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Capestrano: what to know before buying a home

A municipality in the province of L'Aquila, Abruzzo. Official data on earthquakes, population, services and transport.

Liveability index free for any address

Search for an address in Capestrano

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 Roma 1, Capestrano.

Capestrano, the Piccolomini castle and the Tirino valley

Capestrano's name is known even to people who have never been there, thanks to the Warrior of Capestrano, the large stone statue from the pre-Roman Italic period found in the village's countryside and now in the national archaeological museum in Chieti. The village stands on a rise at around 450 metres, gathered around the Piccolomini castle, and below it runs the Tirino, a short river with clear water popular with canoeists in summer.

The old centre is a tight cluster of stone houses and steep lanes; lower down, towards the valley, there are newer homes with a bit of land. Buying in the centre means thinking about stairs, narrow access and parking, as well as climate zone E and its cold winters.

According to Istat, the national statistics office, there were 824 residents in 2023, down 7.9% on 2011. The average age is high, 54.0 against 47.5 for the province of L'Aquila, and over-65s make up 38.7%. Foreign nationals make up 13.8% of residents. Declared incomes are below the provincial average.

Earthquakes are the main issue. Capestrano is in seismic zone 1, the highest class on the Civil Protection scale, like 103 of the 108 municipalities in the province, and the expected ground acceleration in the village is about 0.250 g. For a stone house in the centre you need to know whether and how it was repaired or strengthened, who signed off the work and whether any public grants are tied to the property.

On the slopes of the rise and along the Tirino, landslide and flood hazard can be read on the official maps for the exact address. The Revenue Agency (Agenzia delle Entrate) publishes cadastral maps here, so the report reaches the land parcel from the address.

Key points

  • Home of the Warrior statue, gathered around the Piccolomini castle.
  • Seismic zone 1, expected acceleration about 0.250 g.
  • Over-65s at 38.7%, foreign residents at 13.8%.
  • Stone houses in the centre: ask what repairs were done.

Overview

Capestrano is a municipality in the province of L'Aquila, in Abruzzo. At the end of 2023 it had 824 residents, ranked 58 of 108 municipalities in the province.

Earthquakes

For Italy's Civil Protection Department, Capestrano is in seismic zone 1, the highest-risk zone, where very strong earthquakes are possible. Most municipalities in the province (103 of 108) are in the same zone.

In the built-up area, the expected ground shaking (peak ground acceleration, PGA) is about 0.250 g, a medium-high value: the level with a 10% probability of being exceeded in 50 years, on rock.

For anyone buying in Capestrano, 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 7.9%. The estimated average age is 54 years, higher than the province average (48). 39% of residents are over 65 (the regional figure is 26%). Foreign residents make up 13.8% of the population. On average, a household has 1.9 members.

Income and climate

In tax year 2024, taxpayers in Capestrano declared an average taxable income of 18,052 euros, below the provincial average (22,903 euros). The Italian average is 24,895 euros.

Capestrano is in climate zone E, with 2,121 heating degree days: heating may be switched on from 15 October to 15 April, for up to 14 hours a day. The same table puts the town hall at 465 metres above sea level.

Services

In the official Ministry of Education and Ministry of Health lists, Capestrano has 3 schools and 1 pharmacy. The Overture Maps data also lists 2 healthcare facilities and 4 sports facilities.

The data shows no grocery shops and supermarkets within the municipality, against a provincial average of 0.7 per 1,000 residents.

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 3.1% of the land in Capestrano, compared with 3.2% in the province and 5.1% in the region. In 2024 built-up land grew by 0.7 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 contaminated sites in Capestrano.

Landslides and flooding

Landslide and flood hazard changes from one street to the next even within Capestrano: 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 Capestrano 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 12 inhabited census areas in Capestrano. Half of the residents live in areas scoring 59 or more.

Residents by band

  • fair 100.0%

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 066019. The text on this page is generated automatically from the data.