Santo Stefano Quisquina: 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 Santo Stefano Quisquina
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, Santo Stefano Quisquina.
Santo Stefano Quisquina, the Sicani mountains and a hermitage
In the hinterland of Agrigento, in the Sicani mountains, Santo Stefano Quisquina stands at around 700 metres in a landscape of woods, pasture and wheat fields. On the mountain above the town is the hermitage of Santa Rosalia alla Quisquina, tied to the tradition that Palermo's patron saint lived here in a cave before withdrawing to Monte Pellegrino.
The town is far from the cities: Agrigento and Palermo are reached along long inland roads, which weighs on daily life for anyone working elsewhere. The market consists mainly of masonry houses in the centre, often on several floors and on sloping streets, with many homes left empty after emigration. Average declared incomes are below the provincial average.
The population decline is among the steepest in the area. In 2023 there were 3,998 residents, 18.4% fewer than the 4,897 recorded in 2011 by Istat, the national statistics office. The average age is 49.6, well above the provincial 45.6, over-65s make up 29.3% and foreign residents just 0.7%.
Santo Stefano is in seismic zone 2 of the Civil Protection classification, like 27 municipalities in the province of Agrigento, although the expected ground acceleration in the built-up area, about 0.077 g, is among the lowest for this zone. For an old masonry house it is still worth having walls, floors and roof checked before buying, and budgeting for heating: this is climate zone D.
The Revenue Agency (Agenzia delle Entrate) publishes the cadastral maps and the report finds the plot from the address. On the clay slopes of inland Sicily landslides are a real issue: the report checks the official maps and the gradient at the house.
Key points
- Sicani mountain town with the hermitage of Santa Rosalia alla Quisquina.
- Population down 18.4% since 2011.
- Seismic zone 2, expected ground acceleration about 0.077 g.
- Clay slopes: check landslides and gradient for the address.
Overview
Santo Stefano Quisquina is a municipality in the province of Agrigento, in Sicilia. At the end of 2023 it had 3,998 residents, ranked 25 of 43 municipalities in the province.
Earthquakes
For Italy's Civil Protection Department, Santo Stefano Quisquina is in seismic zone 2, a zone where strong earthquakes are possible. Most municipalities in the province (27 of 43) are in the same zone.
In the built-up area, the expected ground shaking (peak ground acceleration, PGA) is about 0.077 g, a moderate value: the level with a 10% probability of being exceeded in 50 years, on rock.
For anyone buying in Santo Stefano Quisquina, 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 18.4%. The estimated average age is 50 years, higher than the province average (46). 29% of residents are over 65 (the regional figure is 23%). Foreign residents make up 0.7% of the population. On average, a household has 2.1 members.
Income and climate
In tax year 2024, taxpayers in Santo Stefano Quisquina declared an average taxable income of 16,757 euros, below the provincial average (18,027 euros). The Italian average is 24,895 euros.
Santo Stefano Quisquina is in climate zone D, with 1,688 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 730 metres above sea level.
Services
In the official Ministry of Education and Ministry of Health lists, Santo Stefano Quisquina has 3 schools and 2 pharmacies. The Overture Maps data also lists 3 grocery shops and supermarkets, 2 healthcare facilities and 1 green area.
There are 0.5 pharmacies per 1,000 residents, more than the province average (0.4).
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 2.8% of the land in Santo Stefano Quisquina, compared with 5.8% in the province and 6.6% in the region. In 2024 built-up land grew by 0.8 hectares.
Radon and contaminated sites
Official databases list no contaminated sites in Santo Stefano Quisquina.
Landslides and flooding
Landslide and flood hazard changes from one street to the next even within Santo Stefano Quisquina: 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 Santo Stefano Quisquina 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 Santo Stefano Quisquina. Half of the residents live in areas scoring 71 or more.
Residents by band
- fair 11.1%
- good 88.9%
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 084040. The text on this page is generated automatically from the data.