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Hi Martino and welcome! Some 10 years ago, we were in the same predicament. We wanted to buy a property in Italy, initially as a holiday residence which could be a place where to live in the future. At the time, we started looking at several options and finally, some eight years ago, we decided that we wanted something in Tuscany, in the Val di Lima - Garfagnana area. The reason to choose this location was the excellent communications, with two international airports (Pisa and Florence) within easy reach and the possibility to travel around extensively without much effort. We had been staying in Lucca and it happened that we were renting an apartment there from an agent whose office was located in Bagni di Lucca. We went there to pay the rent.... and we fell in love with the place. It was the perfect location for us, only 25 minutes away from Lucca, one hour and a few minutes from Florence, with Pisa, Sienna, the Versilia, the Cinque Terre... all within easy reach. Also, and although there were not very many properties available at the time, prices were considerably lower than in the Chianti region and we simply loved the beauty of that area, very appropriately called "Toscana Verde". Yes, it rains more than in the Southern part of Tuscany, but it is also cooler. After much searching, we finally found what we wanted and bought it straight away. It was a stone building dating back at least to the 17th Century, but it was in very sound condition and did not need major structural work. This is something to keep in mind. Unless you have plenty of experience in the restoration of buildings and plenty of money in the bank, avoid the very beautiful and romantic "ruins". They can be a nightmare. Right now, you are lucky, because it is a buyer's market and you may be able something already restored at a more reasonable price than a few years ago. In any case, my advice is as follows:

• Look for location. Some areas can look idyllic, but you have to consider that access may not be good and that you will not be on a permanent holiday. In our case, we can simply walk to the downtown area without using the car and this is a blessing.
• We do not know what fate has in store for us. The best laid plans can be altered and many things in our lives have changed since we purchased the property. We are practically certain that we are not going to live permanently there, but it is an excellent place to spend holidays. 
• Be careful at budgeting, particularly if the place you intend to buy requires major renovations. If you spend too much, it can become a "white elephant" and if you need to sell it in the future, for any reason, you may be in trouble getting back your money. 
• Take your time before deciding. Preferably, rent a place for a while and see how you feel. And try to do this not in the middle of summer or peak season. See what it is all about when you are really living in the place under the worst possible conditions.
• Talk to the people in the area, try to make friends amongst the locals. Find out as much as you can about the area. You will feel more "at home".

The old Italy Magazine Forum gave me plenty of good information and advice. I am trying to give back to others what I got. If you have doubts "post a question".In any case, good luck and best wishes! 

I have been waiting for the permanent residents to give their opinions on this topic and I think that by now most of those who wanted to participate have already done it, so it's time for me....We do not live permanently in Italy, we spend some 4 months in the year at our home in Bagni di Lucca and the rest of the year in other places in Europe, except for a couple of months in San Francisco to visit our children. We have lived in quite a few countries around the world and I think that this has given us a broad perspective regarding living conditions.First of all, I must object to the expressions "to lower your standards" or "back to the 50·s" applied to living in Italy. You can have the highest standards of living anywhere in the world if you can pay for that and Italy is no exception. Modern appliances, design kitchens, whatever you want are available and you only have to have a look at this list of the most notable ½ûÂþÌìÌà companies (including manufacturers of home appliances) which shows clearly that standards are very high indeed Certainly, if you want to run all those appliances at the same time, you cannot be on the lower 3w contract, but you can upgrade it as much as you want. It would cost you quite a bit of money, though, as utilities are not cheap in Italy. Dryers? Plenty to choose from for as low as 500€ upwards and perhaps you need to have enough space in your apartment to fit one.If you want to have a look, I found this "cost of living in Rome" page, which may not be perfect, but it gives you a fairly accurate idea of how much you may be spending. You may find other cities as well and costs will be fairly different in country areas So it could all be a matter of  which "standards" you refer to or what you expect from life. Large supermarkets and commercial centres (some of them of the highest standards) can be found in Italy, but not next to the Pantheon or the Ponte Vecchio... they are generally located in the peripheria because it is not easy to find a suitable space for them in downtown areas. And personally, I do not miss Costco at all...The advice given by Casa del Campanile is perfect. I join others in saying that learning ½ûÂþÌìÌà is a must and integration will make a big difference in your lives. Learn to love Italy and Italy will love you.In the old Italymag Forum I always used as part of my signature this ancient verse from the Roman poet Marcus Pacuvius (quoted by Cicero) "Ubi bene ibi patria" , which means "wherever I feel good, there is my country". It does work and, should you feel unhappy anywhere in the world, my advice would be to pack up and go wherever you feel better. Life is short! Enjoy it!

In Italy, it was customary to recycle many building elements, particularly stones. Most older stone buildings have being built on top of existing foundations, dating way back in time. In our case, we can see the different "layers". Behind a more modern partition, we found a stone that had a cross and a date, 1661. The stone is similar to the one used throughout the  "middle layer" and the total height of the building, including the foundations, which are arches on the river bank, would be about 6 storeys high. We know that the mill was already there in the 17th Century, but we suspect that it may have been built on top of an existing structure (quite possibly an older mill. Up to 1733, there was a bridge on the side, connecting the two banks of the river. It was called the "Ponte Vecchio". This was replaced by the "Ponte Nuovo" built around that time and subsequently enlarged, whis is nowadays the main bridge going downtown.Whoever owns an old stone building may find quite a few "surprises" inside. 

Mangalitsa or Mangalica (Woolly Pigs) is a Hungarian Breed related to the "pata negra" Spanish breed. There is a number of these pigs being bred in Italy. If you are in the USA, Costco sells whole hams being produced in Spain, under the D'Artagnan brand name. In any case, here is some relevant information: 

Ugo. It is difficult to understand the meaning of your post and your intentions with your tirade. In any case, it is not helping the originator of this thread. In any case, if your real intention is to cause controversy and turn it into a personal confrontation, I prefer to "ignore".  

Perhaps they were EU citizens talking about their own experience. In this case, It is the case of a non-EU citizen and the process is totally different. The problem seems to stem from the fact that Italymag was a British magazine which has changed hands and quite a number of new non-EU members have joined over the past year. And I do not think that Italy is an easy place to get a job, even if you are a EU citizen. Unemployment rates are still very high. But this case is totally different: A non-EU citizen, of ½ûÂþÌìÌà ancestry, seeking to open his own business in Italy.

I understand that UNINT offers free accommodation counselling and assistance to students. I would advise you to contact them and check what they can offer. Good luck! 

Do you have a copy of the document you originally signed for the mortgage? All conditions will be listed there. In any case, only the bank will be able to give you an accurate response. Property sales are a bit slow at the moment, but to sell this property and cancel the mortgage seems to be the ideal solution. Good luck!

Perhaps the Entrepreneur Visa may be more suitable in your case, as you intend to open your own business. It has been said that the ½ûÂþÌìÌà government is working on improving the conditions of this visa. The ½ûÂþÌìÌà Consulate will be able to assist you. Here is some basic info: 

Hi, I would advise you to contact your nearest ½ûÂþÌìÌà Consulate and enquire about the possibility of obtaining ½ûÂþÌìÌà citizenship through "jure sanguinis" (½ûÂþÌìÌà ancestry). It is a complicated process because there are many different laws covering citizenship, but it would be a good idea for them to give you a preliminary assessment. For this, you will need to compile a basic family tree including dates of birth, marriage and death of your lineage and also whether any of them, including yourself, acquired a different citizenship than the birth one. Those dates are most important. If you are told that you could qualify, then, you will have to get all birth, marriage and death cerificates, duly "apostilled" and translated. There are agencies that do that kind of work, but these documents can bequite expensive because of all that needs to be done. A lot of paperwork! It takes quite a long time for the authorities to process these applications. In case you have a problem and you do not qualify automatically, you can still get back the ½ûÂþÌìÌà citizenship through residence with a shorter waiting period than ordinary mortals... but you need a residence visa to do that. For this reason, start talking to the nearest ½ûÂþÌìÌà Consulate, unless you are prepared to read and interpret all the relevant ½ûÂþÌìÌà laws!!! In any case, I wish you the best! Lucca is a wonderful place!