Castel Sant'Elia: what to know before buying a home
A municipality in the province of Viterbo, Lazio. Official data on earthquakes, population, services and transport.
Liveability index free for any address
Land sheet 6 free checks
Search for an address in Castel Sant'Elia
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 Civita Castellana 1, Castel Sant'Elia.
Castel Sant'Elia, tuff stone and the Faliscan gorge
Castel Sant'Elia is one of the tuff-stone villages of the Agro Falisco, the south-eastern part of the province of Viterbo, between Nepi and Civita Castellana. The village sits on the edge of a deep gorge cut by a stream; at the bottom of the valley stands the Romanesque basilica of Sant'Elia, while the sanctuary of the Madonna ad Rupes is carved into the rock face and draws pilgrims.
Distance from Rome matters for buyers: the capital is reached via the Via Flaminia or the Via Cassia, with journey times that depend a lot on traffic, and many residents work in Rome or in nearby towns. Housing ranges from tuff houses in the old core, often with cellars cut into the rock, to villas and newer low-rise blocks outside the centre. On the edge of the gorge the views are remarkable, but have the walls and foundations properly checked.
Istat, the national statistics institute, counts 2,411 residents in 2023, down 5.7% on 2011. The average age is 46.4, below the 47.5 of the province of Viterbo, over-65s make up 22.4% and foreign residents 9.5%. Declared incomes are below the provincial average.
Castel Sant'Elia is in seismic zone 3, like 19 other municipalities in the province, with an expected acceleration of 0.097 g. In tuff houses the practical advice is to check for damp, the state of the cellars and any work on the walls, as well as the roof.
Between the plateau and the gorge walls the ground changes within a few metres: the report measures elevation and gradient at the address, checks the official hazard maps and identifies the land parcel with the Revenue Agency (Agenzia delle Entrate) maps.
Key points
- Tuff village in the Agro Falisco, between Nepi and Civita Castellana.
- Basilica of Sant'Elia and a sanctuary carved in the rock.
- Population down 5.7% since 2011.
- Seismic zone 3, expected acceleration 0.097 g.
Overview
Castel Sant'Elia is a municipality in the province of Viterbo, in Lazio. At the end of 2023 it had 2,411 residents, ranked 32 of 60 municipalities in the province.
Earthquakes
For Italy's Civil Protection Department, Castel Sant'Elia is in seismic zone 3, a zone where strong earthquakes are possible but rare. The region uses a finer breakdown: here the classification is 3A. Only 20 of 60 municipalities in the province are in zone 3.
In the built-up area, the expected ground shaking (peak ground acceleration, PGA) is about 0.097 g, a moderate value: the level with a 10% probability of being exceeded in 50 years, on rock.
Even in zone 3, seismic standards apply to new buildings: for an older building, ask about the design year and any structural work.
Population
Compared with the 2011 census, the resident population has fallen by 5.7%. The estimated average age is 46 years, in line with the province. 22% of residents are over 65 (the regional figure is 23%). Foreign residents make up 9.5% of the population. On average, a household has 2.3 members.
Income and climate
In tax year 2024, taxpayers in Castel Sant'Elia declared an average taxable income of 19,737 euros, below the provincial average (22,031 euros). The Italian average is 24,895 euros.
Castel Sant'Elia is in climate zone D, with 1,794 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 210 metres above sea level.
Services
In the official Ministry of Education and Ministry of Health lists, Castel Sant'Elia has 3 schools and 1 pharmacy. The Overture Maps data also lists 4 sports facilities and 1 green area.
The data shows no grocery shops and supermarkets within the municipality, against a provincial average of 0.8 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 4.9% of the land in Castel Sant'Elia, compared with 4.7% in the province and 8.2% in the region. In 2024 built-up land stayed almost the same.
Radon and contaminated sites
According to the ISPRA map, the estimated radon emission in the municipality is medium. 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 Castel Sant'Elia; one has been cleaned up or closed.
Landslides and flooding
Landslide and flood hazard changes from one street to the next even within Castel Sant'Elia: 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 Castel Sant'Elia 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 19 inhabited census areas in Castel Sant'Elia. Half of the residents live in areas scoring 66 or more.
Residents by band
- fair 27.0%
- good 73.0%
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
- Seismic classification of municipalities, Dipartimento della Protezione Civile. Licence CC BY 4.0, updated to 2025-05.
- MPS04 seismic hazard model, INGV. Licence CC BY 4.0, 2004 model.
- Data by census section, Istat. Licence CC BY 4.0, residents at the end of 2023, compared with the 2011 census.
- Places, Overture Maps Foundation. Licence CDLA Permissive 2.0 and others depending on provider, release 2026-10-21.0.
- Income and main IRPEF variables by municipality, MEF, Dipartimento delle Finanze. Licence CC BY 3.0 IT, tax year 2024.
- Climate zones and heating degree days of municipalities (Presidential Decree 412/1993, Annex A), Normattiva. Licence CC BY 4.0, current text.
- Land take, territorial dynamics and ecosystem services, ISPRA e SNPA. Licence CC BY 4.0, 2024 data.
- Predictive radon map by municipality, ISPRA. Licence CC BY 4.0, version 2022-11.
- Contaminated sites, ISPRA, MOSAICO - Banca dati nazionale dei siti oggetto di procedimento di bonifica. Licence CC BY 4.0, updated to 12 November 2026.
- Liveability index by census area, Vicinalia, from the data in the report sections. Licence CC BY-SA 4.0, worked out on 30 September 2026.
- List of Italian municipalities, Istat. Licence CC BY 4.0, updated to 21 February 2026.
ISTAT code 056017. The text on this page is generated automatically from the data.