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Gela: what to know before buying a home

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

Liveability index free for any address

Search for an address in Gela

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 Venezia 1, Gela.

Gela, a Greek city on the gulf and an energy hub

Gela is one of the oldest cities in Sicily, founded by Greek settlers on the south coast, and the walls at Capo Soprano and the acropolis survive from that past. In the twentieth century its story took a different turn with a large petrochemical plant, now converted into a biorefinery. It brought jobs, and the industrial area became a site of national interest for environmental clean-up.

It is the most populous municipality in the province of Caltanissetta, larger than Caltanissetta itself, with 28.7% of the province's residents. The town stretches along the gulf, with a seafront and beaches, and behind it opens the plain, farmed for artichokes, vegetables and wheat. The Allied landings of 1943 took place on this very coast.

Many districts grew quickly during the industrial boom, often outside any plan, and unauthorised building was a well-known problem in Gela for decades. Before buying, have a surveyor check the planning permits, any amnesty paperwork (condono) and the occupancy certificate, and look at how far the property is from the industrial zone.

Istat, the national statistics office, counted 70,856 residents in 2023, down 6.4% on 2011, or 4,812 fewer people. The town remains younger than the province, with an average age of 43.7 against 45.2, and foreign residents are few, at 2.1%. Average declared incomes are above the provincial figure.

Gela is one of only 4 municipalities in the province in seismic zone 2, while the other 18 are in the lower zone 3; expected ground acceleration is about 0.091 g. In apartment blocks built between the 1960s and 1980s, ask whether any structural surveys exist. The climate is hot (climate zone B), so in summer keeping the sun out matters more than heating.

Key points

  • Ancient Greek colony, now home to a biorefinery.
  • The province's largest municipality, with 28.7% of residents.
  • Check planning permits and amnesty paperwork before completion.
  • Seismic zone 2, one of only 4 in the province.

Overview

Gela is a municipality in the province of Caltanissetta, in Sicilia. At the end of 2023 it had 70,856 residents, the most populous municipality in the province. 29% of the province's residents live here.

Earthquakes

For Italy's Civil Protection Department, Gela is in seismic zone 2, a zone where strong earthquakes are possible. Only 4 of 22 municipalities in the province are in zone 2.

In the built-up area, the expected ground shaking (peak ground acceleration, PGA) is about 0.091 g, a moderate value: the level with a 10% probability of being exceeded in 50 years, on rock.

For anyone buying in Gela, 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 6.4%. The estimated average age is 44 years, lower than the province average (45). 21% of residents are over 65 (the regional figure is 23%). Foreign residents make up 2.1% of the population. On average, a household has 2.5 members.

Income and climate

In tax year 2024, taxpayers in Gela declared an average taxable income of 20,628 euros, above the provincial average (19,090 euros). The Italian average is 24,895 euros.

Gela is in climate zone B, with 822 heating degree days: heating may be switched on from 1 December to 31 March, for up to 8 hours a day. The same table puts the town hall at 46 metres above sea level.

Services

In the official Ministry of Education and Ministry of Health lists, Gela has 67 schools and 23 pharmacies. The Overture Maps data also lists 23 grocery shops and supermarkets, 41 healthcare facilities, 34 sports facilities and 5 parks and green areas.

There are 0.3 grocery shops and supermarkets per 1,000 residents, fewer than the province average (0.5).

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 8.7% of the land in Gela, compared with 4.8% in the province and 6.6% in the region. In 2024 built-up land grew by 6.4 hectares.

Radon and contaminated sites

Official databases list 2 contaminated sites, or sites still under investigation, in Gela, and 10 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 Gela: 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 Gela 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 1,536 inhabited census areas in Gela. Half of the residents live in areas scoring 80 or more.

Residents by band

  • modest 0.0%
  • fair 11.4%
  • good 36.6%
  • very good 51.9%

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 085007. The text on this page is generated automatically from the data.