Finding a place to live in Italy: Tower north of Milan, south of a million dollars.

Looking for a home in Italy: a tower north of Milan, south of $1 million dollars

In the Lake Maggiore area, near Italy's border with Switzerland, "modest buyers" are settling for less luxurious accommodations.

Six-bedroom 18th-century style house in Italy. Price: $905,000 (750,000 euros).

This six-bedroom house is located in Cavallirio, a small town in the hills of the province of Novara, in the Piedmont region of northwestern Italy. Located about 12 miles from Maggiore, Italy's second-largest lake, the house has a castle-like tower that dates from the late 18th century. The living areas have wall paintings, high ceilings and marble mosaic floors. Furniture is not included in the sale price.

The roughly half-acre property was used for wedding events and has a large marquee in the backyard that can easily be removed, said Angela Pedroso, a real estate agent at Italy Sotheby's International Realty, which is listing the property. The 400-square-meter house has an elaborate arched entrance marquee with a wrought iron gate that can be closed with wooden doors.

In the hallway are the adjacent living and dining rooms, separated by two colonnades. Both rooms have ceilings with dark wooden cassettes and exquisite frescoes. The dining room has a huge fireplace with stone seats built into the wall.

On the opposite side of the hallway is a small kitchen with white tile for cooking, not for gatherings. There is also a guest toilet on this floor.