Poggio Picenze: what to know before buying a home
A municipality in the province of L'Aquila, Abruzzo. Official data on earthquakes, population, services and transport.
Liveability index free for any address
Land sheet 6 free checks
Search for an address in Poggio Picenze
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 Primo 1, Poggio Picenze.
Poggio Picenze, a stone village on the high ground east of L'Aquila
Poggio Picenze sits on the high ground east of L'Aquila, at around 750 metres, in the part of inland Abruzzo where the L'Aquila basin starts climbing towards the upland plains. The village is tight-knit, with stone houses packed around the old centre, and beyond it lie fields, pasture and patches of woodland. For work, secondary schools, the hospital and the university, people look to the provincial capital, which you reach by car.
Anyone buying here has two things to weigh up. The first is winter: the climate zone is E, the cold lasts for months and a poorly insulated stone house is expensive to heat. The second is the recent history of the buildings. Across the L'Aquila area many homes have been repaired or rebuilt in recent years with public grants, so before making an offer ask the seller for the building permits, the structural design and the certificate confirming the works were completed.
In 2023 there were 1,010 residents, down 5.4% on the 1,068 counted in the 2011 census. The average age, 47.3, is close to the provincial figure (47.5), and over-65s make up 26.7%. Foreign residents account for 12.0%, and households have 2.45 members on average.
The municipality is in seismic zone 1, like 103 of the 108 municipalities in the province, and the expected ground acceleration in the built-up area is 0.260 g. For an old house that has never been worked on, an engineer's check of the walls is worth more than any finish.
The Revenue Agency (Agenzia delle Entrate) publishes cadastral maps for Poggio Picenze. The report starts from the address, finds the plot and overlays the official landslide and flood maps, together with the price band for the area.
Key points
- Stone village on the high ground east of L'Aquila, with cold winters.
- 1,010 residents in 2023, down 5.4% since 2011.
- Seismic zone 1, expected acceleration 0.260 g.
- For a repaired house, ask to see the paperwork for the works.
Overview
Poggio Picenze is a municipality in the province of L'Aquila, in Abruzzo. At the end of 2023 it had 1,010 residents, ranked 49 of 108 municipalities in the province.
Earthquakes
For Italy's Civil Protection Department, Poggio Picenze is in seismic zone 1, the highest-risk zone, where very strong earthquakes are possible. Most municipalities in the province (103 of 108) are in the same zone.
In the built-up area, the expected ground shaking (peak ground acceleration, PGA) is about 0.260 g, a high value: the level with a 10% probability of being exceeded in 50 years, on rock.
For anyone buying in Poggio Picenze, 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 5.4%. The estimated average age is 47 years, in line with the province. 27% of residents are over 65 (the regional figure is 26%). Foreign residents make up 12.0% of the population. On average, a household has 2.5 members.
Income and climate
In tax year 2024, taxpayers in Poggio Picenze declared an average taxable income of 22,319 euros, in line with the province (22,903 euros). The Italian average is 24,895 euros.
Poggio Picenze is in climate zone E, with 2,642 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 756 metres above sea level.
Services
In the official Ministry of Education and Ministry of Health lists, Poggio Picenze has 2 schools and 1 pharmacy. The Overture Maps data also lists 2 sports facilities.
The data shows no grocery shops and supermarkets within the municipality, against a provincial average of 0.7 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 7.8% of the land in Poggio Picenze, compared with 3.2% in the province and 5.1% in the region. In 2024 built-up land grew by 1.2 hectares.
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 Poggio Picenze.
Landslides and flooding
Landslide and flood hazard changes from one street to the next even within Poggio Picenze: 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 Poggio Picenze 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 12 inhabited census areas in Poggio Picenze. Half of the residents live in areas scoring 60 or more.
Residents by band
- fair 100.0%
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 066073. The text on this page is generated automatically from the data.