Buying an apartment in Milan: prices, neighborhoods and advice before you start

Price per m², trend, neighborhoods, costs and transaction steps: what to know before buying an apartment in Milan in 2026.

The Remoters editorial team

Published on

4 August 2023

Updated on

6 October 2026

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Buying in Milan means entering the most expensive market in Italy. According to the idealista index for the third quarter of 2026, an existing home is listed there at an average of €5,659 per square metre, against €2,031 for the country as a whole. Yet prices remain moderate: Istat measures a rise of 2.4% year on year in the second quarter of 2026, much less than in the previous quarter, and asking prices even fell 1.7% between June and September.

Before you start, four points deserve your attention: the real level of prices and their trend, the total cost of the purchase (taxes included), the choice of neighborhood, and how the transaction unfolds, from the preliminary contract to the deed at the notary. This page goes through them one by one, with public, dated figures.

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Prices in Milan in 2026: high level, slowing growth

What the indices say

Istat publishes a housing price index every quarter for Rome, Milan and Turin. In the second quarter of 2026, Milan rose 2.4% year on year, after 7.1% in the first quarter: a clear slowdown, while Rome (+6.4%) and Turin (+8.5%) are accelerating. Nationally, the rise is 4.0%.

On the listings side, idealista puts Milan at €5,659/m² in September 2026, well ahead of Venice (€4,956/m²), Florence (€4,800/m²) and Rome (€3,810/m²). The province of Milan, outside the city, is at €4,126/m², down 1.4% over the quarter. Moving away from the centre therefore lowers the budget significantly.

Volume and average purchase

The annual report of the Real Estate Market Observatory of the Agenzia delle Entrate (May 2026) gives the measure of the market in 2025:

25,173 homes sold in the municipality of Milan, up 4.9% year on year;
an average value of about €439,700 per home sold, the highest of the large Italian cities (Rome is around €270,000);
an average surface area of 80.5 m², with most sales between 50 and 85 m²;
53.3% of purchases by individuals financed by a mortgage, with an average borrowed amount of €256,300, an average initial rate of 3.30% and an average monthly payment of €1,130.

In the municipalities bordering the city, sales rose faster (+5.7%): some buyers are shifting to the inner suburbs.

A tight market, but not an overheated one

In its 2026 real estate bubble index, presented by idealista in October 2026, the bank UBS classes Milan at "moderate" risk, with a score of 0.50. Real prices (adjusted for inflation) are stable year on year (-0.4%) and have risen 1.2% a year over ten years. The report also notes that local incomes alone are no longer enough to finance the purchase of a 60 m² apartment near the centre, which reflects the weight of international demand in sought-after neighborhoods.

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Which neighborhood to buy in Milan?

Milan works by micro-neighborhoods: two metro stops are enough to change the atmosphere and the price level. Here are the main areas, from the most prestigious to the most affordable.

Brera and the historic centre

Galleries, cafés, old streets: it is the most sought-after and most expensive address in the city. Properties there are rare and often small for their price.

Porta Nuova, Isola and Garibaldi

The modern heart of Milan, with recent buildings around Piazza Gae Aulenti and the Bosco Verticale. Isola, a former working-class neighborhood, attracts young professionals and expats.

Navigli and Tortona

The canal district, lively in the evening, popular with creative types. Be prepared for noise and crowds on the busiest streets.

Porta Romana, Porta Venezia, CityLife

Residential, well-connected and quieter areas, with period buildings in Porta Romana and Porta Venezia and contemporary architecture in CityLife.

Città Studi, Lambrate and NoLo

The most affordable options inside the city. Città Studi, to the east, lives to the rhythm of the Politecnico; NoLo, north of Piazzale Loreto, is a mixed neighborhood in full transformation; Lambrate is quieter, with good transport.

If you plan to rent the property out

The Milan rental market is tight and furnished rentals dominate. As a guide, a two-room apartment (bilocale) generally rents for between €800 and €1,200 per month in Città Studi, Lambrate or NoLo, and between €1,600 and €2,400 in the historic centre. These levels move: the UBS index notes a 6.3% fall in real rents year on year in 2026. So be careful with any promise of a quantified yield.

How much does buying cost on top of the price?

The Agenzia delle Entrate tax guide (October 2025 edition) details the taxes due on purchase. Everything depends on the seller and your situation.

Purchase from an individual (or a company selling without VAT): registration tax of 9%, with a minimum of €1,000, plus €50 of mortgage tax and €50 of cadastral tax.
Purchase of a new home from a company subject to VAT: VAT of 10% (22% for luxury homes), plus €200 for each of the three fixed taxes.
"Prima casa" scheme (main residence): registration tax reduced to 2% (minimum €1,000), or VAT at 4% for new builds. In particular, you must live in the municipality or commit in the deed to transferring your residence there within 18 months.

Between individuals, the buyer can ask the notary for the "prezzo-valore" system: the tax is then calculated on the property's cadastral value rather than the price paid, which often reduces the bill significantly. In the guide's example, a property bought for €200,000 with a cadastral income of €900 generates €10,206 of registration tax instead of €18,000.

The steps of the transaction

Check the property. Cadastral and mortgage data can be consulted with the Agenzia delle Entrate. The deed of sale must state the cadastral data and the filed plans, and the sellers must declare that the actual state of the property matches them.
Sign the preliminary contract (contratto preliminare), in writing. It must be registered within 30 days: €200 fixed duty, plus 0.5% on the amount paid as a deposit (caparra), a sum later deducted from the tax due on the final deed.
Have it recorded if needed. Once signed at the notary, the preliminary contract can be entered in the property registers, which protects you if the seller tried to sell the property to a third party in the meantime.
Sign the final deed (rogito) at the notary, who checks the match between the owners listed in the cadastre and the property registers, then collects and pays over the taxes.

If a real estate agent is involved, their details and their fee appear in the deed, and the notary reports to the authorities any intermediaries not listed in the professional register. Check this registration before paying anything.

Buying in Milan before you live there

Following such a fast market from France takes time on the ground: viewing several properties on the same day, comparing with recent sales in the neighborhood, reading a preliminary contract written in Italian. A Remoters home finder based in Milan can search for a property according to your budget and criteria, do the viewings for you, prepare the file and review the documents before you sign at the notary. The first conversation and the quote are free.

Before any commitment, also review the tax implications of your project in Italy and in France with your bank and, if needed, a tax adviser.