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Moliterno: 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 Moliterno

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 Giovanni Amendola 1, Moliterno.

Moliterno, canestrato cheese and the upper Val d'Agri

To many Italians, Moliterno is the name of a cheese: Canestrato di Moliterno, the sheep's milk cheese aged in the town's cellars. The municipality sits at around 880 metres on the side of the upper Val d'Agri, in the south of the province of Potenza, with the old centre gathered below the castle and pastures climbing towards the mountains. Potenza is a drive along the valley roads, and not a short one.

For buyers, the old centre offers stone houses on several floors, pressed together along sloping lanes, many of them empty for years. On the edges of town there are newer buildings, small blocks and detached houses. The climate is mountain climate, zone E, with cold winters and snow, so heating costs need factoring in. Services are those of a valley town: 4 supermarkets, 5 school sites, 1 pharmacy and 16 bars and restaurants.

Depopulation is severe. Istat, the national statistics office, counted 3,526 residents in 2023, down 15.7% since 2011, with an average age of 50.1 against 47.3 for the province and over-65s at 31.6%, against 25.7% provincially. Foreign residents account for 3.9%. Average declared incomes are slightly below the provincial level.

The Val d'Agri is among the most earthquake-prone parts of Basilicata. Moliterno is in zone 1, the highest on the Civil Protection Department scale (the national emergency agency), like 39 other municipalities in the province, and the expected acceleration is about 0.262 g. Before buying a stone house in the centre, get a survey of the walls and find out whether any seismic work has been done.

The Revenue Agency (Agenzia delle Entrate) publishes the cadastral maps and the report locates the plot. On the valley slopes, landslides are the most widespread hazard, to be checked for the exact address.

Key points

  • Upper Val d'Agri at about 880 metres, home of Canestrato di Moliterno.
  • 3,526 residents in 2023, down 15.7% since 2011.
  • Seismic zone 1, expected acceleration about 0.262 g.
  • Over-65s at 31.6%, above the provincial 25.7%.

Overview

Moliterno is a municipality in the province of Potenza, in Basilicata. At the end of 2023 it had 3,526 residents, ranked 27 of 100 municipalities in the province.

Earthquakes

For Italy's Civil Protection Department, Moliterno is in seismic zone 1, the highest-risk zone, where very strong earthquakes are possible. The region uses a finer breakdown: here the classification is 1a. Only 40 of 100 municipalities in the province are in zone 1.

In the built-up area, the expected ground shaking (peak ground acceleration, PGA) is about 0.262 g, a high value: the level with a 10% probability of being exceeded in 50 years, on rock.

For anyone buying in Moliterno, 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 15.7%. The estimated average age is 50 years, higher than the province average (47). 32% of residents are over 65 (the regional figure is 25%). Foreign residents make up 3.9% of the population. On average, a household has 2.2 members.

Income and climate

In tax year 2024, taxpayers in Moliterno declared an average taxable income of 19,344 euros, in line with the province (20,337 euros). The Italian average is 24,895 euros.

Moliterno is in climate zone E, with 2,295 heating degree days: heating may be switched on from 15 October to 15 April, for up to 14 hours a day. The same table puts the town hall at 879 metres above sea level.

Services

In the official Ministry of Education and Ministry of Health lists, Moliterno has 5 schools and 1 pharmacy. The Overture Maps data also lists 4 grocery shops and supermarkets, 1 healthcare facility, 1 sports facility and 1 green area.

There are 0.3 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 2.8% of the land in Moliterno, compared with 3.5% in the province and 3.2% in the region. In 2024 built-up land stayed almost the same.

Radon and contaminated sites

According to the ISPRA map, the estimated radon emission in the municipality is medium. Radon varies from building to building and can only be known by measuring it, especially on ground floors and in basements.

Official databases list one contaminated site, or site still under investigation, in Moliterno. 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 Moliterno: 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 Moliterno 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 22 inhabited census areas in Moliterno. Half of the residents live in areas scoring 60 or more.

Residents by band

  • modest 0.3%
  • fair 99.7%

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

ISTAT code 076050. The text on this page is generated automatically from the data.