How to Recover Abandoned Homes
The Lesson from New Mexico and the Untapped Potential of Italy’s Small Municipalities
The original Italian version of this article was published by Matteo Cerri in Esco Quando Voglio #99
In New Mexico, a micro-loan program is bringing vacant homes back to life at remarkable speed. Italy — a country with millions of unused, long-abandoned properties — could adopt a similar model. It would cost little, generate immediate impact, and restore vitality to small towns and inland areas.
A story that comes from far away (but speaks directly to us)
Sometimes, to understand what we could do in Italy, we simply need to look at what is happening elsewhere. The “Rehab-2-Rental” initiative, reported by Reasons to Be Cheerful and originally published by Shelterforce, one of the few independent American newsrooms fully dedicated to housing policy, seems at first glance like one of those local stories destined to stay local. A handful of determined volunteers, a bit of grassroots organizing, a modest grant.
Yet it is much more than that.
It is a story about the dignity of decent housing, about how communities regenerate, and about how small, precise interventions can change everything.
We are in Roswell, New Mexico — yes, that Roswell: UFO museum, extraterrestrial folklore, souvenirs and neon signs. But behind the tourist narrative lies a very real housing crisis: rising rents, stagnant wages, and an increasingly urgent need for livable, affordable homes.
And, as is often the case, the most meaningful response comes not from institutions but from people who live the problem every day.
Nicole Scarpa, who has personally experienced homelessness and housing insecurity, begins working with a local community group. Knocking on doors, she notices something almost everyone else overlooks: nearly every neighborhood contains vacant homes that are not collapsing, not dangerous, not beyond repair — just stuck.
A leaking roof.
An outdated electrical system.
A broken heater.
Problems too small for banks to finance, yet too expensive for low-income property owners to fix on their own.
And so, in this tiny space — between “almost habitable” and “not rentable” — the idea for Rehab-2-Rental is born.
How Rehab-2-Rental actually works: the power of small things
The mechanism is almost surprisingly simple.
The nonprofit provides micro-loans of around $10,000 to owners of vacant homes who cannot obtain traditional credit. The funds serve one purpose: bringing the house up to minimum standards required for rental.
If the owner rents the property at a controlled rate, or to a tenant using housing vouchers, the loan is partially or fully forgiven.
If they choose to rent at market rates, they can repay the loan under favorable conditions.
The extraordinary part is the speed: the first four renovations were completed in 45 days.
Four uninhabitable units became four safe homes for families who were sleeping in cars, motels, or overcrowded apartments.
The success quickly gained momentum. The program was scaled statewide. Public and private funds grew to more than $1 million. Dozens of homes have now been rehabilitated. Hundreds of people have found housing.
All of this without building a single new structure.
Italy’s great paradox: a country that keeps expanding while its existing homes remain empty
Italy suffers from a strange contradiction. On one hand, national debate constantly insists that we face a housing shortage and need new construction. On the other hand, we are one of Europe’s leaders in abandoned, underused, or long-vacant properties.
The problem is not the lack of buildings.
The problem is our inability to reactivate them.
In small municipalities, minor centers, and inland areas — but even in many historic city centers — there is an enormous number of “almost habitable” homes. Not ruins. Not dangerous structures. But homes that have been closed for decades because the last resident died, or because the heirs are too numerous, too distant, or simply uninterested.
Italy is one of the only countries where more and more people renounce inherited property rather than pay the cost of maintaining a house that produces no income.
And meanwhile we continue to discuss new construction and new masterplans.
It is an urban and cultural paradox.
The unresolved issue: money is not the only thing missing — a model is missing
Italian property owners face an impossible choice:
fully renovate at high cost, or leave everything as it is.
There is no viable third option.
Italy lacks a model for small, targeted, rapid interventions — the kind that make a home usable again in weeks, not years.
Our construction bonuses have encouraged deep, complex renovations, but they have not addressed the basic issue of reactivating properties that need only modest investments.
And this is precisely why the New Mexico model becomes interesting.
What if Italy had its own “Repair & Live” model?
This would not require a national housing overhaul.
It would require a territorial fund, or several regional funds, financed by actors who already invest in social impact:
banking foundations,
community foundations,
pension funds and insurers committed to ESG housing,
local administrations,
private operators specializing in small-town regeneration.
These funds could focus exclusively on homes requiring minimal work, with renovations completed in 60 days, and micro-loans between €8,000 and €20,000.
Loans would be forgiven in exchange for renting the home at a controlled rate for 3–5 years.
Tenants could include young residents, essential workers, local families, long-stay remote workers, or artisans.
A realistic, operational, immediately scalable model.
Why the impact would be enormous
For three reasons:
1. It solves housing shortages without building anything new
Demand exists — supply is locked inside unused homes.
2. It makes small towns attractive again
Many people would gladly move to smaller communities if they could find a decent home.
3. It stimulates the local economy
Small works = local contractors, local craftsmen, local businesses.
And this aligns with what operators like ITS ITALY see daily: alongside major renovations, a vast number of properties need only modest upgrades to become livable again.
The conclusion: regeneration does not mean rebuilding — it means reactivating what exists
The lesson from New Mexico is crystal clear: regeneration does not require massive plans.
It requires pragmatism.
For Italy — a country overflowing with unused houses — a “Repair & Live” model could represent a silent revolution.
No bulldozers.
No megaprojects.
Just small interventions, small loans, quick timelines, measurable results.
Reopening homes means reopening communities.
It isn’t utopia.
It’s common sense.
And Italy needs common sense more than anything.