A WOMAN left her life behind in the UK to buy two glamorous houses in Sicily for only 88p but the Italian dream soon turned into a nightmare.

       The deal-of-a-lifetime was on the cards for Alex Stubbs when she found a jaw dropping price on homes four-years-ago but she ended up banging her head against a wall as the big move didn't quite go to plan.

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       Alex Stubbs bagged herself two lovely homes in Italy for just 88p each Credit: instagram 3

       Her dream to connect the two properties into one huge space has been put on hold as the cost of renovating a house in Italy has skyrocketed recently Credit: instagram

       Alex bought two lovely houses next door to each other in Mussomeli for less than a ￡1 a piece in 2019, with the bright idea to transform them into one large home in sunny Sicily - a far cry from the UK.

       In her head only a few renovations were needed and the price would be much lower than anything she could've wished for across the rest of Europe.

       But Covid tore apart these plans for a few years and the pandemic caused the price of construction to skyrocket in Italy making the cost “significantly more” than she originally thought.

       The Italian eco-bonus scheme was also put on hold making it hard to fund any new building projects.

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       She said: “When I went back last year, it was absolutely impossible for me to find anybody to take on my renovation. You were bashing your head against a brick wall.

       “I decided to park it and wait for the eco-bonus to run its course. But in the years since I bought, global material costs shot up, so the quote that I had back in the day is not going to even vaguely cut it.

       "It’s quite a different proposition now.”

       Despite the frustrating setbacks, Alex still wants her dream life to unfold just how she imagined and to get out of her normal life down in Norfolk.

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       The hope is for Alex to set up a social enterprise in Mussomeli and share her house with others to enjoy alongside her, rather than using it as a private space.

       She said: “I fell for this pair of properties because I had a vision of what they could become.

       “The ball’s in my court as to when I go back and get it all re-costed.”

       A similar tale played out for a hopeful London chef who also snapped up an 88p Italian crib and had big plans.

       After ditching a ridiculously expensive London Danny McCubin, 60, quickly discovered that he'd made a big mistake as it turned out to be cheaper to buy a normal property than renovate his new place.

       Danny bagged himself a house in Mussomeli, Sicily in 2020 after his friend told him the town was offering homes to foreigners for under ￡1.

       The chef told The Sun: "I didn't want to take on a renovation project.

       "I already renovated my house in London, and you know, no matter where you are, renovations can be stressful.

       "And part of my reason of moving to Mussomeli was to lead a stress free life."

       In the end it cost Danny over $20,000 to renovate his $1 house - not exactly the bargain it was supposed to be.

       Regions in Italy have gone to some pretty extreme lengths to get more residents into old crumbling towns in recent months.

       Calabria were even offering a whopping ￡26,000 to anyone who wanted to move there - but only if they're the right age.

       The sun-soaked Italian region of Calabria sits surrounded by beautiful beaches and could be a millennial's dream as long as you're under 40-years-old and can move within three months with a solid business to start up.

       Earlier this year, beautiful Mauritius was offering anyone with a keen eye in the buisness world an opportunity of a lifetime.

       The secluded island was willing to give people ￡350 per month to stay there so long as they had an original and profitable business idea.

       In return they’ll give you the money and your very own buisness graduate to help with whatever you need to get your idea off the ground.

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       It comes as an idyllic Greek island is offering to pay a lucky applicant thousands to move there - and you'll even be given land for your own dream villa.

       Home to just 68 people, tiny Antikythera is desperate for new residents.

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       Sicily is a far cry from Norfolk where Alex plans to move from when her project is complete Credit: instagram