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Gangi: what to know before buying a home

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

Liveability index free for any address

Search for an address in Gangi

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 Grande Sant'Antonino 1, Gangi.

Gangi, a terraced hill town in the Madonie mountains

From a distance Gangi looks like a pyramid of houses. The town covers the top and sides of a hill in the eastern Madonie mountains of Sicily, at over a thousand metres, with streets climbing in steps to the highest part. It is one of the best-known villages of inland Sicily, helped by its win in the Borgo dei Borghi, a national television contest for the most beautiful village.

Gangi was also one of the first Italian towns to offer abandoned houses for one euro, on condition that buyers renovate them within a set time. If you are looking at these offers, or at any house in the old centre, budget for real renovation costs: stone walls, roofs to redo, new wiring and plumbing, and steep narrow lanes where building vehicles struggle to pass. Get a quote before you commit.

The population has been falling for years. Istat, the national statistics office, counted 5,997 residents in 2023, 1,066 fewer than in 2011, a drop of 15.1%. Average age is 49.5 against 44.7 in the province of Palermo, and over-65s are 30.6% against 22.8%. Foreign nationals are 1.5%. For basic services the town serves nearby villages: 10 education sites, 1.67 per 1,000 residents against 0.95 in the province.

Gangi is in seismic zone 2 of the Civil Protection Department classification, like 80 other municipalities in the province, with expected ground acceleration of about 0.148 g. In the centre houses lean against each other, so serious structural work has to take neighbouring buildings into account. Winters are cold and snow is possible (climate zone E), and Palermo is more than an hour and a half away by mountain roads and motorway.

The slopes around the hill are steep and partly clay: the report checks landslide maps and ground gradient for the address. Cadastral maps from the Revenue Agency (Agenzia delle Entrate) are published.

Key points

  • Terraced town in the Madonie, above a thousand metres.
  • One-euro houses in the centre: budget for full renovation.
  • 5,997 residents in 2023, down 15.1% since 2011.
  • Over-65s at 30.6%, seismic zone 2.

Overview

Gangi is a municipality in the province of Palermo, in Sicilia. At the end of 2023 it had 5,997 residents, ranked 30 of 82 municipalities in the province.

Earthquakes

For Italy's Civil Protection Department, Gangi is in seismic zone 2, a zone where strong earthquakes are possible. Most municipalities in the province (81 of 82) are in the same zone.

In the built-up area, the expected ground shaking (peak ground acceleration, PGA) is about 0.148 g, a moderate value: the level with a 10% probability of being exceeded in 50 years, on rock.

For anyone buying in Gangi, 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 15.1%. The estimated average age is 49 years, higher than the province average (45). 31% of residents are over 65 (the regional figure is 23%). Foreign residents make up 1.5% of the population. On average, a household has 2.3 members.

Income and climate

In tax year 2024, taxpayers in Gangi declared an average taxable income of 17,107 euros, below the provincial average (21,337 euros). The Italian average is 24,895 euros.

Gangi is in climate zone E, with 2,179 heating degree days: heating may be switched on from 15 October to 15 April, for up to 14 hours a day. The same table puts the town hall at 1,011 metres above sea level.

Services

In the official Ministry of Education and Ministry of Health lists, Gangi has 10 schools and 2 pharmacies. The Overture Maps data also lists 8 grocery shops and supermarkets, 2 healthcare facilities and 2 sports facilities.

There are 1.3 grocery shops and supermarkets per 1,000 residents, more 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 2.3% of the land in Gangi, compared with 5.7% in the province and 6.6% 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 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 2 contaminated sites, or sites still under investigation, in Gangi, and 3 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 Gangi: 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 Gangi 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 51 inhabited census areas in Gangi. Half of the residents live in areas scoring 81 or more.

Residents by band

  • fair 9.8%
  • good 33.1%
  • very good 57.1%

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 082036. The text on this page is generated automatically from the data.