The new American dream? Buying and renting out vacation homes in Italy.

The new American dream? Buying and renting out vacation homes in Italy.

Alghero, Italy, is a coastal town in Sardinia.Paola Giannoni/Getty ImagesAmericans are buying Italian properties for rental income and vacation use.The picturesque country's cheap real estate is enticing Americans to spend money there instead of the US.On top of the passive income, rentals mean having a place to stay when vacationing.Every time Laurie DeRiu visited her father-in-law in Sardinia, she left enamored by the Italian island's beauty a…