Salve,

I am receiving about 850 Euro a month on SS disability in the U.S.

Does anyone have thoughts on small towns in Italy one could live where this amount of income is sufficient? Just a note, I live on $1300/month in the U.S. very easily and save money as well. Is Sicily out of the question? My family comes from Ciminna and I would like to live near there for a while.

Also, I am attempting to get my Italian citizenship jure sanguinis.

Oh, and thanks for this forum. I just started reading it and gained tremendously already.

Do you have relatives in Italy you can stay with? Otherwise, if you must pay rent it will be tough to live on 850 per month. Not saying it couldn't be done if you could find a small apartment (like the one room flat I stayed in at college for $75 per month in the 70s). It would be a spartan existence, but if you find a place you love as we have, you don't spend much on travel, etc.

Life in the South is cheaper than in the north, especially in rural zones where the rent are cheap and you can save a lot buying stuff at the local market in the street rather than imported goods at the supermarket.

€850 euros a month is really a short budget, but I think you could find a small 1-br apartment for around €350-€400 (those are the prices in my area - a 10000 inhabitants town 30 km from Milan). You have to add utilities - I think €80 a month shoudl suffice for that. Then you have to live on €350.

If you don't have a car they should suffice to buy you food, otherwise the pricey petrol is gonna leave you broke.
From your post it seems you don't work: just give it a try and see if it works. You could try to make some extra cash with online translations.

If you are wiling to live in a small town in the south I think you will be OK. We have friends who live in a small town in inland Campania and pay not much more than E200 rent for a decent 2 bedroom apartment.

I can only imagine it would be the same in Sicily. Bills in a small appartment would be E100 max a month over a year. So yes you could probably get by.

One thing to consider is that in a very small town, in the south especially, you may find apartments to rent for 200 euro, but you will need a car. In a larger town like Pavia, you may have to pay a 400 euro rent, but if your apartment is located well you will not need a car: maybe a bicycle to move around town in good weather, busses for bad weather days, and the train for the times you want to hit Milano. overall, living without a car will allow you to save MORE than paying a lower rent in a village or town that forces you to have one.