Monforte San Giorgio: what to know before buying a home
A municipality in the province of Messina, Sicilia. 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 Umberto I 1, Monforte San Giorgio.
Monforte San Giorgio, in the Peloritani hills
On the Tyrrhenian side of the Peloritani mountains, inland from the coast between Messina and Milazzo, Monforte San Giorgio is a hill village built along a ridge, its houses following the slope and looking out towards the sea. The land around it is made up of farmed hills, streams running down to the coast and small scattered hamlets.
Buyers usually choose between the old centre, with stone houses that often need work and narrow streets, and the newer homes lower down, closer to the coast and to the roads towards Milazzo and the Messina to Palermo motorway. Anyone working on the coast or in Messina will need a car for every journey. The climate is mild (zone C) and summers are long.
In 2023 Istat, the national statistics institute, counted 2,442 residents, down 15.2% on 2011. The average age is 48.8 against 46.7 in the province of Messina, over-65s make up 28.2% and foreign residents 2.4%. Declared incomes are below the provincial average.
The Messina area is one of Italy's major earthquake zones, and past earthquakes are still remembered. Monforte is in seismic zone 2, like 90 other municipalities in the province, with an expected acceleration of 0.176 g. Before buying, ask about the year of construction, any structural work and the state of the foundations, especially for houses built on the slope.
The report checks the official landslide and flood maps at the address and uses the Revenue Agency (Agenzia delle Entrate) cadastral maps to identify the land parcel.
Key points
- Hill village in the Peloritani, between Messina and Milazzo.
- Population down 15.2% since 2011.
- Seismic zone 2, expected acceleration 0.176 g.
- Stone-built centre, newer homes towards the coast.
Overview
Monforte San Giorgio is a municipality in the province of Messina, in Sicilia. At the end of 2023 it had 2,442 residents, ranked 48 of 108 municipalities in the province.
Earthquakes
For Italy's Civil Protection Department, Monforte San Giorgio 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 0.176 g, a medium-high value: the level with a 10% probability of being exceeded in 50 years, on rock.
For anyone buying in Monforte San Giorgio, 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 15.2%. The estimated average age is 49 years, higher than the province average (47). 28% of residents are over 65 (the regional figure is 23%). Foreign residents make up 2.4% of the population. On average, a household has 2.0 members.
Income and climate
In tax year 2024, taxpayers in Monforte San Giorgio declared an average taxable income of 16,782 euros, below the provincial average (20,687 euros). The Italian average is 24,895 euros.
Monforte San Giorgio is in climate zone C, with 1,117 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 287 metres above sea level.
Services
In the official Ministry of Education and Ministry of Health lists, Monforte San Giorgio has 5 schools and 1 pharmacy. The Overture Maps data also lists 2 grocery shops and supermarkets and 2 sports facilities.
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 3.9% of the land in Monforte San Giorgio, compared with 6.0% in the province and 6.6% 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 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 no contaminated sites in Monforte San Giorgio.
Landslides and flooding
Landslide and flood hazard changes from one street to the next even within Monforte San Giorgio: 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 Monforte San Giorgio 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 17 inhabited census areas in Monforte San Giorgio. Half of the residents live in areas scoring 61 or more.
Residents by band
- fair 70.6%
- good 29.4%
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 083054. The text on this page is generated automatically from the data.