A Chicago woman turned an abandoned “1 euro” house into a $490,000 dream home—with a spa, outdoor kitchen, and wine cellar.
Meredith Tabbone, 45, decided to bid on a dilapidated house in Italy on a “whim” after her friend sent her an article on a scheme where bids start low.
Bidding started at just a euro, but she threw in a random offer of around $5,600 for a 1600s disused building in Sambuca di Sicilia in Sicily, Italy.
The building had no electricity or running water, and the roof was thick with asbestos.
Ms. Tabbone bought the home next door for $3,400 and knocked through to create a four-bedroom, five-bathroom property.
She spent about $490,000 and five years creating her dream vacation house, fitted with an outdoor kitchen, a spa, and an outdoor party room.
“The house was in very bad condition—but in many ways, it was everything I expected it to be and more,“ said Ms. Tabbone, a financial adviser from Chicago. ”It had so much charm.
“It had such interesting architectural detail—you could really see the history coming through the walls. But it was a fixer-upper, to say the least.
“It was worth it. It turned out well.
“It’s modern but in keeping. It’s a vacation home.”
Ms. Tabbone began researching how to get Italian citizenship in 2016 and discovered her dad Michael’s great-grandfather Fillippo Tabbone came from Sambuca di Sicilia—a small village in Sicily.
After reading an article on people bidding on 1-euro houses in Italy, Ms. Tabbone threw in a bid in January 2019 and found out she had been successful in May of the same year.
She started work on it a month later—spending about $850 to remove the roof in an environmentally safe way.
In August 2020, she bought the home next door via a private sale to knock through and create a 3,000-square-foot property.
“When we first saw the house, it was 750 square feet; it had no electricity, running water, or windows; and it was thick with asbestos.
“At first, the plan was just to turn it into a small getaway house.
“While we originally just wanted it as a tiny getaway—we’ve turned it into a dream home.”
Ms. Tabbone has bought two guest houses in the same village for $35,600 in total, which will need minor repairs.
She also bought a disused building for $73,800, which she’s turning into an art gallery and apartment for artists to stay in.
Ms. Tabbone is currently gathering the plans and workforce to start renovating the gallery later this year.
After five years of hard work, Ms. Tabbone’s holiday home was finally completed in April 2024—and she now spends four months a year in Italy.
“It was very slow and tedious,” she said. “The sunsets are spectacular.”
Ms. Tabbone recommends people consider buying a 1 euro home but says it’s not for the faint of heart.
“I went all in,” she said. “If you can gather the strength, it is worth it.”
