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Grottammare: what to know before buying a home

A municipality in the province of Ascoli Piceno, Marche. Official data on earthquakes, population, services and transport.

Liveability index free for any address

Search for an address in Grottammare

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 Ischia I 1, Grottammare.

Grottammare, the hilltop old town and the palm-lined seafront

Grottammare is split between the paese alto, the old village on the hill, and the modern town stretched along the Adriatic, whose palm-lined seafront carries on towards San Benedetto del Tronto. Together with San Benedetto and Cupra Marittima it forms the Riviera delle Palme. Pope Sixtus V was born here.

The housing market divides the same way. On the seafront and nearby streets many homes are second homes or summer lets, with prices and running costs unlike those of the residential areas; up in the old village the houses are older masonry buildings, often reached by steps and steep lanes. The Adriatic railway stops at Grottammare and the A14 motorway junction is close; for the hospital and larger services, people go to San Benedetto.

At the end of 2023 Grottammare had 15,851 residents, up 1.5% on 2011 according to Istat, the national statistics office. It holds 7.9% of the province of Ascoli Piceno's population and is slightly younger than the provincial average, with over-65s at 24.7% against 27.0%. Foreign residents make up 6.0%. There are 146 cafés and restaurants on record, 9.21 per 1,000 residents, so tourism shows up in the figures too.

The 2016 earthquake struck the inland part of the province, and the coast is not immune to seismic risk. Grottammare is in zone 2, like almost the whole province, with an expected ground acceleration of about 0.180 g. Before buying, ask about surveys and structural work, especially for houses in the old village and for blocks built during the tourism boom.

Hazards change between hill and sea: landslides on the slopes of the old village, flooding near the streams that reach the beach. The report checks them for the exact address and finds the plot on the Revenue Agency (Agenzia delle Entrate) maps.

Key points

  • Hilltop old village and seafront on the Riviera delle Palme.
  • Station on the Adriatic line, A14 motorway junction nearby.
  • Up 1.5% since 2011, over-65s at 24.7%.
  • Seismic zone 2, expected acceleration about 0.180 g.

Overview

Grottammare is a municipality in the province of Ascoli Piceno, in Marche. At the end of 2023 it had 15,851 residents, the third most populous in the province.

Earthquakes

For Italy's Civil Protection Department, Grottammare is in seismic zone 2, a zone where strong earthquakes are possible. Most municipalities in the province (32 of 33) are in the same zone.

In the built-up area, the expected ground shaking (peak ground acceleration, PGA) is about 0.180 g, a medium-high value: the level with a 10% probability of being exceeded in 50 years, on rock.

For anyone buying in Grottammare, 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 1.5%. The estimated average age is 47 years, in line with the province. 25% of residents are over 65 (the regional figure is 26%). Foreign residents make up 6.0% of the population. On average, a household has 2.3 members.

Income and climate

In tax year 2024, taxpayers in Grottammare declared an average taxable income of 23,387 euros, in line with the province (22,837 euros). The Italian average is 24,895 euros.

Grottammare is in climate zone D, with 1,591 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 4 metres above sea level.

Services

In the official Ministry of Education and Ministry of Health lists, Grottammare has 15 schools and 5 pharmacies. The Overture Maps data also lists 9 grocery shops and supermarkets, 15 healthcare facilities, 20 sports facilities and 7 parks and green areas.

There are 0.6 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 21.6% of the land in Grottammare, compared with 6.5% in the province and 7.0% in the region. In 2024 built-up land grew by 2.4 hectares.

Radon and contaminated sites

Official databases list no open contaminated sites in Grottammare; one has been cleaned up or closed.

Landslides and flooding

Landslide and flood hazard changes from one street to the next even within Grottammare: 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 Grottammare 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 60 inhabited census areas in Grottammare. Half of the residents live in areas scoring 67 or more.

Residents by band

  • poor 0.0%
  • modest 2.9%
  • fair 34.6%
  • good 62.5%

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 044023. The text on this page is generated automatically from the data.