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Erice: what to know before buying a home

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

Liveability index free for any address

Search for an address in Erice

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 Milano 3, Erice.

Erice, the hilltop town and the districts joined to Trapani

Erice is really two places, and a buyer needs to keep them apart. On top of the mountain, at more than seven hundred metres, stands the medieval town with its walls, churches and paved lanes, which you can also reach from Trapani by cable car. At the foot of the slope lie Casa Santa and the districts built in recent decades, which run straight into the streets of Trapani. That lower part is where most residents live.

They behave as separate markets. Up on the summit you find old stone houses with narrow access, building work that is often subject to heritage rules, and a cool climate even in summer, with the peak frequently in cloud. Because the town hall sits up there, Erice is classed in climate zone D. Down below there are flats and small detached houses a few minutes from central Trapani, its port and its offices. Average declared incomes are higher than in the rest of the province.

At the end of 2023 Istat, the national statistics office, counted 26,010 residents, down 7.1% on the 28,012 of 2011. The average age is 46.4, slightly above 46.0 for the province, and over-65s make up 25.2%. Foreign nationals are few, 1.7% of residents.

Almost the whole province of Trapani sits in the higher seismic zones set by the Civil Protection Department: 6 municipalities in zone 1 and 18 in zone 2. Erice is in zone 2, yet the ground acceleration expected in the built-up area on the national INGV hazard map is low, about 0.053 g. For a flat in the lower town it is still worth asking when the block was designed and what structural work has been done; for the stone houses on the summit, walls, floors and roofs matter most.

The Revenue Agency (Agenzia delle Entrate) publishes cadastral maps for the whole municipality. On the mountainside slope and landslide hazard change from one street to the next, and the report checks them for the exact address.

Key points

  • Medieval town on the summit, newer districts merging into Trapani.
  • 26,010 residents, down 7.1% since 2011.
  • Seismic zone 2, but low expected acceleration: 0.053 g.
  • Average incomes above the provincial average.

Overview

Erice is a municipality in the province of Trapani, in Sicilia. At the end of 2023 it had 26,010 residents, ranked 6 of 25 municipalities in the province.

Earthquakes

For Italy's Civil Protection Department, Erice is in seismic zone 2, a zone where strong earthquakes are possible. Most municipalities in the province (18 of 25) are in the same zone.

In the built-up area, the expected ground shaking (peak ground acceleration, PGA) is about 0.053 g, a moderate value: the level with a 10% probability of being exceeded in 50 years, on rock.

For anyone buying in Erice, 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 7.1%. The estimated average age is 46 years, in line with the province. 25% of residents are over 65 (the regional figure is 23%). Foreign residents make up 1.7% of the population. On average, a household has 2.3 members.

Income and climate

In tax year 2024, taxpayers in Erice declared an average taxable income of 22,511 euros, above the provincial average (18,927 euros). The Italian average is 24,895 euros.

Erice is in climate zone D, with 1,648 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 751 metres above sea level.

Services

In the official Ministry of Education and Ministry of Health lists, Erice has 28 schools and 9 pharmacies. The Overture Maps data also lists 14 grocery shops and supermarkets, 16 healthcare facilities, 18 sports facilities and 3 parks and green areas.

There are 0.5 grocery shops and supermarkets per 1,000 residents, fewer than the province average (0.7).

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 14.6% of the land in Erice, compared with 7.9% in the province and 6.6% in the region. In 2024 built-up land grew by 2.5 hectares.

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 Erice; one has been cleaned up or closed.

Landslides and flooding

Landslide and flood hazard changes from one street to the next even within Erice: 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 Erice 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 94 inhabited census areas in Erice. Half of the residents live in areas scoring 78 or more.

Residents by band

  • fair 13.3%
  • good 57.5%
  • very good 29.2%

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 081008. The text on this page is generated automatically from the data.