Piraino: 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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Search for an address in Piraino
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 Giuseppe Garibaldi 1, Piraino.
Piraino, a hill village and the seaside at Gliaca
Piraino has two sides: the old village on the hill, at around 400 metres, looking out over the Tyrrhenian Sea and the Aeolian Islands, and the hamlet of Gliaca down on the coast, which has grown along the coast road and the beaches. The municipality is on the northern coast of the province of Messina, between Brolo and Gioiosa Marea, with the Messina to Palermo motorway close by.
For buyers, the choice between the two makes a big difference. On the hill there are stone houses and steep lanes, often in need of renovation, with wide views and cooler winters; by the sea there are small blocks of flats, villas and holiday homes, handy for the beach and services but crowded in summer. Near the coast, check that the building is fully authorised, how far it is from state-owned shoreline, and the state of any reinforced concrete exposed to salt air.
In 2023 there were 3,794 residents, down 4.3% on 2011 according to Istat, the national statistics office. The estimated average age of 46.2 is slightly below the province, over-65s make up 24.7% and foreign residents 3.0%. Average declared incomes are below the provincial average.
In the province of Messina, 17 municipalities are in seismic zone 1 and 91 in zone 2 of the Civil Protection Department's scale. Piraino is in zone 2, with an expected ground acceleration of about 0.184 g. For a concrete-framed building from the 1970s or 1980s, common by the sea, ask for the structural design and have an engineer look at columns and beams.
The Revenue Agency (Agenzia delle Entrate) publishes cadastral maps for the municipality, so the report traces an address to its plot. On the steep slopes between the village and the sea it checks landslide maps, and on the low ground near the streams flood maps: different situations only a short distance apart.
Key points
- Hill village above the Tyrrhenian and Gliaca by the sea, near Brolo.
- 3,794 residents in 2023, down 4.3% since 2011.
- Seismic zone 2, expected acceleration about 0.184 g.
- By the sea: check concrete and salt damage.
Overview
Piraino is a municipality in the province of Messina, in Sicilia. At the end of 2023 it had 3,794 residents, ranked 30 of 108 municipalities in the province.
Earthquakes
For Italy's Civil Protection Department, Piraino 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 0.184 g, a medium-high value: the level with a 10% probability of being exceeded in 50 years, on rock.
For anyone buying in Piraino, 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 4.3%. The estimated average age is 46 years, in line with the province. 25% of residents are over 65 (the regional figure is 23%). Foreign residents make up 3.0% of the population. On average, a household has 2.0 members.
Income and climate
In tax year 2024, taxpayers in Piraino declared an average taxable income of 18,410 euros, below the provincial average (20,687 euros). The Italian average is 24,895 euros.
Piraino is in climate zone C, with 1,336 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 415 metres above sea level.
Services
In the official Ministry of Education and Ministry of Health lists, Piraino has 6 schools and 3 pharmacies. The Overture Maps data also lists 1 grocery shop, 1 healthcare facility, 2 sports facilities and 2 parks and green areas.
There are 0.3 healthcare facilities per 1,000 residents, fewer than the province average (0.8).
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 12.5% of the land in Piraino, 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 high. 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 Piraino.
Landslides and flooding
Landslide and flood hazard changes from one street to the next even within Piraino: 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 Piraino 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 61 inhabited census areas in Piraino. Half of the residents live in areas scoring 65 or more.
Residents by band
- modest 2.1%
- fair 37.0%
- good 61.0%
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 083068. The text on this page is generated automatically from the data.