Italy, here we come: Why these Angelenos are bailing on the U.S.
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Linda Bernardi spent four years building her Malibu dream home, putting the finishing touches on the coastal Sunset Mesa estate late last year.
On Jan. 7, she watched it burn to the ground.
“I absolutely knew I would never live in L.A. again,” she said.
The days and weeks after the devastating Palisades and Eaton fires saw a mass migration of displaced residents. Some families fled to hotels or short-term rentals. Others fanned out up and down the coast and into the desert and mountains, wanting refuge from the chaos of the city.
Others are eyeing a more ambitious getaway.
Citing fires, politics and Los Angeles’ housing crisis, a growing number of Angelenos are bidding farewell to California and the United States altogether in exchange for a life abroad.
American expats are nothing new; the Assn. of Americans Resident Overseas estimates that there are more than 5 million U.S. citizens living abroad. Mexico and Canada are the two most popular destinations — each hosts more than a million Americans as full-time residents — and immigration companies from both countries said there’s always an uptick during election years. But this year, demand has been unusually high.
Joe Cronin, president of International Citizens Insurance, said over the last four months, he has received 758 inquiries from Californians looking to move abroad, 25% more than in the same period last year. The top 10 destinations include the usual suspects — Mexico and Canada — but also Spain, Thailand, France, the Philippines, Portugal and Italy.
Italy, although always a hot vacation spot, hasn’t historically been as popular for expats; most estimates put the number of Americans living in Italy at around 15,000. But attorney Marco Permunian said now more than ever Americans, especially Southern Californians, clamor for the historic bustle of Rome or a more relaxed, rustic lifestyle a la “Under the Tuscan Sun.”
A decade ago, Permunian and his father founded two companies: Italian Citizenship Assistance, which specializes in helping Americans gain Italian citizenship, and Italian Real Estate Lawyers, which helps them purchase homes in the country. He’s based in Rovigo, a city in northeast Italy, but has offices in Riverside, New York, Memphis and Dallas.
The two companies have served more than 2,000 clients over the last decade, and Permunian said roughly 25% have come from California. Interest has steadily increased over the last few years, and in the last two months — a stretch that includes President Trump’s inauguration and the catastrophic Palisades and Eaton fires — calls from Southern Californians have doubled to 60 a month from 30.
“There have been a few spikes in business over the years typically tied to the political and social climate,” he said. “But for people in Southern California right now, it seems to be a combination of factors.”
A primary factor is Trump and the vitriolic state of U.S. politics, Permunian said. Trump’s second term has brought even more interest than the first one.
“The first time, people said they were giving him the benefit of the doubt. Now, they know what to expect and have a feeling it’ll be worse this time around,” Permunian said.
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Another contributor is the string of wildfires that have torn through California in recent years. For some, the January blazes were a breaking point.
“Most of them weren’t even directly affected, but they’re scared it’ll happen sooner or later,” he said. “Someone whose house burned down just contacted me. They’re exploring options, and Italy is one of them.”
Lastly, Los Angeles County residents are exhausted by the rising cost of living — not just inflation but rising rents, high interest rates and home prices that skyrocketed during the pandemic and never fell back down.
“People in L.A. are telling me that life in the city is beyond reasonable. The housing market has people concerned,” Permunian said.
Although $1 million once meant luxury, it now serves as the starting point for many cities and neighborhoods. In recent years, once-affordable markets such as Tustin, San Gabriel, Highland Park and Crenshaw joined the million-dollar club, and the median home price across the entire L.A. market inches ever closer to the magic number. It currently sits at $953,514, according to Zillow.
In Italy, L.A.’s table scraps transform into a feast.
Homes hypothetically start at 1 euro, or $1.09, though the viral price point carries a labyrinth of red tape and typically requires a painstaking and costly renovation plan before the house is yours.
According to Permunian, move-in-ready homes start at about $87,400 and range up to about $546,000: cozy apartments in small towns on the lower end of the scale, modest homes in midsize cities in the middle, and breathtaking villas or luxury condos in premier cities such as Florence or Rome at the top.
With the dollar steadily gaining on the euro over the last decade, Americans — and especially Californians, who typically earn higher wages than the national average — have significant buying power in the Italian real estate market.
“A standard house in Southern California costs more than a luxury property in Italy,” Permunian said.
Bernardi, a tech executive, sought out Permunian a year ago for help with buying a home in Italy. She planned to live in Malibu and own a second home in Italy, since her husband is of Italian descent.
But when firefighters weren’t able to protect her neighborhood in January and her home burned down, her shock and disbelief quickly turned to anger and frustration.
“There was a fire hydrant in front of our house that I later found out wasn’t even operable,” she said. “It begs the question of where our tax dollars are going.”
For Bernardi, the fire and the city’s disjointed response cemented her decision to leave.
“We’ve always loved Italy and were planning to move at some point, but the impetus has grown feverishly now. We’re ready to go,” she said.
Bernardi has been shopping around in Rome and Milan, drawn to the history of the region and the social nature of the people. She contacted Permunian to help navigate the complex house-hunting process.
“Italy has its own complications,” she said. “It’s not like Zillow where you choose a home and buy it.”
For a fee — starting at about $5,500 and ranging up about $10,900 — Permunian oversees the buying process, helping Americans choose which Italian experience they want: the quiet leisure of a sleepy small town or the frenetic energy of a big city. He sends them potential properties, gives advice on the home’s structure and shepherds them through the labyrinthine purchase process filled with proposals, preliminary agreements and final contracts.
Half of his clients buy apartments in city centers and half opt for countryside villas. Brand-new builds don’t sell well; Americans want to feel part of the ancient culture’s history.
Jon Halleran, a retired schoolteacher from Riverside, bought a three-bedroom apartment in Padua, a midsize city in northern Italy, for about $185,000. He splits time between Padua and Riverside — as a noncitizen, he’s only allowed to stay in Italy for 90 days at a time — but wishes he could live there forever.
“This isn’t something that’s exclusive to rich people,” he said. “I had a regular career and now I own a second home in Italy.”
Halleran is learning Italian, and he spends his three-month stretches there eating out, befriending neighbors and renting cars for road trips, since noncitizens aren’t allowed to buy cars in Italy.
In the wake of the Palisades fire, Bernardi’s not sure what type of home she wants, or whether Italy will even be her permanent home; she’s also considering moving back to her previous city of Seattle, or maybe a cabin in the woods.
“I just want to be as far away from the madness of L.A. as possible,” she said.
Joe Manginelli also is ready for un grande cambiamento, he said while stuck in standstill traffic on the 5 Freeway. Born and raised in Southern California — with all its natural beauty and human chaos — he’s pining for a breather after a career as a broadcast technician.
“You can buy a house there for less than you can buy a car here,” Manginelli, 52, said. “You don’t have to twist my arm too much.”
With a budget of about $109,000 to about $164,000, he’s shopping in Puglia, a region on the southeast coast, the metaphorical heel of the boot.
Financially, it makes sense. Americans can apply for an incentive that offers a low 7% tax rate on foreign incomes if they’re living in a town or city with fewer than 20,000 people. So Manginelli plans to rent out his current home in Huntington Beach, as well as an investment property in Palm Desert, and live off the minimally taxed profit.
“We’re looking in beach towns. They have two-bedroom homes steps from the water for less than” $218,000,
he said.
Manginelli’s family hails from southern Italy, and he’s visited the country four times over the years to connect with his origins. This summer, he’s heading back on a house-hunting trip, drawn by the Italian phrase il dolce far niente — the sweetness of doing nothing.
He used Permunian’s company to help obtain Italian citizenship, which is available only to those of Italian descent. So when he buys a home — if he wants — he can stay for good.
Permunian said it’s a common theme among his clients. In addition to escaping fires and American politics, his clients also are hoping to de-emphasize the hustle: working to live, not living to work.
Still, Permunian stressed that Italy is often idealized in movies and art, and he added that the country has as many problems as the U.S.
“We too have crimes, natural disasters and conservative politics,” he said. “But to Californians, this place is paradise.”
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