Santa Margherita di Belice: what to know before buying a home
A municipality in the province of Agrigento, Sicilia. Official data on earthquakes, population, services and transport.
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Search for an address in Santa Margherita di Belice
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 Giotto 1, Santa Margherita di Belice.
Santa Margherita di Belice, The Leopard and a rebuilt town
In the Belice valley, in the hilly interior of south-western Sicily, Santa Margherita stands at around 400 metres among vineyards, olive groves and wheat fields. The town is tied to Giuseppe Tomasi di Lampedusa: as a child the writer spent his summers in the Palazzo Filangeri Cutò, the model for Donnafugata in his novel The Leopard. The palazzo now houses a museum devoted to the book.
The 1968 earthquake destroyed much of the old centre. Reconstruction gave the town new districts, with wide streets and houses from the 1970s and 1980s, next to what survives of the historic core. For a buyer it matters which of the two areas a building is in, because age, materials and the paperwork available all differ.
Seismic hazard remains the central issue. Santa Margherita is in zone 1, the highest level in the classification drawn up by the Civil Protection department, and only 2 other municipalities in the province of Agrigento share it. Expected ground acceleration in the built-up area is about 0.166 g. For a house from the reconstruction, ask for the structural design and the official inspection certificate (collaudo); for an older building that was still standing after 1968, have a surveyor or engineer assess the structure before you sign.
Istat, the national statistics office, counted 5,961 residents in 2023, down 8.9% on 2011, or 583 fewer people. The average age of 45.6 is in line with the province, and foreign residents make up 3.6%. Average declared incomes are below the provincial figure, which is already low, and demand for housing is weak, so plenty of property is on the market.
The Revenue Agency (Agenzia delle Entrate) publishes cadastral maps here, and the report traces the land parcel from the address. On the clay hills of the valley the ground can shift, so landslide hazard should be read for the individual house. The town is in climate zone C, with mild winters.
Key points
- The Filangeri Cutò palace, model for Donnafugata in The Leopard.
- Seismic zone 1, expected acceleration about 0.166 g.
- 5,961 residents, down 8.9% since 2011.
- Post-1968 districts next to the remains of the old centre.
Overview
Santa Margherita di Belice is a municipality in the province of Agrigento, in Sicilia. At the end of 2023 it had 5,961 residents, ranked 19 of 43 municipalities in the province.
Earthquakes
For Italy's Civil Protection Department, Santa Margherita di Belice is in seismic zone 1, the highest-risk zone, where very strong earthquakes are possible. Only 3 of 43 municipalities in the province are in zone 1.
In the built-up area, the expected ground shaking (peak ground acceleration, PGA) is about 0.166 g, a medium-high value: the level with a 10% probability of being exceeded in 50 years, on rock.
For anyone buying in Santa Margherita di Belice, 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 8.9%. The estimated average age is 46 years, in line with the province. 24% of residents are over 65 (the regional figure is 23%). Foreign residents make up 3.6% of the population. On average, a household has 2.3 members.
Income and climate
In tax year 2024, taxpayers in Santa Margherita di Belice declared an average taxable income of 16,314 euros, below the provincial average (18,027 euros). The Italian average is 24,895 euros.
Santa Margherita di Belice is in climate zone C, with 1,218 heating degree days: heating may be switched on from 15 November to 31 March, for up to 10 hours a day. The same table puts the town hall at 400 metres above sea level.
Services
In the official Ministry of Education and Ministry of Health lists, Santa Margherita di Belice has 3 schools and 2 pharmacies. The Overture Maps data also lists 4 grocery shops and supermarkets, 7 healthcare facilities, 4 sports facilities and 2 parks and green areas.
There are 1.2 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 5.5% of the land in Santa Margherita di Belice, compared with 5.8% in the province and 6.6% in the region. In 2024 built-up land grew by 2.5 hectares.
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 Santa Margherita di Belice.
Landslides and flooding
Landslide and flood hazard changes from one street to the next even within Santa Margherita di Belice: 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 Santa Margherita di Belice 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 29 inhabited census areas in Santa Margherita di Belice. 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 084038. The text on this page is generated automatically from the data.