Portopalo di Capo Passero: what to know before buying a home
A municipality in the province of Siracusa, Sicilia. Official data on earthquakes, population, services and transport.
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Search for an address in Portopalo di Capo Passero
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 Vittorio Emanuele 1, Portopalo di Capo Passero.
Portopalo di Capo Passero, Sicily's south-eastern tip
Portopalo di Capo Passero is the municipality at the far south-eastern corner of Sicily, where the Ionian Sea meets the Strait of Sicily. Off the town lies the island of Capo Passero with its fort, and a little to the west is the Isola delle Correnti, usually taken as the southernmost point of Sicily. The town lives on fishing, with a busy fishing harbour, greenhouse farming and summer tourism; Pachino is the nearest larger town.
The housing market is split between village houses, often simple and built in stages, and villas and second homes along the coast, much in demand in summer. Near the sea, check the distance from the shoreline, planning restrictions and whether the building is fully authorised, as well as salt damage to steel and render. Average declared incomes are much lower than in the province of Siracusa.
The population is holding up: 3,817 residents in 2023, up 1.8% on 2011 according to Istat, the national statistics office. The estimated average age of 44.6 is slightly below the province (45.4), with over-65s at 21.7% and foreign residents at 3.4%.
South-eastern Sicily is a significant earthquake area: in the province of Siracusa, 17 municipalities are in zone 1 of the Civil Protection Department's scale. Portopalo is one of the few in zone 2, along with 3 others, with an expected ground acceleration of about 0.101 g. Even so, for a reinforced concrete building a few decades old it is worth having the concrete and steel bars checked, as sea air often corrodes them.
The cadastral maps are published and the report traces an address to its plot. On the low-lying coast it also checks flood and storm-surge maps at the exact spot.
Key points
- Sicily's south-eastern tip, with Capo Passero island and a fishing port.
- 3,817 residents in 2023, up 1.8% since 2011.
- Seismic zone 2, like only 3 other towns in the province.
- Sea air: check concrete, steel bars and render.
Overview
Portopalo di Capo Passero is a municipality in the province of Siracusa, in Sicilia. At the end of 2023 it had 3,817 residents, ranked 17 of 21 municipalities in the province.
Earthquakes
For Italy's Civil Protection Department, Portopalo di Capo Passero is in seismic zone 2, a zone where strong earthquakes are possible. Only 4 of 21 municipalities in the province are in zone 2.
In the built-up area, the expected ground shaking (peak ground acceleration, PGA) is about 0.101 g, a moderate value: the level with a 10% probability of being exceeded in 50 years, on rock.
For anyone buying in Portopalo di Capo Passero, 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 grown by 1.8%. The estimated average age is 45 years, in line with the province. 22% of residents are over 65 (the regional figure is 23%). Foreign residents make up 3.4% of the population. On average, a household has 2.4 members.
Income and climate
In tax year 2024, taxpayers in Portopalo di Capo Passero declared an average taxable income of 15,026 euros, below the provincial average (20,509 euros). The Italian average is 24,895 euros.
Portopalo di Capo Passero is in climate zone B, with 728 heating degree days: heating may be switched on from 1 December to 31 March, for up to 8 hours a day. The same table puts the town hall at 20 metres above sea level.
Services
In the official Ministry of Education and Ministry of Health lists, Portopalo di Capo Passero has 3 schools and 1 pharmacy. The Overture Maps data also lists 3 grocery shops and supermarkets, 3 healthcare facilities and 1 sports facility.
There are 0.8 healthcare facilities per 1,000 residents, more 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 19.4% of the land in Portopalo di Capo Passero, compared with 9.2% 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 Portopalo di Capo Passero.
Landslides and flooding
Landslide and flood hazard changes from one street to the next even within Portopalo di Capo Passero: 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 Portopalo di Capo Passero 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 14 inhabited census areas in Portopalo di Capo Passero. Half of the residents live in areas scoring 78 or more.
Residents by band
- fair 12.8%
- good 65.4%
- very good 21.7%
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
- 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 089020. The text on this page is generated automatically from the data.