Italian families are usually quite small, with an average of two children in each one. A typical house has six or seven rooms: a dining room, a living room, two or three bedrooms, a kitchen and a bathroom. The houses themselves are built differently, depending on the region, but most towns and cities have both a historic and a modern downtown section, and a residential area.

Houses in the historic downtown area have two floors with a staircase inside the apartment, a sloping, tile roof and one or more balconies. Houses in the modern downtown are in six to eight-floor buildings that have garages and a common backyard. Modern condominium apartments are common in the cities. Some of them have spacious rooms and high ceilings, while others are designed to make the best use of a smaller space. In the residential areas there are detached houses with two or three floors, plus a garage and a backyard. Almost all Italian houses have French doors and balconies. These balconies might look out over medieval streets and have flowering vines draped around them. People also sometimes eat on their balconies when the weather is nice.

Italy has the highest ratio of cars per person in Europe: almost one car for every two people. Most cars are small or mid-size, which makes them easy to park. They also consume less gas, which is quite expensive in Italy. Parents drive their children to school if they attend elementary school. Most middle school students walk to school and some high school students might take a bus if the school they attend is located in another town.