Retire in Italy?

Hi Mike,
I was born and raised in Calabria and I have intention to move back although not in Calabria.  Are you familiar with Calabria ? I love Calabria as it is still somewhat unspoiled from  American tourism but it also has drawbacks such as lack of services and public transportation. I often travel to Calabria as well as the rest of Italy and I have yet to find a large nucleus of American or Canadian expats.  I have met Americans and Canadians throughout particularly in the North and Central but never in a large concentration. You will however find large concentration of English (I have met a lot while living in Verona for 3 months but they were mostly younger people) Also, there are a lot of Americans in large cities such as Rome and close to Army/Navy/Airforce bases such as in Vicenza . 
Have you gained Italian citizenship yet? That should be the first priority. I lost mine when I became an US citizen and I have finally an appointment with the consulate  in 2 weeks (it took about 18 months to schedule) in order to apply for residency . I have heard crazy stories of expats trying to retire in Italy.
Feel free to contact me if you have any questions.
Buona fortuna, Nico

Hi Mike, we are South African and basically retired in Italy, near Assisi/ Perugia in Umbria.
There is no problem buying a property to retire, and then you have to apply for a Permisso di Soggiorno:  Rezidenzia Eletivia.
This means you have an income to live from and do not need to work in Italy.
The only problem is that you have to renew it every year.
There is a smattering of English and Americans living in and around Assisi and in Perugia, and also near Lake Trasemino, but definitely not large colonies.
Where we are you need to learn Italian fast, for very few people speak English.

Hope this helps.
Nico.

Hi Nico
Can you please contact me on *** so that I can chat to you re retiring in Italy.  Thank you Diane