Ferrandina: what to know before buying a home
A municipality in the province of Matera, Basilicata. Official data on earthquakes, population, services and transport.
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Search for an address in Ferrandina
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 Buonsanti Lanzillotti 1, Ferrandina.
Ferrandina, baked olives and the Basento valley
Ferrandina's oven-baked olives, made from the local maiatica variety, are what the town is known for across Basilicata. The centre stands on a clay hill above the Basento valley, at around four hundred and eighty metres, surrounded by olive groves and wheat fields. Down below runs the Basentana, the fast road linking Potenza with Metaponto and the Ionian coast.
In the valley, around Ferrandina's railway station on the Potenza to Metaponto line, lies part of the Val Basento industrial area, built around the chemical industry and now largely scaled down. Matera is about half an hour's drive. For buyers, the town mainly offers family houses and flats in small blocks, at low prices, with many empty or run-down homes in the old centre.
The population is falling fast: 7,922 residents in 2023, 11.7% fewer than in 2011, which means 1,051 people, according to Istat, the national statistics office. The estimated average age is 47.6, above the 46.3 of the province of Matera, with over-65s at 26.4% against 24.8% provincially. Foreign residents account for 2.9%. Declared incomes match the provincial average.
The province of Matera has 17 municipalities in seismic zone 2 and 14 in zone 3. Ferrandina is in zone 2 of the Civil Protection classification, with an expected ground acceleration in the built-up area of about 0.141 g. Before buying in a masonry or reinforced concrete building from the 1960s or 1970s, have a surveyor assess the structure and the foundations, which matter a great deal on clay ground.
The Revenue Agency (Agenzia delle Entrate) publishes cadastral maps here, and the report finds the plot from the address. The clay hills of the Basento valley are prone to landslides and slips: on the edges of town and on the slopes, check the individual address along with the gradient of the land.
Key points
- Hill town above the Basento valley, half an hour from Matera.
- Population down 11.7% since 2011; over-65s at 26.4%.
- Seismic zone 2, expected acceleration about 0.141 g.
- Clay hills: check landslides and foundations.
Overview
Ferrandina is a municipality in the province of Matera, in Basilicata. At the end of 2023 it had 7,922 residents, ranked 6 of 31 municipalities in the province.
Earthquakes
For Italy's Civil Protection Department, Ferrandina is in seismic zone 2, a zone where strong earthquakes are possible. The region uses a finer breakdown: here the classification is 2d. Most municipalities in the province (17 of 31) are in the same zone.
In the built-up area, the expected ground shaking (peak ground acceleration, PGA) is about 0.141 g, a moderate value: the level with a 10% probability of being exceeded in 50 years, on rock.
For anyone buying in Ferrandina, 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 11.7%. The estimated average age is 48 years, in line with the province. 26% of residents are over 65 (the regional figure is 25%). Foreign residents make up 2.9% of the population. On average, a household has 2.3 members.
Income and climate
In tax year 2024, taxpayers in Ferrandina declared an average taxable income of 19,990 euros, in line with the province (19,958 euros). The Italian average is 24,895 euros.
Ferrandina is in climate zone D, with 1,788 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 482 metres above sea level.
Services
In the official Ministry of Education and Ministry of Health lists, Ferrandina has 7 schools and 3 pharmacies. The Overture Maps data also lists 4 grocery shops and supermarkets, 4 healthcare facilities and 3 sports facilities.
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 2.5% of the land in Ferrandina, compared with 2.7% in the province and 3.2% in the region. In 2024 built-up land grew by 6.6 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 13 contaminated sites, or sites still under investigation, in Ferrandina, and 24 more have been cleaned up or closed. The report tells you whether one is close to the address.
Landslides and flooding
Landslide and flood hazard changes from one street to the next even within Ferrandina: 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 Ferrandina 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 53 inhabited census areas in Ferrandina. Half of the residents live in areas scoring 78 or more.
Residents by band
- fair 2.8%
- good 63.1%
- very good 34.2%
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
- 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 077008. The text on this page is generated automatically from the data.