Quattro Castella: what to know before buying a home
A municipality in the province of Reggio nell'Emilia, Emilia-Romagna. Official data on earthquakes, population, services and transport.
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Search for an address in Quattro Castella
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 Filippo Turati 1, Quattro Castella.
Quattro Castella, Matilda's hills above Reggio Emilia
Quattro Castella, "four castles", takes its name from the four hills that rise south-west of Reggio Emilia, where the plain meets the first slopes of the Apennines. Each once had a castle linked to Matilda of Canossa, the medieval countess who ruled much of northern Italy; the best preserved today is Bianello, and every year the town marks its history with a costumed procession.
The municipality has two sides. At the foot of the hills are the main village and hamlets such as Puianello and Montecavolo, which grew as residential areas for people working in Reggio, with detached and terraced houses and small blocks of flats. Higher up there are scattered houses, vineyards and woods, reached by narrow, sloping roads. Declared incomes are above the provincial average, a hint of the kind of demand found here.
At the end of 2023 Istat, the national statistics office, counted 13,238 residents, up 2.5% on 2011. The estimated average age is 46.4, a little above 45.3 for the province, and over-65s make up 24.4%. Foreign residents make up 5.9%.
The province of Reggio Emilia has 8 municipalities in seismic zone 2 and 34 in zone 3. Quattro Castella is in zone 3, but with an expected ground acceleration of about 0.159 g, high for that class. Anyone looking at a house from the 1960s or 1970s should ask whether the structure has been checked or strengthened.
Slow-moving landslides are common on the slopes of the Emilian Apennines, and in the hills ground conditions change from one plot to the next. The report reads landslide and flood hazard for the address, and the Revenue Agency (Agenzia delle Entrate) cadastral maps, published for the whole municipality, lead back to the plot.
Key points
- Four hills, Bianello castle and a historical procession.
- Population up 2.5%; incomes above the province.
- Seismic zone 3, expected acceleration about 0.159 g.
- Hillside plots: check slow landslides one by one.
Overview
Quattro Castella is a municipality in the province of Reggio nell'Emilia, in Emilia-Romagna. At the end of 2023 it had 13,238 residents, ranked 9 of 42 municipalities in the province.
Earthquakes
For Italy's Civil Protection Department, Quattro Castella is in seismic zone 3, a zone where strong earthquakes are possible but rare. Most municipalities in the province (34 of 42) are in the same zone.
In the built-up area, the expected ground shaking (peak ground acceleration, PGA) is about 0.159 g, a medium-high value: the level with a 10% probability of being exceeded in 50 years, on rock.
Even in zone 3, seismic standards apply to new buildings: for an older building, ask about the design year and any structural work.
Population
Compared with the 2011 census, the resident population has grown by 2.5%. The estimated average age is 46 years, in line with the province. 24% of residents are over 65 (the regional figure is 25%). Foreign residents make up 5.9% of the population. On average, a household has 2.4 members.
Income and climate
In tax year 2024, taxpayers in Quattro Castella declared an average taxable income of 28,891 euros, above the provincial average (27,273 euros). The Italian average is 24,895 euros.
Quattro Castella is in climate zone E, with 2,400 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 161 metres above sea level.
Services
In the official Ministry of Education and Ministry of Health lists, Quattro Castella has 8 schools and 4 pharmacies. The Overture Maps data also lists 10 grocery shops and supermarkets, 3 healthcare facilities, 6 sports facilities and 4 parks and green areas.
There are 0.2 healthcare facilities per 1,000 residents, fewer than the province average (0.5).
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 13.1% of the land in Quattro Castella, compared with 11.1% in the province and 9.0% in the region. In 2024 built-up land grew by 0.7 hectares.
Radon and contaminated sites
Quattro Castella is not among the radon priority areas designated by the Regione Emilia-Romagna in 2026. Radon varies from building to building and can only be known by measuring it, especially on ground floors and in basements.
Official databases list 2 contaminated sites, or sites still under investigation, in Quattro Castella, and one more has been cleaned up or closed. 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 Quattro Castella: 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 Quattro Castella 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 73 inhabited census areas in Quattro Castella. Half of the residents live in areas scoring 62 or more.
Residents by band
- modest 0.3%
- fair 60.4%
- good 39.3%
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.
- Radon priority areas (Legislative Decree 101/2020), Regione Emilia-Romagna, national list compiled by ARPA Lombardia. Licence Atto pubblico (art. 5 L. 633/1941), 2026.
- 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 035030. The text on this page is generated automatically from the data.