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Racines: what to know before buying a home

A municipality in the province of Bolzano/Bozen, Trentino-Alto Adige/Südtirol. Official data on earthquakes, population, services and transport.

Liveability index free for any address

Search for an address in Racines

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: Localita' Stanghe 1, Racines.

Racines, three mountain valleys above Vipiteno

Racines, Ratschings in German, covers the valleys opening to the west of Vipiteno (Sterzing): Val Ridanna, Val di Racines and Val di Giovo, which climbs towards the pass into the Passiria valley. The territory is large and almost entirely mountainous, with farmsteads, hay meadows, forest and small villages; only a tiny share of the land is built on.

Life revolves around Vipiteno, which has the station on the Brenner line, the larger shops and many of the jobs, and around tourism: in winter there is the Racines-Giovo ski area, and in Val Ridanna the museum of the Monteneve mines. Public transport serves 90 stops on 6 bus routes. German is the language most people speak.

It is a growing, young municipality. Istat, the national statistics office, counted 4,646 residents in 2023, up 5.9% since 2011, with an average age of 41.1, below the provincial 43.4, and over-65s at 16.2%. Foreign residents make up 5.4%.

Buyers should know three things. Property registration follows the tavolare system: ownership is recorded in the land register (libro fondiario, Grundbuch), and the Revenue Agency does not publish its cadastral maps here, so the report works from the address without tracing the land parcel. In South Tyrol some homes are subject to a residency restriction, reserved for people living and working in the province, and that restriction is written into the land register itself. Then there is the mountain setting: climate zone F, long winters, steep slopes and torrents. Earthquake risk is low (seismic zone 4, acceleration about 0.040 g), while landslides and flooding should be checked for the address.

Key points

  • Val Ridanna, Val di Racines and Val di Giovo, west of Vipiteno.
  • 4,646 residents, up 5.9% since 2011.
  • Tavolare system: ownership is in the land register.
  • Seismic zone 4; 90 bus stops.

Overview

Racines is a municipality in the province of Bolzano/Bozen, in Trentino-Alto Adige/Südtirol. At the end of 2023 it had 4,646 residents, ranked 25 of 116 municipalities in the province.

Earthquakes

For Italy's Civil Protection Department, Racines is in seismic zone 4, the lowest-risk zone, where strong earthquakes are very rare. All 116 municipalities in the province are in the same zone.

In the built-up area, the expected ground shaking (peak ground acceleration, PGA) is about 0.040 g, a low value: the level with a 10% probability of being exceeded in 50 years, on rock.

In zone 4 the risk is low, but for an older building it is still worth asking about the state of the structure.

Population

Compared with the 2011 census, the resident population has grown by 5.9%. The estimated average age is 41 years, lower than the province average (43). 16% of residents are over 65 (the regional figure is 22%). Foreign residents make up 5.4% of the population. On average, a household has 2.4 members.

Income and climate

In tax year 2024, taxpayers in Racines declared an average taxable income of 28,778 euros, in line with the province (28,222 euros). The Italian average is 24,895 euros.

Racines is in climate zone F, with 3,704 heating degree days, with no limits on when heating may be used. The same table puts the town hall at 976 metres above sea level.

Services

In the official Ministry of Health lists, Racines has 1 pharmacy. The Overture Maps data also lists 2 grocery shops and supermarkets, 6 sports facilities and 3 parks and green areas.

The data shows no schools within the municipality, against a provincial average of 0.2 per 1,000 residents.

Public transport

Within the municipality there are 90 public transport stops, served by 6 bus lines. That is about 19.4 stops per 1,000 residents.

How built-up it is

Buildings, roads, car parks and other sealed surfaces cover 1.3% of the land in Racines, compared with 2.7% in the province and 2.9% in the region. In 2024 built-up land grew by 1.9 hectares.

Radon and contaminated sites

Racines is one of the municipalities designated as a radon priority area by the Provincia autonoma di Bolzano 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 no contaminated sites in Racines.

Landslides and flooding

Landslide and flood hazard changes from one street to the next even within Racines: 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

For Racines the Revenue Agency does not publish cadastral maps: the land registry here uses the tavolare (land book) system. The report cannot give a parcel reference, but it still checks risks, services and transport at the address and states this clearly.

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 79 inhabited census areas in Racines. Half of the residents live in areas scoring 64 or more.

Residents by band

  • fair 61.2%
  • good 38.8%

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

ISTAT code 021070. The text on this page is generated automatically from the data.