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Mirto: what to know before buying a home

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

Liveability index free for any address

Search for an address in Mirto

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 Provinciale 1, Mirto.

Mirto, Nebrodi foothills behind Capo d'Orlando

From the Tyrrhenian coast at Capo d'Orlando the road climbs towards the first slopes of the Nebrodi mountains, and Mirto is one of the villages along this band of farmed hills, at just over 400 metres. Being close to the sea matters: the climate is zone C, with mild winters, and anyone working on the coast can commute daily.

The village has an old centre of stone and rendered houses on narrow, sloping streets, and newer areas towards the access roads. For buyers, the practical questions are the usual ones for Sicilian hill villages: parking near the house, the state of the roof and services, and any extensions built without permits, to be checked at the town hall.

Mirto is losing residents too. At the end of 2023 there were 873, down 12.7% from 1,000 in 2011. The average age is 49.3, against 46.7 in the province, over-65s are 30.0% and foreign residents 4.0%. Average declared income is below the provincial level.

The seismic zone is 2 (on a national scale where 1 is the most hazardous), shared by 91 of the 108 municipalities in the province of Messina, and the expected ground acceleration in the village is about 0.177 g. It is sensible to ask for the structural design of reinforced concrete buildings and the works history of masonry ones.

Between hills and streams, landslide and flood hazard varies a great deal from one spot to the next, and the report checks it for the address. Cadastral data are available: with the Revenue Agency maps the report traces the land parcel.

Key points

  • Nebrodi hills inland from Capo d'Orlando.
  • 873 residents, down 12.7% since 2011.
  • Climate zone C: mild winters, sea nearby.
  • Seismic zone 2, expected acceleration about 0.177 g.

Overview

Mirto is a municipality in the province of Messina, in Sicilia. At the end of 2023 it had 873 residents, ranked 84 of 108 municipalities in the province.

Earthquakes

For Italy's Civil Protection Department, Mirto is in seismic zone 2, a zone where strong earthquakes are possible. Most municipalities in the province (91 of 108) are in the same zone.

In the built-up area, the expected ground shaking (peak ground acceleration, PGA) is about 0.177 g, a medium-high value: the level with a 10% probability of being exceeded in 50 years, on rock.

For anyone buying in Mirto, 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 12.7%. The estimated average age is 49 years, higher than the province average (47). 30% of residents are over 65 (the regional figure is 23%). Foreign residents make up 4.0% of the population. On average, a household has 1.8 members.

Income and climate

In tax year 2024, taxpayers in Mirto declared an average taxable income of 15,165 euros, below the provincial average (20,687 euros). The Italian average is 24,895 euros.

Mirto is in climate zone C, with 1,358 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 428 metres above sea level.

Services

In the official Ministry of Education and Ministry of Health lists, Mirto has 3 schools and 1 pharmacy. The Overture Maps data also lists 3 grocery shops and supermarkets.

The data shows no healthcare facilities within the municipality, against a provincial average of 0.8 per 1,000 residents.

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 7.5% of the land in Mirto, compared with 6.0% in the province and 6.6% 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 Mirto; one has been cleaned up or closed.

Landslides and flooding

Landslide and flood hazard changes from one street to the next even within Mirto: 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 Mirto 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 11 inhabited census areas in Mirto. Half of the residents live in areas scoring 72 or more.

Residents by band

  • fair 2.4%
  • good 97.6%

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 083051. The text on this page is generated automatically from the data.