Meredith Tabbone first decided to reconnect with her family history by buying and renovating a modest home in Italy. More than four years later, nearly $500,000 spent, and 1 euro on her way home, she has a new perspective on work, life, friendship and happiness.
Tabbone, 44, is a financial advisor in Chicago. In 2019, she learned that a small town in Sambuca di Sicilia, Italy, was auctioning abandoned properties, with bids starting at 1 euro (about $1.05).
At the time, Taborn was researching her family history and realized that her great-grandfather was originally born in Sambuca and then started a new life in the United States.
Meredith Tabbone spent approximately $475,000 on her dream home in Sambuca di Sicily.
Mickey Todiwala | CNBC Success
The coincidence was “too good to be true” and she took it as a sign of a bid.
Tabbone won the bid and took ownership of the house for €5,900 (about $6,200). She also purchased the building next door and spent the next four years managing local crews for extensive renovations.
In total, Tabbone spent about $475,000 on her Italian dream home.
The pace is slower, but the friendships are deeper
The Chicagoan quickly learned that Sicilians work slower hours than she was used to in the United States.
But she came to appreciate the slower pace of life, which helped her become more involved in the Sicilian community.
If travel were open as usual, she said, “I would usually come here to sightsee and meet other foreigners. Instead, I would spend time with locals and their friends who are renovating my home.”
Socializing is now a big part of Taborn’s life in Sicily, where she says it’s easier to make friends than in the United States. “It’s just part of the culture here to go out and socialize with people every day,” she said. “If this is what you like, this is definitely the place to be.”
Meredith Tabbone formed close friends with locals and foreigners in Sicily.
Mickey Todiwala | CNBC Success
Less work, more personal fulfillment
As a financial advisor, Taborn keeps a demanding schedule, running her own business, and spending time in different cultures gives her a new perspective.
“I started thinking about building my career differently, and maybe the focus of my life was less about work and more about overall personal fulfillment,” she said.
Focusing less on work gives her more time and energy to pursue her personal goals, such as visiting every country in the world now instead of putting it off.
She brought home a new perspective on work-life balance. “When I’m in Chicago, I just try to be as efficient with my time as possible, and I’m definitely learning to say ‘no’ to more things,” Taborn said.
Taborn said the less work-centered lifestyle was a learning curve, but it was “something I needed and it’s been really good for me.”
her only regret
To this day, Taborn says her only regret about the €1 project is that she didn’t embrace slow living sooner.
Meredith Tabbone said she had never done a renovation project like this before, but she was inspired by the work of her architect father.
Mickey Todiwala | CNBC Success
“If I could do anything over in the buying or renovating process, I would learn to be more patient” and enjoy the experience from the start, she said.
Ultimately, Taborn said, “I never felt like this wasn’t the right place for me, the right project for me to work in or the right community to live in.”
Conversion of euros to U.S. dollars is made using the OANDA exchange rate of 1 euro to 1.05 U.S. dollars on October 18, 2023.
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