This is a result not only of economic growth, but also of the structure of Italian society. Many Italians have more than one job. The extended families in which most people still live often have access to more than one income.
Few people have mortgages, and savings and tax avoidance levels are high.
The main exceptions are in parts of the south. Although inward investment has been attracted to the Bari area, many people still live in poverty in other places, such as Naples and the Calabria region, where investment has been lowest, unemployment is highest and even tourism is underdeveloped.