Sicilian-American Hunts for a Forever Home in Italy - Full Ep Recap | House Hunters International

[Music] I'm originally from St Louis Missouri I'm Sicilian I'm hot and spicy and I go from 0er to 100 in an instant and I am moving to Sicily by way of Shanghai and Barcelona the last thing I expected as an American coming out of a divorce to sort of detox myself from relationships to meet a fard a few months after moving was uh quite unexpected I'm from Saragosa in Spain I moved to Shanghai because I wanted to learn more about Chinese culture and my company offered me the opportunity to move there and the first week I would uh arrive to Shanghai I would uh meet Jennifer I've been traing back and forth between Barcelona and Italy as I've been building my business my company is based in Barcelona so so I cannot move on a permanent basis to Sicily at this point we're going to transition to a little more long distance until we're able to get back together traveling there and meeting her in in Sicily or when she comes back to Barcelona it's not easy but I think we are going to make it work guo is less of a risk taker much quieter and I am much more vocal he brings the stability I bring the excitement what I love about Sicily is it's still very much undiscovered hasn't got the inflated price tag of puler and Tuscany so Sicily really is a very very good option for investing not just as holiday rentals but also to create your new forever home here so you work here in Sicily I do I help other Americans claim their Italian citizenship by descent oh great I did not enter with a huge nestic I'm funding as I go I'm hoping to spend under 40,000 the pressure's on this is probably my forever home and so I have to get it right I am looking for a place with a lot of light I work from home guo is going to be visiting on a regular basis so he also works hybrid so we're going to need possibly two office spaces or at least two bedrooms that can be a flex it's going to be an assimilation period so I want to be in town where I can meet people that I can easily get around integrate into society and most of all I want that ocean view of course I will also be here with Henry our Jack Russell he loves laying outside in the sun so some outside space would definitely be very nice being an expert myself I really have Jennifer in mind she's going to be living here full time whilst yo is going to be here only part time so for her it's essential to be able to be on Fort walk in distance so she can really integrate her s into the community here in terracini right guys we're just on the outskirts of terrain's downtown you're a quar of a mile from the beach and a/4 of a mile from the main Piaza right so here we have the property on the third floor up there it's not exactly what I was thinking so we have two bedrooms one bathroom there's no Garden but there is a big wraparound Terrace that goes around the property okay so maybe that makes up for the lack of Italian charm what about the price Nikki this property is on the market for $135,000 oh that sounds really good that leaves us a little money to personalize with great so welcome to the apartment oh I love those glass windows then we come into the dining living area oh this is nice okay okay let's see the rest so here we have the kitchen you can see it's got quite a lot of space as far as an Italian Kitchen goes this is pretty big it's pretty bright that's a plus this kitchen space doesn't have enough cupboards if you look over there there is some extra storage space yeah I think this has some possibilities to get building permits can be an absolute nightmare so to have that property that you don't have to modernize it's just eliminating those extra elements of bureaucracy let's try to make things as simple as possible with the path of lease resistance right this way to the bedrooms oh these wood floors are nice Nikki I wasn't expecting that so this is the second bedroom oh this is quite nice very tasteful what do you think yeah there enough space to host your family my children Todd and Maggie are these amazing adults I spend two months out of the Year back in the US with them this has got a great little desk area it could be an office space for either one of you used you kind of separated it oh I like that idea so some privacy if you are working so that we don't overstep each other and here is the bathroom I think the space is nice but we're going to need to redo this uh if you add up both the kitchen some adaptation here it's adding up some money into it that's true when guo and I have a conflict I escalate really quickly guo is this wonderful sound voice of reason before you make up your mind let me show you the main bedroom imagine waking up to that view every morning um yes it's like the perfect view definitely kept the best for last and there's also a lot of space in this room I forget the rest of the apartment this is the money shot it's hard to resist honestly I'm going going to be the primary person here working and I think I've got a really great office space for me a great space but not location I really want something that's close to town close to the Sea close to the Piaza we're in the center of terracini these are the streets that my great grandparents walk I'm really looking forward to having this great life work balance having a place that friends and family can come visit this is the Italy that I imagined living in I absolutely love this we're in the center of terracini we have the sea behind us so as you can see we are right in the heart of town and really integrate yourself into Italian culture this time Nikki looks to hit the item she missed at house one location and charm obviously with a location such as this this does come at a higher price tag but you do have everything on your doorstep this is exactly the field that we were hoping for fantastic well the house I want to show you is right over here we have two bedrooms one bathroom it's in the second and third floor it's been renovated perfectly it is oozing Italian charm you are going to love this and what about outdoor space for Henry there is a little balcony for Henry the End of the Street you've got the beach behind you have the Piaza where there's a park so he's going to have a lot of fun exploring terracini by Paws what is the price on this one the price on this property is $150,000 W really want something close to the Sea close to the Pia so that I can just pop out when I want here's your bathroom oh um I wasn't expecting to see the bathroom right as I enter these are old properties so it is pretty much in line with the charm of old Italian homes so here we have a big open plan kitchen dining living area all your appliances I think this is exactly what I was envisioning as far as the Italian charm I love this Stone this is original yes isn't it magnificent incredible and look at these beams how beautiful this would be such a nice space to work in it's big and open this feels quite comfortable that charm this is really what I was looking for it's not a lot that I have to care for so I'm going to be able to spend my time at the beach and the park and hanging out with Henry which is really what's important to me oh wow the sea is right there this is fantastic this is what I wanted so here we have a guest bedroom SLC office we have a pull out bed here and here we could actually put a desk off a space so you can work you got this window here overlooking the kitchen which is bringing a lot of natural light let's go check out the Next Room another set of really steep stairs but this is part and parel of the old style Italian homes but look you've got those beautiful wooden ceiling again all this character and charm that is true this is such a nice bright room and the ceiling is gorgeous we want something where we can include ourselves in the community and I feel like this might be the place where we can do that at the end of the day this is my purchase and this is my forever home you imagine being my 16-year-old grandmother embarking on a boat for America from here the opportunity to live walking distance from the sea waking up in the morning to be able to taking that Fresh Ocean Air walking down the street that my great grandparents were born on this is a dream come true I am still American there is a mall just about 15 minutes away by car so oh really a mall here I am going at a leap of faith no backup but I live for risk I was sick all the time work was stressful life was stressful I feel like the risk were greater to stay where I was oh I could definitely get used to this it's so delicious meanwhile Nikki is very excited about the next property for several reasons I have found you the perfect location in 1 minute you are here on the scene this is stunning I could see Henry and I coming out every morning to take our walks here I wanted to bring Jennifer and Gore to this property even though it's over what they want wanted to spend just to show them what they can get for the price being so close to the sea I wanted to show you something first I did a bit of research this property was the property of your grandmother you're a non you're kidding yeah and the property we're going to see is just this property here so really you could be her neighbor oh my gosh I have chills and I love it when people come back to their Roots this is always such a great satisfaction to be able to connect someone's history with their present so this is the property two bedrooms one bathroom loads of living space a multi-level roof Terrace with SE view so finally got you that outside space you're looking for fantastic and oozing Italian charm but there is a catch this property is a diamond in the rough so it is a fixer upper so the property is on the market for $170,000 so much and it's a fixer upper let's go inside keep an up in mind and you'll see exactly what I'm talking about okay we are a few steps away from the sea this is the street that my grandmother came from this is my dream and here is your kitchen you want an Italian charm this is it definitely going to need some modernization but I love the bones and all of this light in here the space is fantastic but there is so much I would like to renovate completely sometimes you have to speak your mind and get your point taken you and that's all going to come at quite the cost for a kitchen plus we're already over what we hope to spend this is the bedroom there's no windows in this room it is dark but you know on the hot summer's day you're trying to escape that Sicilian Heat this could be a really lovely Refuge to cool down maybe it's a good place for Siesta let's be honest the perfect property really does not exist but this property represents an excellent blank canvas to personalize it and make it really the way they want [Music] [Laughter] it I see what we're going to be renovating first I am buying in a foreign country not known for homes that are easy to resell it's not a flip culture and so I have to get it right so here we have your very spacious living area this is really beautiful really nice and bright with the balcony right there look at the light in the ceiling I've never seen anything like that it's a bit kit but cool isn't it yeah I kind of like it through here we have a second bedroom which could be used for guests or an office space Oh not exactly what I was hoping for oh my goodness this is exactly what I pictured the church bells in the background I am loving every minute of this this is definitely L do Vita take a look at this balcony wow I could not even imagine having a view like this every day I can be out on The Terraces working Henry has plenty of room to run around and play but we still have the price and the renovation to keep in mind given the proximity to the ocean and to the town center this could be an incredible investment with loads of potential and it's going to be your new forever home this is Lita but I wonder if it's worth it because it's going to prove quite expensive I'm going to have to think about stretching my wallet to make this work because I can really have everything that I'm looking for and to be on the street that my family came from is just the cherry on top we're missing that quaintness it's hard to give up that dream Jennifer's dream of living in her ancestral Homeland is finally at hand this has been 5 years in the making so it was a a long Meandering Way to get to that second chapter will she let her budget dictate the choice of her forever home or will she once again take a risk let's start with the modern house imagine waking up to that view every morning um yes being able to see the sea every morning when we wake up is really incredible is pretty big it has amazing lights in all the rooms I really loved the house in town this is the Italy that I imagined living in I felt like I was in a sicilian Village which is what exactly I was going for love this Stone being in the center of town you have everything just around the corner however we don't need to live in the middle of town we could live a little out of town and it's also the Italian way what about the renovation that was pretty stunning we could really put our own personal touch on that it's so expensive and forget about the dollars it's the paperwork are you ready to deal with Italian paperwork oh I deal every day with Italian paperwork you're [Music] right the idea to live on the street that my grandmother came from you know that is really coming home to me but the price is way over what I had hoped to spend plus the renovation cost so I think we can rule that one out it would be fun to be like 6 months in the Town Center house but on the long term you would find that modern house has many more advantages it that's true I mean I think that space ticks a lot of boxes but we're missing that quaintness and and what I'm expecting from a sicilian town it's hard to give up that dream trust me as a European living in history it looks great but then it's not so comfortable after maybe a few months as living in a modern house you know you're right we're going to have all of the old tradition the food the culture the language the sights and sounds but when we get home every day I can work in a really modern comfortable space and waking up every morning with that amazing Ocean View I think the modern house is the right house for us terin's just been really welcoming you know I'm here a lot of times by myself so it's been nice I've been able to start making friends I'm growing my business I'm able to have my weekends and go down to the beach and really just take in all of the beauty here it's really just Chang the pace of life that I'm able to slow down and refresh all right hold on hold on hold on Harry likes also the salami I feel so comfortable when I come to tasini I can really enjoy my time here with Jennifer