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Maratea: what to know before buying a home

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

Liveability index free for any address

Search for an address in Maratea

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 San Nicola 1, Maratea.

Maratea, Basilicata's only stretch of Tyrrhenian coast

Basilicata touches the Tyrrhenian Sea for only a few kilometres, and that stretch of coast belongs entirely to Maratea. The mountains drop almost sheer into the sea, and on the summit of Monte San Biagio the large statue of Christ the Redeemer looks out over the Gulf of Policastro. The municipality is made up of several parts: the historic village at around 300 metres, the harbour, coastal hamlets such as Acquafredda, Fiumicello and Marina, and Castrocucco towards Calabria.

Summer tourism shapes much of the market. Many houses are second homes or holiday lets, and prices near the sea are high for the region. The Tyrrhenian railway has a station at Maratea, handy for Naples and Calabria; by car, the coast roads are slow and winding. Anyone buying to live here all year should consider services, which thin out off-season, and the distance to larger towns.

Istat, the national statistics office, recorded 4,609 residents in 2023, down 10.5% since 2011. The average age is 49.5, above the 47.3 of the province of Potenza; over-65s make up 29.6% and foreign residents just 1.6%. Declared incomes are in line with the provincial average.

Maratea is in seismic zone 2, with an expected ground acceleration in the built-up area of about 0.172 g; the province has 40 municipalities in zone 1, the highest. For a masonry building, ask what structural work has been done. The more delicate issue is the slopes: steep rock faces, boulders and unstable ground above the coast. The report checks the official landslide and flood maps for the address.

Key points

  • Basilicata's only Tyrrhenian coast, with the Redeemer statue above.
  • Station on the Tyrrhenian railway; many second homes.
  • 4,609 residents, down 10.5% since 2011.
  • Seismic zone 2, expected acceleration about 0.172 g.

Overview

Maratea is a municipality in the province of Potenza, in Basilicata. At the end of 2023 it had 4,609 residents, ranked 18 of 100 municipalities in the province.

Earthquakes

For Italy's Civil Protection Department, Maratea is in seismic zone 2, a zone where strong earthquakes are possible. The region uses a finer breakdown: here the classification is 2c. Most municipalities in the province (59 of 100) are in the same zone.

In the built-up area, the expected ground shaking (peak ground acceleration, PGA) is about 0.172 g, a medium-high value: the level with a 10% probability of being exceeded in 50 years, on rock.

For anyone buying in Maratea, 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 10.5%. The estimated average age is 50 years, higher than the province average (47). 30% of residents are over 65 (the regional figure is 25%). Foreign residents make up 1.6% of the population. On average, a household has 2.1 members.

Income and climate

In tax year 2024, taxpayers in Maratea declared an average taxable income of 19,945 euros, in line with the province (20,337 euros). The Italian average is 24,895 euros.

Maratea is in climate zone C, with 1,325 heating degree days: heating may be switched on from 15 November to 31 March, for up to 10 hours a day. The same table puts the town hall at 300 metres above sea level.

Services

In the official Ministry of Education and Ministry of Health lists, Maratea has 8 schools and 2 pharmacies. The Overture Maps data also lists 3 grocery shops and supermarkets, 1 healthcare facility, 2 sports facilities and 4 parks and green areas.

There are 0.2 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 3.9% of the land in Maratea, compared with 3.5% in the province and 3.2% in the region. In 2024 built-up land grew by 0.7 hectares.

Radon and contaminated sites

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

Landslides and flooding

Landslide and flood hazard changes from one street to the next even within Maratea: 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 Maratea 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 35 inhabited census areas in Maratea. Half of the residents live in areas scoring 60 or more.

Residents by band

  • modest 5.7%
  • fair 73.7%
  • good 20.4%
  • very good 0.2%

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

ISTAT code 076044. The text on this page is generated automatically from the data.