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Atella: what to know before buying a home

A municipality in the province of Potenza, Basilicata. Official data on earthquakes, population, services and transport.

Liveability index free for any address

Search for an address in Atella

The report looks at the exact point: landslide and flood risk, seismic zone, price per square metre for the area, services and nearby stops.

For example: Via Giustino Fortunato 1, Atella.

Atella, in the Vitalba valley below Monte Vulture

In northern Basilicata, where the Vulture-Melfese area drops towards the Vitalba valley, Atella sits at around five hundred metres at the foot of Monte Vulture, a long-extinct, wooded volcano. For services and work people look to Rionero in Vulture and Melfi, and to Potenza for regional offices and the largest hospital.

It is a hill town with a compact old centre and a newer part that has grown along the approach roads. Around it are fields, pasture and woods. Buyers find village houses, often on several floors, and some country homes; average declared incomes are below the provincial average. Climate zone D brings cool winters.

In 2023 there were 3,632 residents, down 6.0% on 2011 according to Istat, the national statistics office. The population is slightly younger than the province: an average age of 45.5 against 47.3, with over-65s at 22.5% against 25.7%. Foreign residents make up 3.6%.

The Vulture area has a long history of earthquakes. The province of Potenza has 40 municipalities in seismic zone 1 and 59 in zone 2 on the Civil Protection Department's scale; Atella is in zone 2, with an expected ground acceleration in the built-up area of about 0.174 g. For a masonry house in the centre, find out whether it has had structural work since the last earthquakes and under which permits, as this varies a great deal from one building to the next.

The Revenue Agency (Agenzia delle Entrate) publishes the cadastral maps, and the report traces the land parcel from the address. On the clay slopes of the valley landslides are the hazard to watch most closely: the report checks them at the exact point, along with flooding near watercourses.

Key points

  • At the foot of Monte Vulture, in the Vitalba valley.
  • 3,632 residents in 2023, down 6.0% since 2011.
  • Seismic zone 2, expected acceleration about 0.174 g.
  • Clay slopes: check landslide maps for the address.

Overview

Atella is a municipality in the province of Potenza, in Basilicata. At the end of 2023 it had 3,632 residents, ranked 26 of 100 municipalities in the province.

Earthquakes

For Italy's Civil Protection Department, Atella is in seismic zone 2, a zone where strong earthquakes are possible. The region uses a finer breakdown: here the classification is 2b. Most municipalities in the province (59 of 100) are in the same zone.

In the built-up area, the expected ground shaking (peak ground acceleration, PGA) is about 0.174 g, a medium-high value: the level with a 10% probability of being exceeded in 50 years, on rock.

For anyone buying in Atella, the building matters a great deal: ask for the design year, whether it met the 2008 seismic standards, and whether any seismic retrofit has been carried out.

Population

Compared with the 2011 census, the resident population has fallen by 6.0%. The estimated average age is 46 years, lower than the province average (47). 23% of residents are over 65 (the regional figure is 25%). Foreign residents make up 3.6% of the population. On average, a household has 2.2 members.

Income and climate

In tax year 2024, taxpayers in Atella declared an average taxable income of 18,838 euros, below the provincial average (20,337 euros). The Italian average is 24,895 euros.

Atella is in climate zone D, with 1,818 heating degree days: heating may be switched on from 1 November to 15 April, for up to 12 hours a day. The same table puts the town hall at 500 metres above sea level.

Services

In the official Ministry of Education and Ministry of Health lists, Atella has 3 schools and 1 pharmacy. The Overture Maps data also lists 2 grocery shops and supermarkets, 1 healthcare facility and 1 green area.

There are 0.3 healthcare facilities per 1,000 residents, fewer than the province average (0.6).

Public transport

We do not yet have open public transport timetables for this municipality: the report says so explicitly, without inventing distances.

How built-up it is

Buildings, roads, car parks and other sealed surfaces cover 3.6% of the land in Atella, compared with 3.5% in the province and 3.2% in the region. In 2024 built-up land grew by 0.9 hectares.

Radon and contaminated sites

Official databases list one contaminated site, or site still under investigation, in Atella. The report tells you whether one is close to the address.

Landslides and flooding

Landslide and flood hazard changes from one street to the next even within Atella: the report checks the address against the ISPRA maps.

House prices

The Revenue Agency's price ranges per square metre (OMI) apply to zones, not to whole municipalities: the report gives the range for the address's zone.

Land registry

The cadastral maps for Atella are public: from the address the report finds the sheet and parcel number.

Liveability area by area

The Vicinalia liveability index runs from 0 to 100 and looks at the place, not the people who live there: services within walking distance, transport, green space, natural hazards, air, quiet, buildings and connection. Here it is worked out at the centre of each of the 80 inhabited census areas in Atella. Half of the residents live in areas scoring 73 or more.

Residents by band

  • fair 21.2%
  • good 78.8%

Vicinalia index by census area, licence CC BY-SA 4.0. Data: IdroGEO ISPRA (2026), Istat, INGV, EEA, AGCOM, Overture Maps and OpenStreetMap.

The colour is the value at the centre of the area. For an exact address, search for it above: the free check looks at that exact point. How the index is worked out

Data sources

ISTAT code 076006. The text on this page is generated automatically from the data.