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Matera: what to know before buying a home

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

Search for an address in Matera

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 Dante 7, Milan.

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 422 cafés, bars and restaurants, 7.07 per 1,000 residents against 5.20 in the province, and 37 healthcare facilities (0.62 against 0.35). 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.

Landslides and flooding

Landslide and flood risk changes from one street to the next, even within the same municipality: for this reason we do not summarise it as a single figure for the whole of Matera.

The report checks the exact address against the ISPRA national maps and tells you in plain words whether the building falls within an at-risk area. The official map is also available on IdroGEO.

House prices

We do not publish price tables by municipality. The report gives the minimum and maximum price per square metre for the address's zone, from the Revenue Agency's OMI valuations, with the reference half-year. It is a range for the zone, not the value of a specific home.

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.

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 37 grocery shops and supermarkets, 37 healthcare facilities, 49 sports facilities and 12 parks and green areas.

There are 0.6 healthcare facilities per 1,000 residents, more than the province average (0.3).

This data is gathered from several providers: services may be missing or closed businesses may still appear. The report counts services within 500 metres and 1 kilometre of the address.

Public transport

We do not yet have open public transport timetables for this municipality: the report says so explicitly, without inventing distances.

Land registry

The Revenue Agency publishes the cadastral maps for Matera: the report finds the building's parcel, that is its sheet and parcel number, starting from the address.

Data sources

ISTAT code 077014. The text on this page is generated automatically from the data.