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Falerna: what to know before buying a home

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

Liveability index free for any address

Search for an address in Falerna

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: Contrada Cartolano 1, Falerna.

Falerna, the hill village and the beach on the Gulf of Sant'Eufemia

Falerna has two sides. There is the old village on the hill, at around five hundred and fifty metres, and there is Falerna Marina, on the Tyrrhenian coast of the Gulf of Sant'Eufemia, which has grown over recent decades with holiday homes and beach clubs. Lamezia Terme airport is a short way south, and the Falerna junction on the A2 motorway links the municipality to the rest of Calabria.

For buyers the choice varies a great deal. At the Marina, flats in residential complexes and villas dominate, many used only in summer: ask about service charges, how the building is managed in the empty months and the distance from the sea. On the hill there are masonry houses, often old, with views over the gulf and steep streets. Overture Maps counts 33 bars and restaurants, 8.52 per 1,000 residents against 5.13 in the province. Average declared incomes are below the average for the province of Catanzaro.

In 2023 there were 3,873 residents, up 1.9% on 2011. The average age is 44.8 against 46.1 for the province, and over-65s make up 22.0%. Foreign residents account for 13.1%, a high share for Calabria.

Earthquakes are the first technical issue. Falerna is in seismic zone 1, the highest, like 45 municipalities in the province, and the expected ground acceleration in the built-up area is about 0.234 g. For a flat at the Marina built during the holiday-home boom, or an old house in the village, ask for structural assessments and the design documents before signing.

Short, steep streams run from the hills to the sea and can swell within hours in heavy rain. The report reads the official flood and landslide maps for the address and, using the Revenue Agency (Agenzia delle Entrate) cadastral maps, traces the plot.

Key points

  • Hill village and Falerna Marina on the Gulf of Sant'Eufemia.
  • Seismic zone 1, expected acceleration of about 0.234 g.
  • 3,873 residents, up 1.9% since 2011.
  • Holiday homes at the Marina: check charges and management.

Overview

Falerna is a municipality in the province of Catanzaro, in Calabria. At the end of 2023 it had 3,873 residents, ranked 19 of 80 municipalities in the province.

Earthquakes

For Italy's Civil Protection Department, Falerna is in seismic zone 1, the highest-risk zone, where very strong earthquakes are possible. Most municipalities in the province (45 of 80) are in the same zone.

In the built-up area, the expected ground shaking (peak ground acceleration, PGA) is about 0.234 g, a medium-high value: the level with a 10% probability of being exceeded in 50 years, on rock.

For anyone buying in Falerna, 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 grown by 1.9%. The estimated average age is 45 years, in line with the province. 22% of residents are over 65 (the regional figure is 24%). Foreign residents make up 13.1% of the population. On average, a household has 2.1 members.

Income and climate

In tax year 2024, taxpayers in Falerna declared an average taxable income of 17,130 euros, below the provincial average (19,667 euros). The Italian average is 24,895 euros.

Falerna is in climate zone D, with 1,904 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 550 metres above sea level.

Services

In the official Ministry of Education and Ministry of Health lists, Falerna has 6 schools and 2 pharmacies. The Overture Maps data also lists 1 grocery shop, 2 healthcare facilities and 1 green area.

There are 0.3 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 8.4% of the land in Falerna, compared with 6.6% in the province and 5.1% 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 contaminated sites in Falerna.

Landslides and flooding

Landslide and flood hazard changes from one street to the next even within Falerna: 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 Falerna 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 36 inhabited census areas in Falerna. Half of the residents live in areas scoring 54 or more.

Residents by band

  • poor 0.1%
  • modest 23.6%
  • fair 76.2%

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 079047. The text on this page is generated automatically from the data.