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Sante Marie: what to know before buying a home

A municipality in the province of L'Aquila, Abruzzo. Official data on earthquakes, population, services and transport.

Liveability index free for any address

Search for an address in Sante Marie

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 Roma 1, Sante Marie.

Sante Marie, a mountain village in the western Marsica

Woods, upland meadows and a stone village at over eight hundred metres: Sante Marie is in the western Marsica, in the province of L'Aquila, not far from the border with Lazio. For services people go to Tagliacozzo, close by, and to Avezzano, which is larger and has the hospital.

Buyers here usually want the mountains within manageable reach of Rome, for summers or weekends, or a family house to restore. Homes in the centre are stone-built, on several levels, often with a cellar and loft; newer detached houses stand outside the old core. The climate zone is E: long winters, frequent snow and heating costs to budget for. Declared incomes are below the provincial average.

The population is old: average age 53.6 against 47.5 for the province, over-65s at 35.9% against 26.4%. There were 1,068 residents in 2023, down 11.6% since 2011 according to Istat, the national statistics office, and households are small, averaging 1.68 people. Foreign nationals make up 5.7%.

Like most of the province of L'Aquila (103 of 108 municipalities), Sante Marie is in seismic zone 1. The expected ground acceleration in the built-up area is 0.198 g. For a stone house you need clear information on work done to walls, floors and roof: if the building has had seismic strengthening, the seller should have the plans and the structural sign-off.

The Revenue Agency (Agenzia delle Entrate) publishes cadastral maps, and the report traces the address back to the plot. On the slopes, gradient and landslides are checked on the official maps house by house.

Key points

  • Mountain village in the Marsica, near Tagliacozzo.
  • Average age 53.6, over-65s at 35.9%.
  • Seismic zone 1, expected acceleration 0.198 g.
  • Residents down 11.6% since 2011.

Overview

Sante Marie is a municipality in the province of L'Aquila, in Abruzzo. At the end of 2023 it had 1,068 residents, ranked 47 of 108 municipalities in the province.

Earthquakes

For Italy's Civil Protection Department, Sante Marie is in seismic zone 1, the highest-risk zone, where very strong earthquakes are possible. Most municipalities in the province (103 of 108) are in the same zone.

In the built-up area, the expected ground shaking (peak ground acceleration, PGA) is about 0.198 g, a medium-high value: the level with a 10% probability of being exceeded in 50 years, on rock.

For anyone buying in Sante Marie, 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 11.6%. The estimated average age is 54 years, higher than the province average (48). 36% of residents are over 65 (the regional figure is 26%). Foreign residents make up 5.7% of the population. On average, a household has 1.7 members.

Income and climate

In tax year 2024, taxpayers in Sante Marie declared an average taxable income of 20,325 euros, below the provincial average (22,903 euros). The Italian average is 24,895 euros.

Sante Marie is in climate zone E, with 2,852 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 850 metres above sea level.

Services

In the official Ministry of Education and Ministry of Health lists, Sante Marie has 2 schools and 1 pharmacy. The Overture Maps data also lists 2 grocery shops and supermarkets and 1 green area.

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 2.9% of the land in Sante Marie, compared with 3.2% 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 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 Sante Marie.

Landslides and flooding

Landslide and flood hazard changes from one street to the next even within Sante Marie: 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 Sante Marie 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 15 inhabited census areas in Sante Marie. 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

ISTAT code 066089. The text on this page is generated automatically from the data.