Ever heard of an offer you can't refuse? Sicilian mayor Vittorio Sgarbi has. The creative politician has decided to give the historic town center of Salemi in southwest Sicily a boost by selling properties in dire shape for just a single Euro (that's $1.39), according to the Daily Mail. The catch is that it'll cost you about $140k to repair the homes, and you'll have to do so within two years, keeping with its original character, and using local artisans, masons, builders, and architects in order to revitalize the area's weak economy. The area was damaged by a 1968 earthquake, and many houses have since been abandoned and are on their last legs. "We want to try and attract people back to the town or at least make some form of donation to try and help save an architectural environment that we are rapidly losing," says Sgarbi. Salemi, which has a population of 11,436, is also important historically: it is "known for having been the place where Giuseppe Garibaldi announced the annexation of Sicily in May 1860 as part of the expedition of the Thousand," and "has been ruled by the Romans, Vandals and Goths and then the Arabs." If you ever dreamed of living your own version of Under the Tuscan Sun, perhaps now is the time!
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