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Laterza: what to know before buying a home

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

Liveability index free for any address

Search for an address in Laterza

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 Roma 2, Laterza.

Laterza, a ravine town on the border with Basilicata

The town looks out over one of the largest ravines in Puglia, a canyon cut by water into the limestone of the Murge plateau and now a protected area. Laterza lies in the western part of the province of Taranto, at around three hundred and forty metres, right by the border with Basilicata: Matera is close, and Castellaneta and Ginosa are its neighbours in Puglia. Beyond the region the name is known for its bread, baked in wood-fired ovens, and for the majolica pottery made here in past centuries.

The historic centre crowds onto the edge of the ravine, with stone houses, steps and lanes. Anyone buying close to the edge should have the rock and the walls that hold it checked, as well as vaults, roofs and damp. The newer parts of town, with low-rise blocks and detached houses, have spread across the plateau. It lies in climate zone D, the national heating classification: winters are colder than on the Ionian coast.

Istat, the national statistics office, counted 14,761 residents in 2023, 3.5% fewer than in 2011, or 535 people. The population is younger than the province's, with an estimated average age of 44.8 against 46.5 and over-65s at 23.4%. Foreign residents are just 1.9%, households average 2.56 people and declared incomes are below the provincial average.

In the province of Taranto most municipalities, 19 of them, are in seismic zone 4. Laterza is one of the 10 in zone 3, and the expected ground acceleration in the built-up area is about 0.148 g. The hazard is not high, but for old masonry houses it is worth asking whether and how they have been strengthened.

The Revenue Agency (Agenzia delle Entrate) publishes the cadastral maps, and the report reaches the land parcel from the address. On the ravine walls and along the gullies that run down towards the plain, rockfalls and flash floods are assessed for the individual plot using the official maps.

Key points

  • On the edge of one of Puglia's largest ravines, near Matera.
  • Population down 3.5% since 2011, average age 44.8.
  • Seismic zone 3, while 19 municipalities in the province are zone 4.
  • Expected ground acceleration about 0.148 g in the built-up area.

Overview

Laterza is a municipality in the province of Taranto, in Puglia. At the end of 2023 it had 14,761 residents, ranked 11 of 29 municipalities in the province.

Earthquakes

For Italy's Civil Protection Department, Laterza is in seismic zone 3, a zone where strong earthquakes are possible but rare. Only 10 of 29 municipalities in the province are in zone 3.

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.

Even in zone 3, seismic standards apply to new buildings: for an older building, ask about the design year and any structural work.

Population

Compared with the 2011 census, the resident population has fallen by 3.5%. The estimated average age is 45 years, lower than the province average (46). 23% of residents are over 65 (the regional figure is 24%). Foreign residents make up 1.9% of the population. On average, a household has 2.6 members.

Income and climate

In tax year 2024, taxpayers in Laterza declared an average taxable income of 18,687 euros, below the provincial average (20,557 euros). The Italian average is 24,895 euros.

Laterza is in climate zone D, with 1,657 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 340 metres above sea level.

Services

In the official Ministry of Education and Ministry of Health lists, Laterza has 11 schools and 5 pharmacies. The Overture Maps data also lists 9 grocery shops and supermarkets, 6 healthcare facilities, 8 sports facilities and 5 parks and green areas.

There are 0.4 healthcare facilities per 1,000 residents, fewer 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 4.4% of the land in Laterza, compared with 9.6% in the province and 8.2% in the region. In 2024 built-up land grew by 5.0 hectares.

Radon and contaminated sites

Laterza is not among the radon priority areas designated by the Regione Puglia in 2025. 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 no open contaminated sites in Laterza; one has been cleaned up or closed.

Landslides and flooding

Landslide and flood hazard changes from one street to the next even within Laterza: 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 Laterza 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 42 inhabited census areas in Laterza. Half of the residents live in areas scoring 79 or more.

Residents by band

  • fair 25.7%
  • good 30.8%
  • very good 43.6%

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 073009. The text on this page is generated automatically from the data.