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Squillace: what to know before buying a home

A municipality in the province of Catanzaro, Calabria. Official data on earthquakes, population, services and transport.

Liveability index free for any address

Search for an address in Squillace

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 Guglielmo Pepe 1, Squillace.

Squillace, Cassiodorus's hill town and its seaside Lido

The gulf that opens onto the Ionian Sea south of Catanzaro is named after Squillace. The town has two sides: the old centre on a rise inland, with its Norman castle and ceramics workshops, and Squillace Lido on the coast, which grew up along the SS106 road and the Ionian railway. Cassiodorus, the sixth-century writer and statesman who founded the monastery of Vivarium nearby, was born here.

The two parts of the municipality suit different buyers. The old town has stone houses on steep, narrow streets, often in need of work; the Lido is mostly newer low-rise flats and detached houses, many used in summer. Services follow the coast too: Overture Maps data record 6 supermarkets and 22 bars and restaurants, 6.15 per 1,000 residents against 5.13 in the province.

The population is growing. Istat, the national statistics office, counted 3,577 residents in 2023, up 5.2% since 2011. The average age of 45.0 is below the provincial 46.1, and over-65s make up 21.8%. Foreign residents account for 5.1%. Average declared incomes are in line with the Catanzaro area.

Earthquakes are the main issue. Squillace is in seismic zone 1, the highest class set by the Civil Protection Department (the national emergency agency), like 44 other municipalities in the province, with an expected ground acceleration of about 0.220 g. For a house in the old town, find out how the walls and floors are built; for a flat at the Lido, ask for the design date and whether the building meets recent seismic standards.

The Revenue Agency (Agenzia delle Entrate) publishes the cadastral maps. Hazards change between hill and sea: landslides on the slopes below the old town, flooding near the seasonal streams and the coast. The report reads them for the address.

Key points

  • Cassiodorus's home town on the Gulf of Squillace, with a seaside Lido.
  • 3,577 residents in 2023, up 5.2% since 2011.
  • Seismic zone 1, expected acceleration about 0.220 g.
  • More bars and restaurants per resident than the provincial average.

Overview

Squillace is a municipality in the province of Catanzaro, in Calabria. At the end of 2023 it had 3,577 residents, ranked 21 of 80 municipalities in the province.

Earthquakes

For Italy's Civil Protection Department, Squillace is in seismic zone 1, the highest-risk zone, where very strong earthquakes are possible. Most municipalities in the province (45 of 80) are in the same zone.

In the built-up area, the expected ground shaking (peak ground acceleration, PGA) is about 0.220 g, a medium-high value: the level with a 10% probability of being exceeded in 50 years, on rock.

For anyone buying in Squillace, 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 grown by 5.2%. The estimated average age is 45 years, in line with the province. 22% of residents are over 65 (the regional figure is 24%). Foreign residents make up 5.1% of the population. On average, a household has 2.1 members.

Income and climate

In tax year 2024, taxpayers in Squillace declared an average taxable income of 19,693 euros, in line with the province (19,667 euros). The Italian average is 24,895 euros.

Squillace is in climate zone C, with 1,258 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 344 metres above sea level.

Services

In the official Ministry of Education and Ministry of Health lists, Squillace has 6 schools and 2 pharmacies. The Overture Maps data also lists 6 grocery shops and supermarkets, 3 healthcare facilities and 3 sports facilities.

There are 1.7 grocery shops and supermarkets per 1,000 residents, more than the province average (0.7).

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 7.5% of the land in Squillace, compared with 6.6% in the province and 5.1% in the region. In 2024 built-up land grew by 1.5 hectares.

Radon and contaminated sites

Official databases list no contaminated sites in Squillace.

Landslides and flooding

Landslide and flood hazard changes from one street to the next even within Squillace: 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 Squillace 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 21 inhabited census areas in Squillace. Half of the residents live in areas scoring 60 or more.

Residents by band

  • modest 1.8%
  • fair 98.2%

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

ISTAT code 079142. The text on this page is generated automatically from the data.