San Benedetto Ullano: what to know before buying a home
A municipality in the province of Cosenza, Calabria. Official data on earthquakes, population, services and transport.
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Search for an address in San Benedetto Ullano
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: Corso Corsini 1, San Benedetto Ullano.
San Benedetto Ullano, an Arbëreshë village above the Crati valley
In San Benedetto Ullano people still speak Arbëresh, the language of the Albanian communities that settled in Calabria centuries ago, and the village is one of the Italo-Albanian centres dotted across the hills west of the Crati valley. The centre lies at around 460 metres, on the slopes of the Catena Costiera, the ridge that separates the valley from the Tyrrhenian Sea.
It sits halfway between the mountains and the urban area of Cosenza and Rende, where the jobs, hospitals and the University of Calabria are. You get there by car, driving down to the valley floor. The village is mostly masonry houses on several levels along sloping streets, with scattered homes and farmland in the surrounding countryside.
The drop in population has been sharp. In 2023 there were 1,367 residents, 14.5% fewer than in 2011, or 231 people. The average age is 47.5 (province: 46.1) and 27.0% are over 65. Declared incomes are well below the provincial average.
In the province of Cosenza, 85 municipalities are in seismic zone 2 and 65 in zone 1, the highest band, San Benedetto Ullano among them. The expected ground acceleration is 0.248 g. Before buying, ask for the structural design and any safety assessments, and for older houses find out when and how they were renovated.
On a hillside like this, landslides and surface runoff have to be assessed plot by plot: the report reads gradient and the official maps at the address. The Revenue Agency's cadastral maps are available.
Key points
- Arbëreshë community on the slopes of the Catena Costiera.
- Population down 14.5% since 2011.
- Seismic zone 1, expected acceleration 0.248 g.
- Work and services in Cosenza, Rende and the university.
Overview
San Benedetto Ullano is a municipality in the province of Cosenza, in Calabria. At the end of 2023 it had 1,367 residents, ranked 95 of 150 municipalities in the province.
Earthquakes
For Italy's Civil Protection Department, San Benedetto Ullano is in seismic zone 1, the highest-risk zone, where very strong earthquakes are possible. Only 65 of 150 municipalities in the province are in zone 1.
In the built-up area, the expected ground shaking (peak ground acceleration, PGA) is about 0.248 g, a medium-high value: the level with a 10% probability of being exceeded in 50 years, on rock.
For anyone buying in San Benedetto Ullano, 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 14.5%. The estimated average age is 47 years, in line with the province. 27% of residents are over 65 (the regional figure is 24%). Foreign residents make up 3.9% of the population. On average, a household has 2.3 members.
Income and climate
In tax year 2024, taxpayers in San Benedetto Ullano declared an average taxable income of 13,498 euros, below the provincial average (18,237 euros). The Italian average is 24,895 euros.
San Benedetto Ullano is in climate zone D, with 1,750 heating degree days: heating may be switched on from 1 November to 15 April, for up to 12 hours a day. The same table puts the town hall at 460 metres above sea level.
Services
In the official Ministry of Education and Ministry of Health lists, San Benedetto Ullano has 4 schools and 1 pharmacy. The Overture Maps data also lists 2 grocery shops and supermarkets.
The data shows no healthcare facilities within the municipality, against a provincial average of 0.6 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 3.2% of the land in San Benedetto Ullano, compared with 4.4% in the province and 5.1% 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 medium. 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 San Benedetto Ullano.
Landslides and flooding
Landslide and flood hazard changes from one street to the next even within San Benedetto Ullano: 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 San Benedetto Ullano 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 San Benedetto Ullano. Half of the residents live in areas scoring 57 or more.
Residents by band
- modest 4.8%
- fair 95.2%
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 078112. The text on this page is generated automatically from the data.