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Avola: what to know before buying a home

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

Liveability index free for any address

Search for an address in Avola

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: Corso Vittorio Emanuele 6, Avola.

Avola, the hexagonal town on the Ionian coast

After the 1693 earthquake, which destroyed much of south-eastern Sicily, the people of Avola left their old town in the hills and rebuilt it down on the plain near the sea, on a hexagonal plan with straight streets meeting around the main square. You can still read that layout walking through the centre. The name is also known for Nero d'Avola wine and for almonds, grown in the countryside between the coast and the Hyblaean hills.

For buyers, the hexagonal centre has low houses and small stone palazzi, orderly and easy to get around on foot. Towards the sea, Lido di Avola is mostly second homes and summer flats, while inland there are villas and country houses among almond and olive trees. Behind the town, the Cavagrande del Cassibile reserve cuts a deep canyon into the plateau. Syracuse and Noto are close, a short drive away.

There were 30,563 residents in 2023, down 2.4% on 2011. The estimated average age is 44.9, close to the 45.4 of the province of Syracuse, over-65s make up 22.2% and foreign nationals 2.0%. Average incomes are slightly below the provincial figure.

The province of Syracuse is one of the most earthquake-prone in Italy: in the Civil Protection classification 17 municipalities are in zone 1 and only 4 in zone 2, Avola among them. The lower class should not mislead, because the expected ground acceleration in the built-up area is about 0.204 g, a high value. Before buying, find out the year of construction, ask for the design and completion certificate, and for masonry houses in the centre have the walls and floors assessed.

The land registry is published by the Revenue Agency (Agenzia delle Entrate), so the report finds the plot from the address. Along the low coast and near the streams coming down from the hills, such as the Cassibile, flood hazard is checked for the address, as is landslide hazard on the slopes.

Key points

  • Rebuilt on a hexagonal plan after the 1693 earthquake.
  • Lido di Avola: mostly summer second homes.
  • Seismic zone 2 but high expected acceleration, about 0.204 g.
  • Population down 2.4% since 2011.

Overview

Avola is a municipality in the province of Siracusa, in Sicilia. At the end of 2023 it had 30,563 residents, the third most populous in the province.

Earthquakes

For Italy's Civil Protection Department, Avola is in seismic zone 2, a zone where strong earthquakes are possible. Only 4 of 21 municipalities in the province are in zone 2.

In the built-up area, the expected ground shaking (peak ground acceleration, PGA) is about 0.204 g, a medium-high value: the level with a 10% probability of being exceeded in 50 years, on rock.

For anyone buying in Avola, 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 2.4%. The estimated average age is 45 years, in line with the province. 22% of residents are over 65 (the regional figure is 23%). Foreign residents make up 2.0% of the population. On average, a household has 2.4 members.

Income and climate

In tax year 2024, taxpayers in Avola declared an average taxable income of 19,634 euros, in line with the province (20,509 euros). The Italian average is 24,895 euros.

Avola is in climate zone B, with 823 heating degree days: heating may be switched on from 1 December to 31 March, for up to 8 hours a day. The same table puts the town hall at 40 metres above sea level.

Services

In the official Ministry of Education and Ministry of Health lists, Avola has 25 schools and 10 pharmacies. The Overture Maps data also lists 21 grocery shops and supermarkets, 20 healthcare facilities, 20 sports facilities and 6 parks and green areas.

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 12.0% of the land in Avola, compared with 9.2% in the province and 6.6% in the region. In 2024 built-up land grew by 3.3 hectares.

Radon and contaminated sites

According to the ISPRA map, the estimated radon emission in the municipality is low. Radon varies from building to building and can only be known by measuring it, especially on ground floors and in basements.

Official databases list no open contaminated sites in Avola; 2 have been cleaned up or closed.

Landslides and flooding

Landslide and flood hazard changes from one street to the next even within Avola: 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 Avola 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 111 inhabited census areas in Avola. Half of the residents live in areas scoring 82 or more.

Residents by band

  • modest 0.1%
  • fair 7.4%
  • good 28.6%
  • very good 63.9%

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 089002. The text on this page is generated automatically from the data.