Skip to content
Vicinalia
Italiano Sign up

Cursi: what to know before buying a home

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

Liveability index free for any address

Search for an address in Cursi

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, Cursi.

Cursi, Lecce stone quarries near Maglie

Cursi has an unusual landscape for Salento: the quarries of pietra leccese, the soft, pale limestone that is easy to carve and that you see on the baroque façades of Lecce. The town is inland, a short way from Maglie, in flat countryside of olive groves and dry-stone walls, with the quarries cutting into the land.

The centre has courtyard houses and small stone townhouses; around it are detached homes and the quarry areas, with yards and stone-cutting workshops. If you are buying near a working quarry, ask about noise, dust and lorry traffic, and whether any expansion has been approved. In old stone houses, rising damp is the most common problem, along with outdated wiring and plumbing.

In 2023 there were 3,839 residents, down 9.7% on 2011 according to Istat, the national statistics office. The estimated average age of 47.4 is almost the same as the province of Lecce, and over-65s make up 26.6%. Foreign residents are few, 2.2%, and average declared incomes are below the provincial average.

For earthquakes, Salento is one of the calmest parts of Italy: all 96 municipalities in the province are in seismic zone 4, the lowest band set by the Civil Protection Department, and the expected ground acceleration in Cursi is about 0.057 g. The climate, zone C, means mild winters and hot summers, so insulation and shading matter as much as heating.

The Revenue Agency (Agenzia delle Entrate) publishes the cadastral maps, and the report traces the plot from the address. The ground in Salento is limestone riddled with cavities, and in some low-lying spots rainwater collects: the report checks flood maps for the address itself rather than the town in general.

Key points

  • Pietra leccese quarry country, inland near Maglie.
  • 3,839 residents in 2023, down 9.7% since 2011.
  • Whole province in seismic zone 4: low hazard.
  • Near the quarries: ask about noise, dust and lorries.

Overview

Cursi is a municipality in the province of Lecce, in Puglia. At the end of 2023 it had 3,839 residents, ranked 65 of 96 municipalities in the province.

Earthquakes

For Italy's Civil Protection Department, Cursi is in seismic zone 4, the lowest-risk zone, where strong earthquakes are very rare. All 96 municipalities in the province are in the same zone.

In the built-up area, the expected ground shaking (peak ground acceleration, PGA) is about 0.057 g, a moderate value: the level with a 10% probability of being exceeded in 50 years, on rock.

In zone 4 the risk is low, but for an older building it is still worth asking about the state of the structure.

Population

Compared with the 2011 census, the resident population has fallen by 9.7%. The estimated average age is 47 years, in line with the province. 27% of residents are over 65 (the regional figure is 24%). Foreign residents make up 2.2% of the population. On average, a household has 2.4 members.

Income and climate

In tax year 2024, taxpayers in Cursi declared an average taxable income of 16,451 euros, below the provincial average (19,196 euros). The Italian average is 24,895 euros.

Cursi is in climate zone C, with 1,248 heating degree days: heating may be switched on from 15 November to 31 March, for up to 10 hours a day. The same table puts the town hall at 87 metres above sea level.

Services

In the official Ministry of Education and Ministry of Health lists, Cursi has 4 schools and 1 pharmacy. The Overture Maps data also lists 3 grocery shops and supermarkets, 1 healthcare facility and 1 sports facility.

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 20.9% of the land in Cursi, compared with 14.1% in the province and 8.2% in the region. In 2024 built-up land grew by 1.1 hectares.

Radon and contaminated sites

Cursi is not among the radon priority areas designated by the Regione Puglia in 2025. According to the ISPRA map, the estimated radon emission in the municipality is very high. 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 Cursi.

Landslides and flooding

Landslide and flood hazard changes from one street to the next even within Cursi: 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 Cursi 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 13 inhabited census areas in Cursi. Half of the residents live in areas scoring 67 or more.

Residents by band

  • modest 0.0%
  • fair 4.2%
  • good 95.7%

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 075025. The text on this page is generated automatically from the data.