcare, they decided to look to Italy instead.
“I really thought that if I had a kid, I would go back to the States,” Tresl says. “And then it ended up not happening, because I realized how much more expensive it would be if we did go back.”
They decided to explore options in Italy after Tresl remembered seeing stories about towns across the country selling one-euro homes in order to attract foreign investors to buy the houses, rehab them and drive up the dwindling population numbers.
When house hunting, having a view was a nonnegotiable for Tresl, she says.
Cassandra Tresl
Tresl first wanted to determine the actual cost of purchasing one of those homes to see if it was an option for the couple, since they didn’t want to spend more than 20,000 euros, or about $23,627 USD, on the purchase.
Many of the one-euro properties come with a catch. In some towns, the one-euro purchase is symbolic and the real prices are in the thousands. In others, the bids start at a single euro, but the final price is usually higher. And once buyers get their properties, they generally have to complete the renovations within a certain timeframe.
“I started to look online for houses for sale in Italy. Since we were in Europe and we’ve been to Italy, it wasn’t a problem to go there and check out some of these houses. I’m also not the type of person that would have ever done anything like this sight unseen,” Tresl tells CNBC Make It.
House hunting in Italy
In 2021, the couple went on a house-hunting tour in Italy and viewed 15 homes across Abruzzo and Tuscany. They ended up purchasing a two-floor, two-bedroom house just under 1,076 square feet, with a third bedroom in the basement and an attic, in Abruzzo.
They knew renovations would be costly, so Tresl says they picked their home largely based on the price — and the fact that the terrace has a view.
“I’m a spreadsheet type of person, so I had all the pros and cons of all these houses and it came down to Abruzzo being a much better value in general,” she says. “In hindsight, there are a lot of other reasons why I’m glad that we landed here, but at that point in time, I knew nothing else besides the price and that I wanted the best deal.”
Ninman did a lot of the renovation work himself in order to save money.
Cassandra Tresl
The couple closed on the house in February 2022 in an all-cash deal for 11,500 euros, or $13,150 at the time, according to documents reviewed by CNBC Make It.
“I loved the price and the terrace,” Tresl says. “People think that it’s super easy to just throw a rock in any direction and find a house with a garden in Italy, but it’s just not the case. We do have a terrace, and we have a really nice view, and that was a nonnegotiable for me.”
The couple says the house they bought had been empty for decades.
Cassandra Tresl
The price also allowed the couple to buy the property outright, which “alleviated a lot of stress in multiple areas of my life,” Tresl says. “If my income fluctuates or money gets tight, at least we don’t have a mortgage and our family has a secure roof over our heads. This financial freedom was actually one of the main factors that made this move and decision possible.”
Moving to Italy permanently
Tresl, Ninman and their daughter briefly returned to the Czech Republic to develop a plan for where to live, since their Italy house wasn’t habitable at the time — it needed a lot of work since it had been empty for 30 years, Tresl says. They decided to rent an Airbnb in a nearby town in Abruzzo for a little over a month while their house was renovated.
Because the house had been empty for decades, the walls needed resurfacing, some electrical work needed to be redone, the windows and doors needed redoing and the bathroom and kitchen needed to be gutted. Ninman did most of the work himself, but the couple hired out to do the plumbing, Tresl says.
In total, the couple spent around 12,000 to 15,000 euros, or $14,207 to $17,758, to renovate the home, they estimate.
As part of the renovation, the couple made the terrace bigger, added a bathroom downstairs and turned the basement into a proper guest suite. They finished most of the renovation in the fall of 2022, but redid the basement and attic in 2023.
During the renovation, Tresl decided the new house design should be eclectic.
Cassandra Tresl
Tresl says she wanted the house to have an eclectic design, so she visited thrift stores and flea markets to source vintage pieces.
“I wanted natural materials and to combine both warm and cold. I have a lot of color in the house in terms of paint because I felt like the house was small, so I wanted to make it a happy house,” Tresl says. “Everything I picked out, I have a reason for it. I wanted to set a goal for myself that everything I look at reminds me of where I got it from.”
Although the couple doesn’t have a mortgage, the house isn’t completely free to live in. Here’s a breakdown of the couple’s house-related expenses, according to documents reviewed by CNBC Make It. All expenses are rounded.
- Internet: 12 euros (about $14) per month
- Property taxes: 61 euros (about $72) annually
- Water: 91 euros (about $108) every two months
- Electricity: 217 euros (about $256) every two months
- Garbage: 286 euros (about $338) annually
The couple also has a pellet stove that they use in the winter. It can cost an additional 42 euros a week, or about $200 a month, for heating, Tresl says.
Because the house had been empty for decades, the bathroom and kitchen needed to be gutted.
Cassandra Tresl
Since moving to Italy permanently, Tresl left her tech job and started creating content for her travel blog and newsletter. She also works for another travel blogger as an operations manager. Ninman left his job as a butcher when the couple moved out of the U.S. and now manages a second property the couple owns and rents out on Airbnb.
Putting down roots in Italy
In addition to their primary residence, Tresl and Ninman acquired a second property in Italy in 2024, which they rent on Airbnb for up to 85 euros, or about $101, per night.
Located in the countryside of their town, the single-story two-bedroom, one-bathroom house sits on its own land and has a private garden. The couple bought it for 17,000 euros, or about $20,083.
Tresl decided it would be better for their daughter to put down roots in Italy instead of returning to the U.S.
Cassandra Tresl
Tresl says she’s been asked before why the couple doesn’t make it their primary residence, but she says she loves being in the center of her town. “It’s really nice just to be able to walk anywhere from our house,” she adds.
Now that the couple has two properties in Italy, they say they are staying put — most likely until they are empty nesters.
“My husband and I have talked about probably moving out of Italy once we know what our daughter is doing and if she decides to go to school somewhere else,” Tresl says. “It will free us up to do whatever, but that’s not something we’re thinking about for at least another 10 years because I want my daughter to have stability.”
The couple visits the U.S. about once a year, and although it will always be home, Tresl says it feels more foreign each time she returns.
Cassandra Tresl
They visit the U.S. about once a year, and although it will always be home, Tresl says it feels more foreign each time she returns.
“I feel like an outdoor cat having to go back in or vice versa … It just feels odd. I grew up in the ’90s and I feel like my childhood was so different compared to what I witnessed on my last visit. It’s a huge part of why I love being in Italy right now, because my daughter, I feel, is getting a much more wholesome experience and a genuine childhood,” she says.
Conversions from euros to USD were done using the OANDA conversion rate of 1 euro to $1.18 USD on Feb. 9, 2026. All amounts are rounded to the nearest dollar.
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