Matera: what to know before buying a home
A municipality in the province of Matera, Basilicata. Official data on earthquakes, population, services and transport.
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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 Lucana 1, Matera.
Matera, from the Sassi to the modern town
The Sassi of Matera, homes and churches carved into the limestone on the edge of the Gravina ravine, have been a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1993, and in 2019 Matera was European Capital of Culture. In the 1950s a special law emptied the Sassi districts and moved their residents to new neighbourhoods; many of those cave dwellings have since been restored. The city is connected to Bari by the Ferrovie Appulo Lucane railway.
Anyone looking at a home in the Sassi or the old centre has to allow for the conservation restrictions of a protected site, on top of the usual checks. Beyond the historic core, Matera is a town that grew mainly in the second half of the twentieth century.
The population is stable: 59,652 residents at the end of 2023, 0.2% fewer than at the 2011 census, and 31.4% of the province. It is a relatively young municipality, with an estimated average age of 45.9 (46.3 for the province) and 23.9% of residents over 65, below the Basilicata average of 25.4%. The average household has 2.33 people.
Italy's Civil Protection Department places Matera in seismic zone 2, which the Region labels 2d; in the province 17 municipalities are in zone 2 and 14 in zone 3. The expected ground acceleration in the built-up area is about 0.138 g, a moderate value. For buildings carved from rock or built in old masonry, as for post-war apartment blocks, the condition of the structure needs to be documented.
Cafés and restaurants are plentiful: Overture Maps data record 451 cafés, bars and restaurants, 7.56 per 1,000 residents against 5.66 in the province, and 41 healthcare facilities (0.69 against 0.45). The Ministry of Health lists 17 pharmacies, 0.28 per 1,000 residents against 0.37.
The Revenue Agency (Agenzia delle Entrate) cadastral maps are available, and the report identifies the sheet and parcel (foglio and particella) from the address. Between the Gravina, the Murgia plateau and the newer districts, landslide and flood hazard and local prices are checked for the individual address.
Key points
- Sassi UNESCO-listed since 1993; European Capital of Culture in 2019.
- Stable population: 59,652 residents.
- Seismic zone 2 (regional code 2d); ground acceleration about 0.138 g.
- Conservation restrictions apply in the Sassi.
Overview
Matera is the capital of the province of Matera, in Basilicata. At the end of 2023 it had 59,652 residents, the most populous municipality in the province. 31% of the province's residents live here.
Earthquakes
For Italy's Civil Protection Department, Matera is in seismic zone 2, a zone where strong earthquakes are possible. The region uses a finer breakdown: here the classification is 2d. Most municipalities in the province (17 of 31) are in the same zone.
In the built-up area, the expected ground shaking (peak ground acceleration, PGA) is about 0.138 g, a moderate value: the level with a 10% probability of being exceeded in 50 years, on rock.
For anyone buying in Matera, 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 number of residents is nearly unchanged. The estimated average age is 46 years, in line with the province. 24% of residents are over 65 (the regional figure is 25%). Foreign residents make up 6.1% of the population. On average, a household has 2.3 members.
Income and climate
In tax year 2024, taxpayers in Matera declared an average taxable income of 23,930 euros, above the provincial average (19,958 euros). The Italian average is 24,895 euros.
Matera is in climate zone D, with 1,776 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 401 metres above sea level.
Services
In the official Ministry of Education and Ministry of Health lists, Matera has 50 schools and 17 pharmacies. The Overture Maps data also lists 40 grocery shops and supermarkets, 41 healthcare facilities, 55 sports facilities and 11 parks and green areas.
There are 0.7 healthcare facilities per 1,000 residents, more than the province average (0.4).
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 5.7% of the land in Matera, compared with 2.7% in the province and 3.2% in the region. In 2024 built-up land grew by 7.3 hectares.
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 Matera, 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 Matera: 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 Matera 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 432 inhabited census areas in Matera. Half of the residents live in areas scoring 79 or more.
Residents by band
- modest 0.2%
- fair 6.5%
- good 47.6%
- very good 42.1%
- excellent 3.7%
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
- Seismic classification of municipalities, Dipartimento della Protezione Civile. Licence CC BY 4.0, updated to 2025-05.
- MPS04 seismic hazard model, INGV. Licence CC BY 4.0, 2004 model.
- Data by census section, Istat. Licence CC BY 4.0, residents at the end of 2023, compared with the 2011 census.
- Places, Overture Maps Foundation. Licence CDLA Permissive 2.0 and others depending on provider, release 2026-10-21.0.
- Income and main IRPEF variables by municipality, MEF, Dipartimento delle Finanze. Licence CC BY 3.0 IT, tax year 2024.
- Climate zones and heating degree days of municipalities (Presidential Decree 412/1993, Annex A), Normattiva. Licence CC BY 4.0, current text.
- Land take, territorial dynamics and ecosystem services, ISPRA e SNPA. Licence CC BY 4.0, 2024 data.
- Predictive radon map by municipality, ISPRA. Licence CC BY 4.0, version 2022-11.
- Contaminated sites, ISPRA, MOSAICO - Banca dati nazionale dei siti oggetto di procedimento di bonifica. Licence CC BY 4.0, updated to 12 November 2026.
- Liveability index by census area, Vicinalia, from the data in the report sections. Licence CC BY-SA 4.0, worked out on 30 September 2026.
- List of Italian municipalities, Istat. Licence CC BY 4.0, updated to 21 February 2026.
ISTAT code 077014. The text on this page is generated automatically from the data.