Collapse ?

.......but it is beginning to look a bit like the Italian economy.

I agree that there are very few posts but members must still be looking at the posts as the original post timed at 9.20am today (35 mins ago) has already had 15 reads - including mine.

I believe that as a generality. there are three types of 'user' of this forum, namely those who

• own property [holiday or permanent] in Italy
• are thinking of buying property in Italy
• general browsers

As a further generalisation, I expect that, owing to the current financial climate, there are less people who are thinking of buying property, and as these people are some of the most prolific 'raisers of questions' there is a drop off in issues raised here. Hopefully this will not stop the forum from existing - but it does mean that for the foreseeable future, there will be less 'traffic' here A

There is also only so much 'Stuff' to talk about, and most things have been covered on this site. The information still exists in the Archive so people can access it without going through the tedium of posting a question and going through the tribulations of getting a pertinent reply. Also there is no connection and banter here that existed on other sites, where people used the forum as a Social Network. I for one will not be shedding any tears, if it's run it's course so be it.. Beh!!

Some of are still here- thank God! Is it true that a towbar makes a UK car more difficult to import?

"Also there is no connection and banter here that existed on other sites, where people used the forum as a Social Network"   But isn't a factual, non bantering, dull, boring forum exactly what everyone wanted?   Seems we got exactly what we wished for.

I think a lot of people now use Facebook for their social networking stuff and this site, as mentioned above, as a source of practical information on things Italian. Useful.

..maybe there's nothing new in me not getting it but I think it's not that bad.  Where are people going to get questions answered?  I don't agree that there has been a drop in house demadn and we are finding this year pretty good both in levels of enquiries and actual deals done.   I dont know who runs the site, where it hosted etc but there are certainly lots of informed people out there and I have learned loads of new stuff I for one would be sad to see this resource go and maybe the tech savvy could let us know if we can do this another way.  I am on a forum called englishforum.ch and its fast, it's well used and vibrant but I havent a clue whose it is and how it works. We can have englishfurum.it I am sure of it and that could provide the same thing but maybe a little faster.  We also need new members so why dont we all try an recruit a few people to pep it up a bit C'mon guys

Well Italianlife I don't know where about you are in Italy, but here in 'Prosperous' Tuscany property is the slower moving than a chiocciola. Agreed the wealth of knowledge on this site is very useful and I refer back to things often, but the active membership is in the #20s so beside the odd interested inquisitive party I don't think attracting new members will achieve any tangible slow up in the Forum's decline. Oh! is that a rat I saw scurrying past..........

I find information on this forum very interesting and despite what some say the occasional bit of banter. even when a post has nothing to do with me I still read with interest and I also enjoy the strong opinions held by some here. Italy community is on my favorite bar and will remain there.

It may be quiet but you just wait.  The northern European and American baby boomers are just starting a wave of retirements that will go on for 2 decades and their parents have one foot in the grave and another on a bananna skin. There is a shed load of money heading this way. Where will they go .. Spain?  get your house nicked by the authorities.  France? they don't like foreigners, Italy - yes they love us and we love them and the sun comes out a lot... the last few wrecks are nearly gone now so the property market is becoming a scarce resource.   My prediction - house prices will double in just a few years and this forum will hum again.

Wishful thinking I'm afraid....we'll all be working 'till we drop if current signs are correct, what ever happened to the age of leisure predicted when we were younger??

Love your positive post sagraiasolar.....and the site loaded this morning in double quick time!. They may not be buying in Tuscany, but they certainly still are in Marche.

Sagraiasolar might be right. The scandinavian countries' economies are still going strong and I think that they will more and more turn their eyes towards Italy rather than Spain - although Spain, Portugal and France offer less tax for people that go into pension. A lot of people in Sweden thinks that it is very complicated and expensive to buy a house in Italy - but the swedish krona is strong and the prices are often less than for a swedish summer house and owning a house in Sweden is often more expensive when you take into account the cost of heating. Not to forget the difference in climate, food, surroundings, wine etc. With Ryanair it takes us less time to travel to our house in Italy than it took us to drive to our previous summer house in Sweden. We have a number of friends that now are turning their heads towards Italy. It is a matter of spreading the information! I have gotten lots of good information from this site, and I appreciate its friendliness. So I hope it will continue!

Blimey!  I thought we were a big gang!   I have my own little development in Marche which is going well and i work for a company with developemnts in COmo and Umbria and these are also going well.  I really don't think its that bad and here's why i am optimistic. People now broadly value quality of life more than they did before.  People is a post religious world know that when you're dead you're dead so they want to get as much pleasure and relaxation before the turn their toes up. we see this all the time where people want to live the italian life and as far as I can see nobody is making any more land here with views.  It's warm, it's easy, the foods good, the wines cheap, the land is nice to look at Kroner is high, buying a euro based asset is consequently relatively cheap for Swedes adn for other Non Euro people.  Those that will suffer are people in properties built for working Italians and there I think prices are going to fall twenty of us.....  Wow!

I have met a few great people through this site and I've enjoyed reading (and posting ocasionally) over the last 2 years or so.  The slow loading has been annoying but not a deal-breaker for me.  There hasn't been an awful lot posted recently of interest to me personally but I still drop in from time to time to make sure I'm not missing out!  I do however post regularly on another forum that's just for my region of Abruzzo and it is much more lively.  Why? Not sure to be honest.  I don't think that there are any more members there.  I think this type of forum just goes in cycles with new people dipping in and others dropping off.  Perhaps those of us who wish the long-term survival of this forum should just each start a new thread on a topic which we know something about that might be of use to newbies and other members?  I'll put mine up in a mo...

This forum covers the whole of Italy whilst others are more specialised and maybe that's why they are more lively. Personally, having been here since the very beginning, I have "feelings" for this site and would be sorry to see its demise.  Not interested in stupid sarky arguments - I can get them at home!!  Still find the site useful for the odd insight and info.  But I've gone through the whole house-buying/restoring bit and am now interested in more general Italy issues - art/politics/history etc and in my region - Marche - in particular.  Maybe this site doesn't cater so much for the likes of me, but I still drop in and contribute when I can

I find this site consistently interesting and I like that there are not 100 new posts every time I log in like there might be on more 'lively' sites. I could not keep up and could feel alienated, especially as sometimes sites with lots of contributions include many somewhat unkind anonymous postings, but then maybe I prefer an older style way of doing things! I would be sad if this site folded. Not totally sure why people are predicting its demise.