"It was an invasion — but a positive one!"
That's how Giuseppe Cacioppo, the deputy mayor of Sambuca, Sicily, described the sale of his town's abandoned homes to foreign buyers, the auctions of which started at just 1 euro, or $1.12.
Sambuca succeeded in selling off 16 historical but derelict stone homes to buyers from the US, China, France, Britain, Russia, and Argentina.
Image: Tamara Holm in her new home in Sambuca, Sicily. Tom Murray / Business Insider
