Economics
Homes Help Italy Grow: No Wonder Renzi Wants Ownership Tax Break
Premier may give Italians another reason to hold onto their dwellings
Traditional painted houses stand on a hillside in the town of Rocca di Papa, Italy.
Photographer: Alessia Pierdomenico/BloombergThis article is for subscribers only.
As Italy fights back from its worst economic slump since World War II, people are clinging to the four walls of their homes. That ownership has unexpectedly been driving up the nation’s new-found growth and may soon lead to a tax break from Premier Matteo Renzi.
While the nation’s economy shrank more than 8 percent and unemployment doubled in the seven years of the crisis, real estate was the gross domestic product component whose weighting rose the most, according to Bloomberg News calculations based on data from the country’s statistics bureau.