A ground-floor apartment in Florence is advertised with a “private courtyard”. The seller has placed a table and plants there, and a door from the kitchen opens directly onto it. It feels like part of the home. But direct access and long-standing use do not establish that the courtyard is privately owned or that the buyer can use it in the same way.
Before offering a price that reflects private outdoor space, ask what legal right belongs to the apartment. Is the courtyard part of the seller’s exclusive property? Is it common property subject to a documented arrangement? Or has the seller simply used it without objection?
The courtyard you can enter is not necessarily the courtyard you will own.
Short answer: does a “private courtyard” belong to the apartment?
Not necessarily. A courtyard in a condominium may be common property unless the relevant titles establish a different ownership position. Even where the apartment has a documented arrangement for its use, that is not automatically the same as exclusive ownership.
The buyer should identify the exact area, review the titles under which the building and condominium were formed, and establish what right, if any, will pass with the apartment. A listing, gate key or cadastral drawing cannot settle the question alone.
Three positions that can look identical during a viewing
| What the buyer may actually receive | What it means for the offer | What must be established |
|---|---|---|
| Exclusive ownership | The identified courtyard area transfers as the seller’s property | The chain of title and exact area being conveyed |
| A documented arrangement for particular use | The buyer may have access or use on stated terms | Its legal nature, scope and effect for a later buyer |
| A share in a common courtyard | Use is governed by common-property rights and applicable rules | What the buyer and other owners may each do |
| No established special right | The seller’s past use may not continue on the same basis | Whether a right can be documented before the purchase |
Avoid treating “exclusive use” as a self-explanatory fourth form of ownership. Its legal effect depends on the documents. In particular, wording that purports to grant permanent exclusive use of a common area needs careful legal review, not automatic acceptance as a right that follows every future sale.
Identify the exact courtyard first
Ask the seller to mark the advertised area on a plan. In an older Florentine building, the space visible from the apartment may connect to a larger courtyard serving stairs, windows, cellar access, drainage or other units.
Check:
- Where the area begins and ends.
- Whether other owners need to cross it.
- Whether windows, doors or shared equipment open onto it.
- Whether the gate or door from the apartment is the only means of access.
- Whether the area shown during the viewing matches the area described in the sale documents.
A courtyard can be physically enclosed and still be common. Conversely, the relevant title may establish exclusive ownership of an identified area. The plan locates the problem; the title determines the right.
Which documents answer the ownership question?
Request more than the seller’s most recent deed. Depending on the building’s history, the decisive document may be an earlier title under which the building was divided into separate units. The legal review should consider:
- The seller’s acquisition deed.
- Relevant earlier deeds, including the documents that established separate ownership of the units.
- Any contractual condominium regulation and its attachments.
- Plans identifying the courtyard and adjoining spaces.
- Relevant registered agreements or rights affecting access and use.
- Condominium minutes where the courtyard’s use or works have been discussed.
A cadastral plan may help identify the space, but it does not replace the title analysis. For the wider apartment file, read Buying an Apartment in Italy? 9 Condominium Documents to Check Before You Make an Offer.
What can you do there?
Ownership and permitted use are related, but they are not identical questions. If the courtyard is important because you want to eat outdoors, keep plants, store bicycles, place a hot tub or let guests use it, establish whether your plan fits the right actually held and the building’s rules.
Ask in particular whether:
- Other owners retain access for passage, inspection or maintenance.
- You can place permanent structures or alter the surface.
- The condominium must approve particular works.
- Pipes, drains or other shared infrastructure run beneath the area.
- There are restrictions on noise, furniture or guest use.
- The cost of maintaining or repairing the courtyard falls on one owner or several.
This post concerns the right to the courtyard being sold. It does not establish that any proposed new construction or alteration will receive permission.
What if the seller has used it alone for years?
That history is relevant, but it is not a substitute for a documented right. The seller may have been permitted to use the courtyard by the other owners, may have benefited from an agreement that needs interpretation, or may have faced no objection simply because nobody else wanted the space.
Do not assume that the same practical arrangement will survive a change of owner. Ask your lawyer to establish the legal basis and whether it can be relied on by you. If a right is disputed or unclear, price the purchase on the basis of the uncertainty rather than on the seller’s uninterrupted use.
What should the offer say?
If the courtyard affects the price, it should not appear only in the agent’s photographs. The offer should identify the area and accurately state what the seller undertakes to transfer or establish.
Depending on the findings, the offer may need to address:
- The precise area concerned.
- Whether the seller promises ownership or a particular documented right.
- Delivery and review of the title and condominium documents.
- Rights of passage or access held by others.
- Any existing dispute or known restriction on use.
- What happens if the documents do not support the advertised “private courtyard”.
- The treatment of the deposit if an agreed condition fails.
Avoid simply repeating “private courtyard included” if neither party has established what private means. For the payment risk, see Caparra vs Deposit When Buying Property in Italy.
A practical example
A buyer finds a ground-floor apartment near Piazza Santo Spirito. The listing describes a private courtyard, and the seller shows a furnished outdoor dining area reached only through the apartment. The buyer is willing to pay more for outdoor space in central Florence.
Before signing, the buyer asks for the relevant titles. The seller’s recent deed mentions use of the courtyard, but does not clearly convey its exclusive ownership. Earlier documents describe the area as common and give other units access for maintenance. A lawyer must assess the effect of the wording rather than convert “used exclusively” into “privately owned”.
The buyer may still want the apartment. But they can now negotiate on the basis of the right that is actually supported, ask for a defined protection in the offer or decide that the courtyard is too important to leave uncertain.
Checklist before you sign
- I can identify the exact courtyard area on a plan.
- I have the seller’s deed and relevant earlier titles.
- I know whether the area is privately owned or forms part of common property.
- Any special use arrangement has been assessed for its actual legal effect.
- I know who else can enter and for what purpose.
- I know who pays for maintenance and repairs.
- My intended use has been compared with the applicable rules.
- The offer describes the right supported by the documents.
- I know what happens to my deposit if an agreed courtyard condition fails.
How Govoni Law helps
Govoni Law acts for foreign buyers across Italy. For an apartment marketed with a “private” courtyard, we review the available title and condominium documents, identify what has and has not been established, and address a material gap in the proposed offer. Where a plan, boundary or proposed works require technical assessment, we coordinate with a qualified local professional.
A Before You Sign Brief can identify the missing documents and immediate offer risk; it is not a full determination of courtyard ownership. A focused title or contract review may fit Light Due Diligence. If the question forms part of a wider investigation into a historic apartment, Full Legal Due Diligence may be appropriate.
For the wider regional context, see Property Lawyer in Tuscany for Foreign Buyers.
Frequently asked questions
If only my apartment opens onto the courtyard, is it mine?
Not necessarily. Physical access does not establish ownership. Check the titles and the nature of the space.
Does “exclusive use” mean I own the courtyard?
No. It may describe an arrangement concerning a common area. Its legal effect requires review of the specific documents.
Can a cadastral plan prove that the courtyard is private?
It can help identify the area, but title documents are needed to establish the right being conveyed.
Can other owners enter a courtyard I use?
Possibly. Access rights and shared services may remain relevant even where one apartment uses the area more than others.
Should the courtyard be named in the offer?
Yes, if it is material to your decision. Identify both the area and the right you expect to acquire or rely on.
If the “private courtyard” is part of what makes a Florence apartment worth buying, contact Govoni Law before signing an offer or paying a deposit. Send the listing, draft offer and documents describing the courtyard. We will help you establish whether the price reflects ownership, a documented use arrangement or only the seller’s past practice.